Groundwork

Fitness and classes · Metro area · Pennsylvania

Gyms and studios in the Erie, PA metro area

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for gyms and studios in the Erie, PA metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 28 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #365 of 387 scored metro areas
#15 of 16 scored metro areas based in Pennsylvania

Listings
159
37 chain locations (23%)
Official establishments
55
+25.0% since 2019
Household spending a year
$81.6M
On memberships, classes and admissions · $738 a household
Spending per listing
$513K
22% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
14.4
3% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
265,832
−1.8% since 2020

See the gyms and studios around any address in the Erie 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 Erie metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

The Groundwork market score for gyms and studios in the Erie metro area is 28 (lower middle), #365 of 387 scored metro areas and #15 of 16 scored metro areas based in Pennsylvania. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.

At $738 per household (25% below the U.S. average), households in the Erie metro area spend about $81.6M a year on memberships, classes and admissions. Spread across 159 gyms and studios, that is $513K per location, 22% below the U.S. figure of $662K.

There are 159 gyms and studios on map listings in the Erie metro area as of September 2026. Of those, 37 are chain locations, or 23%, against 20% across the U.S. That is 14.4 per 10,000 households, 3% below the U.S. rate of 14.9.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as fitness centers and recreation instruction in the Erie metro area was 55 in 2023, up 25.0% from 2019. That is one for every 2,011 households, against one for every 1,641 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 6 SBA-backed loans worth $1.5M have gone to businesses classed as fitness centers and recreation instruction in the Erie metro area. Population estimates put the population change in the Erie metro area from 2020 to 2025 at −1.8%, against +3.1% for the U.S.

How the Erie metro area compares

The same measures for Pennsylvania 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.

Gyms, studios and classes in Erie, PA metro area compared with Pennsylvania and the U.S.
MeasureErie metro areaPennsylvaniaU.S.
Listings per 10k households14.413.914.9
Spending per listing$513K$668K$662K
Households per official establishment2,0111,8341,641
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+25.0%+3.5%+8.2%
Population growth, 2020–2025−1.8%+0.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on memberships, classes and admissions$738$926$983
Median household income$63,354$77,971$80,734
Groundwork market score2849

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
55+25.0% over the period
Employees, 2023
947
Annual payroll, 2023
$14.7M
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
15937 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
123The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
6
Amount
$1.5M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as fitness centers and recreation instruction in the Erie 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 Erie metro area

Population, 2025 estimate
265,832−1.8% since 2020
Households
110,587
Median age
41.4
Homes lived in by their owners
68%
Vehicles per household
1.6
Land area
799 sq. mi.
People per square mile
337
Median household income
$63,354+23.0% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$85,573
Median home value
$177,000
Jobs located here
120,819
Daytime population
270,477Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Erie 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 Erie metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Gyms, studios and classes across Pennsylvania

Every Pennsylvania market ranked →

The highest-scoring metro areas in Pennsylvania for gyms and studios, numbered among those based in Pennsylvania, with the Erie metro area marked.

Top metro areas in Pennsylvania

Metro areas in Pennsylvania ranked for gyms and studios by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Gettysburg, PA82399.5$944K+3.6%#6 of 387
2York-Hanover, PA7419610.8$851K+3.6%#21 of 387
3Lancaster, PA7023411.0$877K+1.9%#33 of 387
4Chambersburg, PA69579.0$932K+3.0%#37 of 387
5Lebanon, PA67519.0$949K+2.2%#48 of 387
6Reading, PA6618311.2$799K+2.7%#56 of 387
7Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ6147514.0$694K+3.0%#91 of 387
8Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA5736714.9$617K+4.2%#122 of 387
9Williamsport, PA525110.9$647K−1.3%#165 of 387
10Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD514,00816.2$665K+1.4%#178 of 387
15Erie, PA2815914.4$513K−1.8%#365 of 387

Other business types in the Erie metro area

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many gyms and studios are in the Erie, PA metro area?

As of September 2026, map listings count 159 gyms and studios in the Erie metro area. 37 of them (23%) are chain locations. The listings count gyms, fitness studios, martial arts and dance studios. Official counts show 55 businesses with payroll classed as fitness centers and recreation instruction in 2023, up 25.0% from 2019.

How much do households in the Erie, PA metro area spend on memberships, classes and admissions?

About $81.6M a year, or $738 per household. That is 25% below the U.S. average (an index of 75, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 159 gyms and studios on map listings, it comes to $513K per location. It is estimated from the incomes of the 110,587 households in the Erie metro area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Erie, PA metro area compare with the U.S. for gyms and studios?

The Erie metro area has 14.4 gyms and studios per 10,000 households, 3% below the U.S. rate of 14.9. Spending per location is $513K, 22% below the U.S. figure of $662K. At the U.S. ratio of gyms and studios to household spending, the Erie metro area would have about 123, against 159 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,011 households, against one for every 1,641 across the U.S. The official count rose 25.0% from 2019 to 2023, against +8.2% for the U.S.

How fast is the Erie, PA metro area growing?

Population estimates put the Erie metro area at 265,832 people in 2025, down 1.8% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 110,587 households. The median household income in the Erie metro area is $63,354 a year, 22% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 23.0% 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 Erie metro area scores 28 for gyms and studios (lower middle), #365 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 Erie 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 Erie metro area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Erie 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 Erie 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.