Fitness and classes · Metro area · Michigan
Gyms and studios in the Bay City, MI metro area
How the Bay City, MI 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 52 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #166 of 387 scored metro areas
#11 of 15 scored metro areas based in Michigan
- Listings
- 51
- 6 chain locations (12%)
- Official establishments
- 10
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $32.9M
- On memberships, classes and admissions · $730 a household
- Spending per listing
- $646K
- 2% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 11.3
- 24% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 102,123
- −1.6% since 2020
See the gyms and studios around any address in the Bay City 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 Bay City 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
At $730 per household (26% below the U.S. average), households in the Bay City metro area spend about $32.9M a year on memberships, classes and admissions. That works out to $646K per location, 2% below the U.S. figure of $662K.
The Bay City metro area has 51 gyms and studios on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 12% of them, against 20% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 11.3, 24% below the U.S. rate of 14.9.
In 2023, official counts showed 10 businesses with payroll in the Bay City metro area classed as fitness centers and recreation instruction. That is one for every 4,510 households, against one for every 1,641 across the U.S.
Population estimates show the Bay City metro area declined 1.6% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Bay City metro area scores 52 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for gyms and studios, ranking #166 of 387 scored metro areas and #11 of 15 scored metro areas based in Michigan.
How the Bay City metro area compares
The same measures for Michigan 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 | Bay City metro area | Michigan | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 11.3 | 12.5 | 14.9 |
| Spending per listing | $646K | $720K | $662K |
| Households per official establishment | 4,510 | 2,468 | 1,641 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +9.6% | +8.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −1.6% | +0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on memberships, classes and admissions | $730 | $902 | $983 |
| Median household income | $61,763 | $72,875 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 52 | 62 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 10
- Employees, 2023
- 258
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $3.2M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 516 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 50The 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 Bay City 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 Bay City metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 102,123−1.6% since 2020
- Households
- 45,103
- Median age
- 45.0
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 77%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 442 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 233
- Median household income
- $61,763+26.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $79,153
- Median home value
- $152,200
- Jobs located here
- 31,089
- Daytime population
- 93,442Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Bay City 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 Bay City 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 Michigan
Every Michigan market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Michigan for gyms and studios, numbered among those based in Michigan (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Bay City metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Michigan
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Monroe, MI | 75 | 62 | 9.8 | $922K | +0.7% | #18 of 387 |
| 2Battle Creek, MI | 65 | 48 | 9.0 | $838K | −0.6% | #60 of 387 |
| 3Jackson, MI | 65 | 65 | 10.4 | $770K | −0.4% | #64 of 387 |
| 4Muskegon-Norton Shores, MI | 64 | 71 | 10.5 | $692K | +1.8% | #72 of 387 |
| 5Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI | 63 | 2,235 | 12.6 | $769K | +0.1% | #78 of 387 |
| 6Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI | 62 | 614 | 13.9 | $698K | +2.8% | #87 of 387 |
| South Bend-Mishawaka, IN-MI | 61 | 140 | 10.9 | $760K | +0.1% | #88 of 387 |
| 7Saginaw, MI | 61 | 79 | 10.1 | $744K | −1.1% | #89 of 387 |
| 8Lansing-East Lansing, MI | 61 | 270 | 13.9 | $622K | +1.4% | #93 of 387 |
| 9Traverse City, MI | 58 | 101 | 15.4 | $612K | +2.2% | #115 of 387 |
| 11Bay City, MI | 52 | 51 | 11.3 | $646K | −1.6% | #166 of 387 |
Other business types in the Bay City 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 classes52
- Gyms48
- Yoga, Pilates and fitness studios52
- Martial arts and dance studios56
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many gyms and studios are in the Bay City, MI metro area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 51 gyms and studios in the Bay City metro area. 6 of them (12%) are chain locations. The listings count gyms, fitness studios, martial arts and dance studios. Official counts show 10 businesses with payroll classed as fitness centers and recreation instruction in 2023.
How much do households in the Bay City, MI metro area spend on memberships, classes and admissions?
About $32.9M a year, or $730 per household. That is 26% below the U.S. average (an index of 74, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 51 gyms and studios on map listings, it comes to $646K per location. It is estimated from the incomes of the 45,103 households in the Bay City metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Bay City, MI metro area compare with the U.S. for gyms and studios?
The Bay City metro area has 11.3 gyms and studios per 10,000 households, 24% below the U.S. rate of 14.9. Spending per location is $646K, 2% below the U.S. figure of $662K. At the U.S. ratio of gyms and studios to household spending, the Bay City metro area would have about 50, against 51 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 4,510 households, against one for every 1,641 across the U.S.
How fast is the Bay City, MI metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Bay City metro area at 102,123 people in 2025, down 1.6% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 45,103 households. The median household income in the Bay City metro area is $61,763 a year, 23% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 26.5% from the 2015–2019 survey, 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. 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 Bay City metro area scores 52 for gyms and studios (upper middle), #166 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 Bay City 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 Bay City metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Bay City 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 Bay City 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.