You’ve probably seen the hot new FightCamp home boxing setup on the social media feeds of your favorite boxers and celebs. It looks high tech, but is it worth it? In this article, I do a complete breakdown of everything about FightCamp – including a full price analysis comparing it to a membership at my local boxing gym.
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So what is FightCamp?
FightCamp is a connected at-home boxing package (similar to the Peloton bike, but for boxing). It uses an iOS app to “gamify” your boxing workout, pushing you to beat your previous personal records as well as other participants in the class.
FightCamp’s unique selling proposition lies in 3 main areas:
- The Bluetooth punch trackers that give you data
- The roster of experienced fight coaches that lead their virtual classes
- The community aspect (you can challenge friends, fight for spots on the leaderboard, etc)
The Science Behind Punch Trackers
The punch trackers FightCamp uses are Bluetooth enabled devices you slip into your hand wraps. They measure:
- Punches thrown
- Average punch speed
- Total punch output
The Coaches
FightCamp has signed an impressive roster of fighters and boxing coaches to lead their classes.
This isn’t your grandma’s cardio kickboxing class, these are legit boxing coaches like former US National Team boxer Tommy Duquette and the always high energy Flo Master.
What’s Included?
Depending on the plan you select (more on these below), FightCamp includes a free standing heavy bag, boxing gloves, hand wraps, and punch trackers. Rather than hanging from the ceiling, the punching bag uses a floor base that can be filled with either water or sand.
A FightCamp membership includes all-access to their video library, which now contains hundreds of classes. They’re adding at least 4 new classes every single week.
How much does FightCamp Cost?
FightCamp offers 3 different equipment packages, depending on how much gear you’re looking for. Here’s the exact pricing of each tier, and what’s included:
FightCamp Personal
$1,219 for the equipment
$39/month for the membership
- 1 set of Gloves
- 1 set of Hand Wraps
- Punch Trackers
- Punching Bag
- Workout Mat
FightCamp Tribe
$1,349 for the equipment
$39/month for the membership
- 2 sets of Gloves
- 2 sets of Hand Wraps
- 1 set of Kids’ Gloves
- Punch Trackers
- Punching Bag
- Workout Mat
FightCamp Connect
$439 for the equipment
$39/month for the membership
- 1 set of Hand Wraps
- Punch Trackers
FightCamp also offers financing options, so you can spread your purchase out without a big upfront payment for the equipment.
Their financing plans are 24 months for the Personal and Tribe plans (which comes out to $51/month and $56/month, not including the monthly membership) and 12 months for their Connect plan (which comes out to $37/month, again not including the monthly membership).
Which Plan is Right for Me?
It’s important to note that no matter which plan you select, you can create as many FightCamp accounts as you want. So unless you really need the extra sets of gloves (or have a little boxer at home and want the kids’ gloves), if you don’t have a heavy bag my recommendation is the FightCamp Personal plan.
The FightCamp Connect plan is a new lightweight plan that only includes the hand wraps and punch trackers. This is a great option if you are an experienced boxer and already have a heavy bag and gloves. Since I already have plenty of boxing equipment, this is the plan I went with.
Can I use my own Gloves, Hand Wraps, or Heavy Bag?
Yes, you can 100% use your own gloves and/or hand wraps with FightCamp. This is why I think the Tribe plan is a bit of overkill. Unless you have no boxing equipment at home and want to load up on multiple pairs of gloves and wraps, the Personal plan should be plenty of gear.
If you already have a heavy bag, that’s awesome – you can use that too and save a bunch of money by signing up for their Connect plan. Again, this is the plan I went with.
Unboxing FightCamp
I took a bunch of photos of my FightCamp Connect plan, so you can get an idea of exactly what you’ll get.
Opening the box, you’ll see the 2 Bluetooth punch trackers (with their charger) as well as some quick wraps handwraps.
There was a surprising lack of documentation in the package, no manual or quick start guide or anything. I consider myself reasonably tech savvy, and have bought tons of martial arts gear, but to be honest I didn’t really know what the next step was here.
The bluetooth trackers themselves slot into a USB charger:
As someone who as put on a lot of different hand wraps, the FightCamp Quick Wraps are…. weird.
They are almost like a hybrid of an MMA glove and a very short boxing hand wrap. I get that they need to hold the trackers, but I would have preferred something like a more traditional wrap. I don’t feel that the Quick Wraps provide very good protection for a heavy puncher.
The Class Experience
To load up a FightCamp class, you just use their iPhone app. I pair mine with a Bluetooth speaker and set my phone up on a windowsill near my heavy bag.
The classes are well designed. You can filter for boxing or kickboxing workouts, as well as how many rounds of punching you want to get in. All of the classes I’ve taken include a nice warmup and cooldown.
The main unique selling proposition of FightCamp is the punch trackers. Each class gives you a punching goal, and you can monitor your progress in realtime. I really lost interest in this feature, as well as the meh Quick Wraps included in the setup, so I pretty quickly stopped using the punch trackers altogether.
That said, the classes themselves are great. I really enjoyed them without the punch tracking, and they are an excellent conditioning workout to pair with your training at a boxing gym or martial arts academy.
What’s the Return Policy?
FightCamp offers a “30-day Money Back Guarantee” – but this does not include a refund for shipping charges. You’re also responsible for getting your FightCamp back to them, which can be insanely expensive given how heavy it is.
Given the restrictiveness of this return policy, I would not recommend buying a FightCamp package unless you are pretty darn sure that you’re going to use it. Shipping the thing back to them is likely to cost you at least a few hundred bucks.
With any of the FightCamp plans, you do own the gear.
You’ll definitely want to factor this in when calculating if FightCamp is worth it for you.
I checked on OfferUp and there is for sure a secondary market for FightCamp gear. So if you end up deciding this at-home boxing setup is not for you, and you’re outside the return window, you can at least recoup some of your investment.
What does the Membership Contract look like?
All of the FightCamp packages require a $39/month subscription. There is no membership contract.
Unfortunately, they do annoyingly require you to e-mail support with a reason for canceling and go through some back and forth. I think this is actually illegal in California, which now requires companies to let you cancel online if they are taking your initial payment online.
How good is their Customer Service?
If I’m buying an expensive piece of equipment like this, I want to know that they have excellent support and stand behind their product.
FightCamp offers phone, e-mail, and most importantly Live Chat support. I wanted to see how responsive their Live Chat was, so I waited until 7:30am on the Monday of Memorial Day weekend (which is outside of their posted support hours) to ask a couple of questions… they got back to me instantly!
That was reassuring, I do appreciate the fact that I can get ahold of their team via Live Chat if I need help with my account or equipment.
The Bottom Line: is FightCamp Worth the Money?
Let’s run the math based on 1 year with FightCamp’s Personal package (my recommendation for most at-home boxers).
- Equipment cost (bought outright, no financing): $1,219
- Membership cost (12 months at $39/month): $468
- Total cost: $1,687
As we saw earlier, there is definitely a resale market for FightCamp gear, so if for whatever reason after 1 year we decide to ditch the setup it’s not a total loss. Let’s use a pessimistic resale value of $350 for the entire package.
After 1 year, we’re in for $1,337. How does this compare to training at a boxing gym? Well, here is the pricing at my local gym:
As you can see, FightCamp works out to be almost exactly the same price as a 12 month membership at my local boxing club.
Is FightCamp worth it? It depends on your goals. If you’re looking for an at-home fitness workout that incorporates boxing, it is fairly priced compared to training at a boxing gym. If you really want to learn how to box though, there is no substitute for working with a trainer in person.
FightCamp Alternatives
Not sold on FightCamp? It’s definitely not the solution for everyone, especially if you want to seriously learn how to box.
#1: Heavy Bag + Free Online Videos
If you’re looking to train boxing on a budget, my main suggestion would be to pick up a heavy bag and boxing gloves, and use some of my favorite free online heavy bag workouts. You’ll also need a heavy bag mount to hang your punching bag from the ceiling, wall, or a beam.
#2: Dynamic Striking
If you’re OK spending a little money and want a more structured program, check out the instructional programs over at Dynamic Striking. They have courses from boxing trainers like Teddy Atlas, and UFC striking legends like Anderson Silva.
#3: Online Jiu Jitsu Training
Part of the problem with at home boxing training is that it’s questionably effective for actually learning the martial art, even if it is a good workout. You really need to get reps in at the gym, and work with a legit trainer to perfect your form.
Unlike boxing, online Jiu Jitsu training options are clearly meant as a supplement to your classes at an academy. If you’re looking to expand your martial arts knowledge, you can’t go wrong with picking up the basics of BJJ.