Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between fitness specialists and fitness directors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a fitness specialist and a fitness director. Additionally, a fitness director has an average salary of $53,238, which is higher than the $32,472 average annual salary of a fitness specialist.
The top three skills for a fitness specialist include CPR, fitness assessments and ACSM. The most important skills for a fitness director are customer service, CPR, and kids.
| Fitness Specialist | Fitness Director | |
| Yearly salary | $32,472 | $53,238 |
| Hourly rate | $15.61 | $25.60 |
| Growth rate | 19% | 19% |
| Number of jobs | 28,175 | 9,837 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 71% | Bachelor's Degree, 72% |
| Average age | 37 | 37 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
A Fitness Specialist is focused on promoting a healthy lifestyle through exercise and working with clients in various settings. They teach individuals or groups how to properly perform exercises and use exercise equipment.
A fitness director manages a fitness facility's operations. These operations include creating fitness programs, monitoring staff, scheduling shifts, and even managing the fitness center budget. They can also train fitness instructors and even hire and terminate them. They procure the equipment necessary and make sure it works well and is safe. Aside from these tasks, fitness directors must also be akin to the needs of the center, decide on solutions, and have the ability to motivate clients to follow the program that was created for their betterment.
Fitness specialists and fitness directors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Fitness Specialist | Fitness Director | |
| Average salary | $32,472 | $53,238 |
| Salary range | Between $24,000 And $42,000 | Between $33,000 And $85,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Springfield, MA |
| Highest paying state | California | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | University Settlement | |
| Best paying industry | Education | Government |
There are a few differences between a fitness specialist and a fitness director in terms of educational background:
| Fitness Specialist | Fitness Director | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 71% | Bachelor's Degree, 72% |
| Most common major | Kinesiology | Kinesiology |
| Most common college | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill |
Here are the differences between fitness specialists' and fitness directors' demographics:
| Fitness Specialist | Fitness Director | |
| Average age | 37 | 37 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 44.8% Female, 55.2% | Male, 54.8% Female, 45.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 7.1% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 10.6% Asian, 5.1% White, 71.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 7.1% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 10.6% Asian, 5.1% White, 71.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 13% | 13% |