The Price Of Massage Therapy In San Francisco

Are you interested in working with a massage therapist in SF and wondering: “How much does a massage cost in San Francisco?” Today I’m going to dive deep into this question so you can decide which massage therapist is right for you and your budget.

The Short Answer

In case you want a short answer, a massage therapy session in San Francisco ranges from $70-$265 per hour (without tip).

The Long Answer

The cost of massage therapy depends on the location of your massage therapist in San Francisco, their level and type of training, their membership/package options, and the expectation of tips. In the rest of this article will discuss each of these factors and provide concrete examples (with links) to therapists at every price point.

The Location Of Your Therapist In San Francisco And Price

As a massage therapist in San Francisco over the past 6 years, I’ve worked in many different environments, and locations. I’ve also worked in some of the most expensive clinics downtown. And what clients often fail to notice is that if they’re coming into a downtown San Francisco office, a large portion of that fee goes to covering the cost of rent. Hence, more expensive locations in San Francisco have to charge more just to cover their overhead. That’s not to say you shouldn’t get massage/bodywork in an expensive location, but you should be aware that if you’re paying $200 an hour downtown, most of that fee is not going to your therapist. If you want to pay less for massage therapy, I recommend looking for therapists who works from home or in less expensive parts of San Francisco.

The Type Of Massage Therapy

Another HUGE factor in the price of massage is the education of your massage therapist and the type of massage therapy they provide. Many people don’t realize that some massage therapists hold many advanced certifications, and a massage therapist may have invested $25,000-$50,000 and thousands of hours of their time in learning advanced techniques and assessments. These therapists generally charge $130-$220 per drop in hour (tip not included). If you are looking for a massage therapist to help you with a specific painful or problematic area, this is how much you can expect to pay.

On the other end of the spectrum are massage therapists with less education, and/or massage therapists offering Asian based massage techniques. Please note that I’m not saying Asian based massage therapy techniques are worth less than other techniques. All I’m saying is that massage therapists using Asian-based techniques tend to charge a lot less than practitioners offering deep tissue massage, myofascial release, and other western based techniques. These practitioners tend to charge $70-$125 per hour (tip not included). If your goal is to get a great massage, prefer Asian modalities, and/or don’t need the most educated therapist on the market, a therapist in this category may be right for you.

Memberships And Packages

Many massage therapists and clinics offer discounts for clients who purchase multiple sessions up front or opt for memberships. Generally, membership and package rates are 10% off drop in rates, but sometimes they can be higher. For example, Mary Morales charges $265 per hour, but he sells 10 sessions packages for $1800. I personally offer 13% off my drop in rates for packages and memberships, which drops my rate from $150 to $130 per hour (flat rate). If you want to spend less for high quality massage therapy, ask your therapist if they offer packages or memberships.

Tips - The "Hidden" Cost And How To Avoid Them (Or Not)

I personally despise the tipping industry. My preference would be that each professional charges whatever they need to charge to make a living and that tipping was either non-existent or completely optional. However, the reality is that if you are seeing a massage therapist who works for someone else, they are most likely relying on that tip to make ends meet. I recommend planning to tip your massage therapist 15% IF they work for someone else.

How To Avoid Tips

Here’s the good news: if you want to avoid hidden fees in tips, you can. There are many massage therapists, like me, in private practice, who don’t need to be tipped because they set their own rates and take home most of the fee you pay for themselves. My personal policy is that I graciously accept tips, but do not expect them. I know other massage therapists in private practice who have this exact same policy. If you’re wondering if your massage therapist expects to be tipped, I recommend explicitly asking them so you can understand their true rate.

Massage Therapy At Every Price Point

As promised, here is a list of massage therapists and their price points.

Order low to high

Jan Massage – $70 per hour. Package/Membership: Not Mentioned. Tips: Recommended.

Tub Tim Siam – ~$100 per hour. Package/memberships: Not on website, but other discounts available. Tips: Recommended.

Massage Therapy On Thumbtack – $70 -$150 per hour. Packages/Memberships: Often yes. Tips: Ask your therapist.

The Big Hand Massage – $120 per hour. Packages/memberships: Probably. Tips: ask about policy. Therapist in private practice.

Massage Lab – ~ $125 per hour. Packages/memberships: Yes. Tips: Recommended.

Pain Solutions Massage Therapy (Me!) – $150 per hour. Packages/memberships. Yes, 13% off with additional benefits. Tips: Accepted, not expected.

Robert Gazso, Pain/Injury Rehabilitation Specialist – $165 per hour. Packages/memberships: Yes. Tips: Accepted, not required.

Psoas Massage And Bodywork – $125-$190 per hour. Packages/memberships: Yes. Tips: Yes, they ask for them.

Inline Bodies – $190-$230. Packages/memberships: Maybe. Tips: ask about policy.

Morales Method – $265 per hour. Packages/Memberships: Yes. Tips: ask about policy.