Fitness and classes · Small-town market · Illinois
Gyms and studios in the Sterling, IL area
How the Sterling, IL area compares with other small-town markets and the U.S. for gyms and studios: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 59 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #164 of 535 scored small-town markets
#5 of 20 scored small-town markets based in Illinois
- Listings
- 26
- 6 chain locations (23%)
- Official establishments
- 4
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $17.5M
- On memberships, classes and admissions · $755 a household
- Spending per listing
- $672K
- In line with the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 11.2
- 25% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 54,121
- −2.6% since 2020
See the gyms and studios around any address in the Sterling 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 Sterling 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
Map listings as of September 2026 show 26 gyms and studios in the Sterling area. Chain locations make up 23% of them, against 20% across the U.S. That is 11.2 per 10,000 households, 25% below the U.S. rate of 14.9.
Households in the Sterling area spend about $17.5M a year on memberships, classes and admissions, or $755 per household, 23% below the U.S. average. That is about $672K of household spending for each location on map listings, in line with the U.S. figure of $662K.
In 2023, official counts showed 4 businesses with payroll in the Sterling area classed as fitness centers and recreation instruction. That is one for every 5,780 households, against one for every 1,641 across the U.S.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Sterling area declined 2.6%, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Groundwork market score for gyms and studios in the Sterling area is 59 (upper middle), #164 of 535 scored small-town markets and #5 of 20 scored small-town markets based in Illinois.
How the Sterling area compares
The same measures for Illinois 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 | Sterling area | Illinois | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 11.2 | 14.6 | 14.9 |
| Spending per listing | $672K | $720K | $662K |
| Households per official establishment | 5,780 | 1,668 | 1,641 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +3.0% | +8.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −2.6% | −0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on memberships, classes and admissions | $755 | $1,054 | $983 |
| Median household income | $67,500 | $83,390 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 59 | 51 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 4
- Employees, 2023
- 85
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $1.1M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 266 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 26The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 0
- Amount
- $0
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as fitness centers and recreation instruction in the Sterling 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 Sterling area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 54,121−2.6% since 2020
- Households
- 23,120
- Median age
- 43.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 77%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 684 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 80
- Median household income
- $67,500+24.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $86,592
- Median home value
- $127,100
- Jobs located here
- 20,819
- Daytime population
- 50,543Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Sterling area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. 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 Sterling 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 Illinois
Every Illinois market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Illinois for gyms and studios, numbered among those based in Illinois, with the Sterling area marked.
Top small-town markets in Illinois
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Rochelle, IL | 69 | 24 | 11.5 | $787K | −0.7% | #64 of 535 |
| 2Pontiac, IL | 64 | 15 | 10.3 | $818K | −2.1% | #104 of 535 |
| 3Effingham, IL | 64 | 25 | 13.8 | $634K | −0.9% | #113 of 535 |
| 4Mount Vernon, IL | 60 | 12 | 8.1 | $885K | −2.3% | #145 of 535 |
| 5Sterling, IL | 59 | 26 | 11.2 | $672K | −2.6% | #164 of 535 |
| 6Taylorville, IL | 58 | 13 | 9.6 | $774K | −1.5% | #172 of 535 |
| 7Ottawa, IL | 57 | 69 | 11.2 | $749K | −1.6% | #182 of 535 |
| 8Marion-Herrin, IL | 54 | 30 | 10.4 | $758K | +0.2% | #220 of 535 |
| 9Centralia, IL | 52 | 12 | 7.7 | $902K | −3.4% | #244 of 535 |
| 10Danville, IL | 49 | 30 | 10.0 | $683K | −3.7% | #294 of 535 |
Other business types in the Sterling 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 classes59
- Gyms59
- Yoga, Pilates and fitness studios
- Martial arts and dance studios39
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many gyms and studios are in the Sterling, IL area?
There are 26 gyms and studios on map listings in the Sterling area as of September 2026. 6 of them (23%) are chain locations. The listings count gyms, fitness studios, martial arts and dance studios. Official counts show 4 businesses with payroll classed as fitness centers and recreation instruction in 2023.
How much do households in the Sterling, IL area spend on memberships, classes and admissions?
About $17.5M a year, or $755 per household. That is 23% below the U.S. average (an index of 77, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 26 gyms and studios on map listings, it comes to $672K per location. It is estimated from the incomes of the 23,120 households in the Sterling area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Sterling, IL area compare with the U.S. for gyms and studios?
The Sterling area has 11.2 gyms and studios per 10,000 households, 25% below the U.S. rate of 14.9. Spending per location is $672K, in line with the U.S. figure of $662K. The count on map listings matches the U.S. ratio of gyms and studios to household spending. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 5,780 households, against one for every 1,641 across the U.S.
How fast is the Sterling, IL area growing?
Population estimates put the Sterling area at 54,121 people in 2025, down 2.6% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 23,120 households. Median household income in the Sterling area is $67,500, 16% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 24.5%, before inflation.
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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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 Sterling area scores 59 for gyms and studios (upper middle), #164 of 535 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Sterling 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 Sterling area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Sterling 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 Sterling 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.