Fitness and classes · Metro area · Alabama
Gyms and studios in the Birmingham, AL metro area
How the Birmingham, AL metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for gyms and studios: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 36 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #314 of 387 scored metro areas
#9 of 12 scored metro areas based in Alabama
- Listings
- 621
- 161 chain locations (26%)
- Official establishments
- 259
- +8.4% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $342.5M
- On memberships, classes and admissions · $736 a household
- Spending per listing
- $551K
- 17% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 13.4
- 10% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 1,197,766
- +1.4% since 2020
See the gyms and studios around any address in the Birmingham metro area
The site report maps the gyms and studios on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of the Birmingham metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
The Birmingham metro area scores 36 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for gyms and studios, ranking #314 of 387 scored metro areas and #9 of 12 scored metro areas based in Alabama. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.
Households in the Birmingham metro area spend about $342.5M a year on memberships, classes and admissions, or $736 per household, 25% below the U.S. average. Spread across 621 gyms and studios, that is $551K per location, 17% below the U.S. figure of $662K.
The Birmingham metro area has 621 gyms and studios on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 26% of them, against 20% across the U.S. That comes to 13.4 for every 10,000 households, 10% below the U.S. rate of 14.9.
Official counts show 259 businesses with payroll classed as fitness centers and recreation instruction in the Birmingham metro area in 2023, up 8.4% from 2019. That is one for every 1,795 households, against one for every 1,641 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 24 SBA-backed loans worth $15.1M have gone to businesses classed as fitness centers and recreation instruction in the Birmingham metro area. Population estimates put the population change in the Birmingham metro area from 2020 to 2025 at +1.4%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Birmingham metro area compares
The same measures for Alabama and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all memberships, classes and admissions by the gyms and studios counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.
| Measure | Birmingham metro area | Alabama | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 13.4 | 11.7 | 14.9 |
| Spending per listing | $551K | $562K | $662K |
| Households per official establishment | 1,795 | 2,352 | 1,641 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +8.4% | +12.3% | +8.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +1.4% | +3.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on memberships, classes and admissions | $736 | $656 | $983 |
| Median household income | $71,498 | $63,999 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 36 | 46 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 259+8.4% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 3,570
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $58M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 621161 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 517The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 24
- Amount
- $15.1M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as fitness centers and recreation instruction in the Birmingham metro area, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.
Population and households in the Birmingham metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 1,197,766+1.4% since 2020
- Households
- 465,003
- Median age
- 40.0
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 71%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 5,280 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 224
- Median household income
- $71,498
- Average household income
- $100,521
- Median home value
- $240,200
- Jobs located here
- 555,318
- Daytime population
- 1,227,371Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Birmingham metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the gyms and studios on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Birmingham metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardGyms, studios and classes across Alabama
Every Alabama market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Alabama for gyms and studios, numbered among those based in Alabama (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Birmingham metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Alabama
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Decatur, AL | 64 | 51 | 8.1 | $818K | +2.5% | #66 of 387 |
| 2Tuscaloosa, AL | 58 | 93 | 8.8 | $712K | +2.9% | #109 of 387 |
| 3Auburn-Opelika, AL | 52 | 77 | 10.0 | $654K | +7.1% | #164 of 387 |
| 4Huntsville, AL | 49 | 310 | 15.0 | $569K | +12.5% | #200 of 387 |
| 5Gadsden, AL | 45 | 35 | 8.9 | $589K | +0.4% | #246 of 387 |
| 6Florence-Muscle Shoals, AL | 45 | 73 | 11.5 | $525K | +3.5% | #251 of 387 |
| 7Daphne-Fairhope-Foley, AL | 42 | 180 | 18.3 | $418K | +14.8% | #276 of 387 |
| 8Dothan, AL | 37 | 68 | 11.1 | $521K | +3.4% | #311 of 387 |
| 9Birmingham, AL | 36 | 621 | 13.4 | $551K | +1.4% | #314 of 387 |
| Columbus, GA-AL | 32 | 144 | 11.3 | $538K | −1.3% | #344 of 387 |
Other business types in the Birmingham metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
- Gyms, studios and classes36
- Gyms30
- Yoga, Pilates and fitness studios42
- Martial arts and dance studios46
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many gyms and studios are in the Birmingham, AL metro area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 621 gyms and studios in the Birmingham metro area. 161 of them (26%) are chain locations. The listings count gyms, fitness studios, martial arts and dance studios. Official counts show 259 businesses with payroll classed as fitness centers and recreation instruction in 2023, up 8.4% from 2019.
How much do households in the Birmingham, AL metro area spend on memberships, classes and admissions?
About $342.5M a year, or $736 per household. That is 25% below the U.S. average (an index of 75, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 621 gyms and studios on map listings, it comes to $551K per location. It is estimated from the incomes of the 465,003 households in the Birmingham metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Birmingham, AL metro area compare with the U.S. for gyms and studios?
The Birmingham metro area has 13.4 gyms and studios per 10,000 households, 10% below the U.S. rate of 14.9. Spending per location is $551K, 17% below the U.S. figure of $662K. At the U.S. ratio of gyms and studios to household spending, the Birmingham metro area would have about 517, against 621 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,795 households, against one for every 1,641 across the U.S. The official count rose 8.4% from 2019 to 2023, against +8.2% for the U.S.
How fast is the Birmingham, AL metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Birmingham metro area at 1,197,766 people in 2025, up 1.4% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 465,003 households. The median household income in the Birmingham metro area is $71,498 a year, 11% below the U.S. median of $80,734.
What is the Groundwork market score?
The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. The Birmingham metro area scores 36 for gyms and studios (lower middle), #314 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Birmingham metro area. It maps the gyms and studios on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.
How the score works · Top markets for gyms and studios · All 56 business types in the Birmingham metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Birmingham metro area?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
The button opens the report at the center of the Birmingham metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.