Charging the Right Price for Your CCW Course

How much does gun training cost? One of the most popular gun courses offered by many firearm instructors across the country is a CCW certification course. Since many of the customers you will encounter may be looking for this type of instruction, it’s critical that you understand the right way to price a CCW class.

As a certified firearms instructor, you’ll be rewarded with the knowledge that you’re having a direct effect on promoting the role of responsible gun ownership in America. And since the demand for quality firearms instruction is at an all-time high, the financial benefit can be substantial as well.

It is imperative that you build a pricing model that fully accounts for your costs and is attractive to your customers to build a sustainable and successful firearms training business.

Accounting for your costs

Being a certified firearms instructor is the culmination of a commitment to gaining the necessary knowledge. The best instructors have easily logged hundreds, if not thousands of hours in their pursuit of providing the best instruction available. And this level of expertise is exactly what your customers are coming to you for, so don’t be afraid to charge for it.

Beside the costs of maintaining your certifications and ongoing education, you’ll incur other direct costs while running a CCW course. Requirements vary state by state but generally dictate that a certified CCW course must include a mix of classroom instruction and range time. And as you certainly know from a lifetime of marksmanship, range time is not free. Some instructors have their students pay the range fees directly, while others roll it into the cost of the course. If you decide on the latter, make sure you’re covered because full-day range rentals can approach several hundreds of dollars.

Will you be providing loaner firearms? Ammo? These are questions you must answer before deciding on your course pricing.

Then there are the classroom expenses to consider. Targets, printouts, pens and pencils—sure, these type of expenses are small but really do add up over time. You’ll want to factor these into your CCW course pricing as well.

 Understanding the market

Understanding what other firearms instructors in your area charge is a major factor when deciding the cost of your CCW course. Since every state has unique requirements for a certified CCW course, prices vary significantly by location. Make sure you know what is required so that you can price properly.

The cost of a CCW course ranges from as low as $40, all the way up to $175 or more. However, in most states, students should be able to find a certified course for around $100.

Fight the temptation to price your CCW course too cheaply. Besides being bad for your bottom line, underpricing your services sends a negative signal to your potential clients. A cheaply-priced course will give the impression that you are less qualified than instructors charging a higher price.

Once you have your costs accounted for, price your course according to the value your firearms expertise is really adding.

After you’ve priced your CCW course, take the next step and create a firearms instructor account on Shooting Classes for maximum visibility. That way, when potential students search “Where can I find a concealed carry class near me?” your courses can be easily found.