How many consoles should a new PS club start with?

Many clubs open with 4–6 stations. That is enough to handle the evening peak while keeping the investment manageable. Growing after you see real first-month occupancy is the safer route. If space allows, add one VIP room: a separate rate lifts the average bill.

What is the biggest cost?

Consoles are a one-off purchase. The heaviest monthly cost is usually rent, followed by wages and utilities, which is why location and opening hours drive revenue so directly. Keeping a reserve of at least three months of rent and wages before opening is sensible.

How should I set the hourly rate?

Look at nearby clubs, the standard of your venue and your own costs. Separate daytime and evening rates, plus 3- and 5-hour packages, help fill quiet hours. Test your rates during the first month, but avoid changing them too often, because regulars get confused.

What do I need to do legally?

In general, owners check business registration, tax accounting, cash register requirements, the lease agreement and fire safety. This is not legal advice: requirements can change, so confirm everything with an accountant or lawyer before you open.

Can I run a club without software?

With one or two consoles and a single person on the desk, yes. Once stations multiply, shifts begin and snack sales pick up, a notebook and timer stop coping: bookings get lost, extensions are forgotten, cash does not reconcile. Software keeps booking, session and payment in one record.

How much does Heselo cost for a PS club?

The Small plan for gaming / PS clubs starts from 15 USD per month. Medium and Large plans unlock as your station and booking volume grows, and annual billing includes two months free. The full table is on the pricing page, and a demo lets you test with your own stations.

Guides

How to open a PlayStation club: step by step

A PlayStation club can start with modest capital, but it rewards discipline. Buying consoles is the easy part; the hard part is filling quiet hours, never losing a booking and closing the night-shift cash drawer correctly. This guide walks through the key steps before opening and during your first month.

Last updated: 23 September 2026

What does Heselo give a PS club?

Heselo ties station bookings to live sessions, extensions and snack sales on the same bill, and payment to the cash shift. Starting this way means you do not migrate from paper and timers later.

Station schedule and bookings
Live session, extensions, add-on sales
Cash shift and end-of-day report
Small plan from 15 USD/month

Who is this guide for?

People planning their first PS club, owners starting with 2–3 consoles who want to grow, and cafés or anticafes adding a gaming zone.

If your club is already running, the daily operations and first-30-days sections are still worth a read.

Location and floor plan

Most customers are students and young people, so being close to universities, schools, residential blocks and metro stations usually matters more than a street-front window. Before signing the lease, confirm noise rules, permitted opening hours and available electrical capacity.

Plan the room station by station: a sofa, a screen and walking space for each PS. One or two private VIP rooms can be sold at a higher hourly rate than the main hall.

Roughly 6–9 m² per station (sofa, screen, walkway)
Separate electrical circuits and plenty of sockets
Sound insulation, especially with flats above or next door
Ventilation and air conditioning: consoles and people heat a room fast
A front desk that can see the hall and sits near the entrance

Equipment checklist

You do not need the most expensive model of everything on day one, but do not cut corners on what customers hold and look at: controllers, screens and seating. A faulty controller is the fastest way to lose a regular.

PS5 consoles: 4–6 stations is a realistic starting point
A 55–65 inch TV or monitor per station
At least 2 controllers per console, plus 2–3 spares
Popular titles: football, fighting, racing. Track what actually gets played in month one
Stable internet and a router, wired where possible
A controller charging dock and spare cables
A laptop or tablet for the front desk and a card payment terminal
A fridge and shelving for snacks and drinks

Registration, tax and permits (general information)

This section is not legal advice: requirements change and depend on your type of activity. Confirm the details with an accountant or lawyer before opening.

Owners typically check the following:

Legal form: sole proprietor or limited liability company
Tax registration and a suitable tax regime
Cash register requirements for cash and card sales
A formal lease agreement
Fire safety and an evacuation route
Terms for commercial use of games and subscriptions

Daily operations: booking → session → cash

A PS club day runs in three steps. A customer calls or messages, and a station is booked. When they arrive, the booking becomes a live session: time is tracked, and extensions and snacks go on the same bill. When the session ends, payment is taken and recorded in the current cash shift.

When these steps live in different places (a notebook, a phone, a timer, a spreadsheet), mistakes are inevitable: two groups get booked on the same console, an extension is forgotten, the night cash count does not match.

Booking: station, time slot, customer name and phone
Session: start time, rate, extensions, add-on sales
Cash: cash and card, discounts, shift opening and closing

When do you need software?

With two consoles and the owner behind the desk, a notebook works. The need for software usually appears with more than four stations, shift staff, evening peaks and the recurring question of why the cash drawer is short.

Starting with a system from day one is easier than migrating later: no spreadsheets to transfer and no staff to retrain. Heselo’s Small plan for gaming / PS clubs starts from 15 USD per month.

Checklist for your first 30 days

The first month is for testing prices, opening hours and staffing. Review results every week and change one thing at a time, not everything at once.

Publish your rates and hours, and record every booking in the system
Close every shift with a cash count
Note which hours stay empty and consider a daytime package
Track the most-played games and any faulty controllers
Count snack and drink stock once a week
Set up Instagram and Google Maps profiles with real photos and opening hours
Day 30: compare occupancy per station and the average bill

Guides →