Setting Rates as a Reiki Practitioner

Article by Angie Webster

It can be challenging to know how to set up rates for Reiki practice. There are so many opinions about money when it comes to this, and many of them are very emotionally charged. In the end, we each need to do what works best for us and for the clients that we wish to serve.

The overall goal is to find a good balance that works to provide a helpful and empowering healing service to those who seek it, and a beneficial exchange for those who provide the healing work and create the healing environment. Yet we all have a different idea on what makes a service “helpful and empowering” and what constitutes a “beneficial exchange.” That’s OK. What really matters is what sort of practice and lifestyle you are creating for yourself. There are a few questions you can look at to help you decide what kind of rates feel best to you.

1) What type of client do you want to work with the most?

Do you mostly want to work with animals? With war veterans? With people working on their spiritual path? With people who have long-term or chronic health conditions and are perhaps on disability? With those who have anxiety and depression? With those who are working on clearing their energy so that they can manifest better lives for themselves? The intention that you set for the types of clients you work with will affect the types of clients you draw to you. The types of clients you attract will affect how much they are capable of paying or if they are able to purchase a session at all. If you would like to charge more money per session, it may be best to focus mostly on those who are interested primarily in spiritual growth. If your goal is primarily to serve those with health issues while making enough to modestly support yourself, then some of the other types of clients may be a good fit. However, the amount of money you make should not be the primary focus in determining the type of client you wish to work with. Look first at the people and the types of energy you enjoy being around the most.

2) What are your own financial blocks?

For this question, we really need to look closely at the way we speak to ourselves about what we have in our lives and what we are open to having. If we speak to ourselves and others through a perception of lack, limits, and ‘not enough’, then that is the energy signal we are sending out. It is our perception that creates the life experience we have, more than any other factor, since we can only perceive (and receive) what we believe in. If we believe in lack and impossibility, then that is what our perception is limited to. So to expand beyond that, it is important to have awareness of these limits. Be wise, but question the automatic thoughts of limit and lack to see if they are real before you immediately believe them.

3) How do I feel about charging money?

As you work with any thoughts of lack and limit with regard to finances, think about this in connection to how you feel when you think about charging money for services. Do you feel guilty? Do you feel desperate? Do you feel attached to the money from your client? Any of these can indicate a space where a financial block is present. Bring awareness to that and to any resistance you may have around the way you work with clients and with money. If you feel resistance to charging any amount of money, think about how you feel when someone gives you something that is very big and useful that you have no way to pay back. At first you feel overcome with gratitude and you are so happy to have the help. But a subconscious part of you feels the need to reciprocate and if you can’t do this in some way, guilt sets in. You may hide or shrink into yourself or you may become angry and defensive, saying you never asked for help anyway! If you can’t see this in yourself, maybe you recognize it in someone you know. The need for the natural flow of giving and receiving is present in all of life. We don’t have to charge any more than a small amount to establish an exchange, which enables the flow of giving and receiving, empowering the other person. That is our goal as healers—to open their energy channels as fully as possible and to empower. We don’t need to charge much, though that is a personal decision.

4) Do I feel I have to charge a lot? Why?

The need to charge a lot can be rooted in thoughts of lack, too. If you feel a sense of attachment to the client or their payment, this may be the case. Also notice feelings of urgency about a client scheduling or about receiving clients or making more money. That sends the energy of desperation, not openness. However, some choose to charge a higher rate to target a specific client base. They have no sense of urgency at all and aren’t concerned about the money. If you choose to charge a lot and opt for a clientele that you know can afford your rates, then all should go well for you.

In the end, the rates you charge and the kind of clients you choose to treat are entirely your own business. Don’t allow the opinions of others to decide for you who you should be serving and how little or how much is appropriate for you to charge. The only one that can decide that is you.

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Angie Webster made a significant contribution to the Reiki community, with a particular focus on Animal Reiki, which she had a deep affection for. As a knowledgeable Reiki Master Teacher and Author, she conducted online courses on energy healing, herbalism, flower essences, and personal growth.
She is the author of “Animal Reiki: How it Heals, Teaches & Reconnects Us with Nature” and “Reiki from A to Z”. Currently, Angie has decided to retire from her professional life to devote more time to her health, family, and the little joys of life.