For a padel, tennis or pickleball school in 2026 you need school management software, not just a court booking app. It has to handle fixed groups by level and category, make-up classes with rules, automatic notifications and payments, the coaches’ schedule and communication with students. Courts can stay in the club’s booking system.
Spain has around 17,000 courts and almost 4,500 clubs, according to the federation’s 2024 figures, and most of them already use some app to book courts. The problem is that a school does not run on one-off bookings: it runs on fixed groups, with students who miss classes, make them up, pay every month and change level. And that does not fit in a court calendar.
What is the difference between booking courts and running a padel school?
A booking app sells court hours to whoever wants them. School software manages people who come every week at the same time, with the same coach and the same group. They are different jobs:
| What you need | Court booking app | Padel school software |
|---|---|---|
| Rent a court for an hour | Yes | Not needed |
| Fixed groups by level and category | Limited | Yes |
| Make up a class with rules | Not usually | Yes |
| Notify students at that level of a free spot | No | Yes |
| Monthly fee, enrollment fee and siblings | Limited | Yes |
| Each coach’s schedule and working hours | Not usually | Yes |
That is why many clubs end up running the school on an Excel sheet and a WhatsApp group next to the booking app. A school that uses Clasbi put it like this: they wanted to leave bookings where they were and run the school separately, with its timetables, students, fees and enrollment.
What does padel school software need to have?
These are the questions worth asking in any demo, and what Clasbi does for each one.
Groups by level and category with capacity limits
Each group has a level, a category (kids or adults, competition or amateur), a timetable, a coach and a fixed number of places. Ask whether capacity is enforced automatically or depends on someone checking it. In Clasbi no request goes over capacity: if the group is full, the student goes on the waiting list.
Make-up classes with your own rules
Ask whether you can set how much notice earns a make-up class, how long it lasts and which groups it can be used in. In Clasbi the student lets you know from their app, earns the make-up class if they do it in time and only sees the classes at their level and category where they can use it. If your school does not offer make-ups, the absence is still recorded. We cover it in detail in how to organize groups by level in a padel school.
Automatic free-spot notifications
When a student misses a class, it leaves a free spot in a class you are already paying for. In Clasbi, students at that level and category with a class to make up get a notification in their app as soon as the place frees up, and the first one to request it gets it. The spot gets filled, the make-up class gets used and the classes you owe do not pile up.
Monthly fees and automatic payments
Ask whether you have to calculate and collect the fees every month or whether the software does it on its own. In Clasbi you decide how each student pays: a fixed fee every month, only the classes they have that month, or a fee every term. If a student has a different price, for example because they come with a sibling, you set it on their profile.
At the start of the month, Clasbi generates every student’s fees and collects them automatically, by card (Stripe or Redsys) or by direct debit batch (remesa). Anyone who prefers to pay by Bizum, bank transfer or cash can do so too: you record the payment and it stays on their profile. All you do is check which fees are still missing.
Automatic notifications and reminders
If it rains, you cancel the class and the group gets the notice instantly, without writing to everyone one by one. The same goes for everything that gets sent by WhatsApp today: when a fee is collected, the student gets their receipt; if a fee is still pending, Clasbi sends them a reminder; and when a spot frees up at their level, they get the notification to make up a class. We cover it in how a padel school handles absences, rain and fees.
Coaches and working-hours records
Each coach sees their schedule and who is coming to their class, and takes attendance from their phone. On top of that, in Spain recording working hours is mandatory for any employed coach, and in Clasbi they clock in from their phone and the record is saved. Check whether teacher time tracking is mandatory.
Your data is yours
Ask what happens if you leave. In Clasbi you export students, groups, fees and payments at no cost. If you are coming from another program, see how to switch software without losing data.
How does a padel school get started with Clasbi?
With a 30-minute call where you tell us about your groups, levels, rates and make-up rules. We move your students, groups and coaches from your Excel sheet or whatever program you use, and the school is up and running in 72 hours. You can start with timetables and fees and add the rest as you go.
There are already padel schools running on Clasbi for padel and tennis schools, and it works just as well for a pickleball school. If your school teaches on a club’s courts, the club keeps its booking system and you run the school in Clasbi. And if you have other activities besides padel, you have everything in our academy management software.
