Market rankings · South Carolina
Gyms and studios in South Carolina
Every metro area, small-town market and county in South Carolina, ranked by the Groundwork market score for gyms and studios, with competitor counts and household spending for each.
- Listings
- 2,808
- 576 chain locations (21%)
- Official establishments
- 967
- +5.9% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $1.5B
- On memberships, classes and admissions
- Listings per 10k households
- 13.3
- 11% below the U.S.
- Spending per listing
- $528K
- 20% below the U.S.
- Rank among states
- #27 of 51
- Market score 49 · Lower middle
A site report maps the gyms and studios on map listings around any address in South Carolina by name and distance, and the spending within reach.
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
South Carolina has 2,808 gyms and studios on map listings as of September 2026. 576 of them (21%) are chain locations, against 20% across the U.S. That comes to 13.3 for every 10,000 households, 11% below the U.S. rate of 14.9.
Household spending on memberships, classes and admissions in South Carolina comes to about $1.5B a year: $700 per household, 29% below the U.S. average. Spread across 2,808 gyms and studios, that is $528K per location, 20% below the U.S. figure of $662K.
Official counts show 967 businesses with payroll classed as fitness centers and recreation instruction in South Carolina in 2023, up 5.9% from 2019. That is one for every 2,190 households, against one for every 1,641 across the U.S. Across the U.S., the count rose 8.2% over the same years. Since fiscal 2022, 88 SBA-backed loans worth $40.3M have gone to businesses classed as fitness centers and recreation instruction in South Carolina.
Among the 50 states and DC, South Carolina ranks #27 for gyms and studios, with a Groundwork market score of 49 (lower middle). Of the 10 scored metro areas in or partly in South Carolina, the Spartanburg metro area scores highest (57). Of the 6 scored small-town markets in or partly in South Carolina, the Murrells Inlet area scores highest (68).
Every market in South Carolina for gyms and studios
Download the ranking (CSV)Numbered by Groundwork market score among the markets based in South Carolina, highest first; the U.S. rank compares each market with every other of its kind. A metro area that crosses a state line is listed in each state it reaches, and numbered only in the state its page is under. How the score works.
Metro areas
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Spartanburg, SC | 57 | 150 | 10.5 | $595K | +14.3% | #124 of 387 |
| Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC | 55 | 266 | 11.5 | $610K | +4.7% | #141 of 387 |
| 2Sumter, SC | 50 | 33 | 8.0 | $707K | −0.3% | #186 of 387 |
| 3Florence, SC | 50 | 69 | 8.8 | $661K | +0.9% | #187 of 387 |
| 4Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC | 48 | 149 | 15.6 | $550K | +12.0% | #210 of 387 |
| 5Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach, SC | 44 | 214 | 13.5 | $474K | +20.9% | #256 of 387 |
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC | 43 | 1,695 | 15.7 | $545K | +10.1% | #261 of 387 |
| 6Charleston-North Charleston, SC | 42 | 605 | 18.0 | $472K | +10.7% | #274 of 387 |
| 7Greenville-Anderson-Greer, SC | 40 | 562 | 14.6 | $485K | +9.0% | #292 of 387 |
| 8Columbia, SC | 39 | 485 | 14.3 | $480K | +6.0% | #297 of 387 |
Small-town markets
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Murrells Inlet, SC | 68 | 27 | 10.0 | $720K | +3.8% | #68 of 535 |
| 2Seneca, SC | 67 | 34 | 9.9 | $661K | +6.3% | #82 of 535 |
| 3Gaffney, SC | 61 | 15 | 6.8 | $731K | +3.7% | #134 of 535 |
| 4Newberry, SC | 57 | 13 | 8.5 | $656K | +4.8% | #186 of 535 |
| 5Orangeburg, SC | 51 | 25 | 7.6 | $641K | −0.9% | #269 of 535 |
| 6Greenwood, SC | 48 | 33 | 8.8 | $627K | +1.7% | #309 of 535 |
Counties
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Laurens County, SC | 71 | 15 | 5.6 | $956K | +6.2% | #223 of 2,088 |
| 2Berkeley County, SC | 66 | 113 | 12.1 | $634K | +18.7% | #389 of 2,088 |
| 3Jasper County, SC | 65 | 11 | 8.4 | $739K | +32.2% | #419 of 2,088 |
| 4Georgetown County, SC | 65 | 27 | 10.0 | $720K | +3.8% | #421 of 2,088 |
| 5Kershaw County, SC | 65 | 28 | 10.4 | $621K | +11.6% | #427 of 2,088 |
| 6Oconee County, SC | 64 | 34 | 9.9 | $661K | +6.3% | #469 of 2,088 |
| 7Edgefield County, SC | 63 | 9 | 9.2 | $705K | +16.1% | #499 of 2,088 |
| 8Lancaster County, SC | 60 | 51 | 12.7 | $621K | +18.3% | #609 of 2,088 |
| 9Dorchester County, SC | 60 | 78 | 12.3 | $613K | +10.1% | #611 of 2,088 |
| 10Saluda County, SC | 59 | 5 | 6.5 | $822K | +4.1% | #625 of 2,088 |
| 11Cherokee County, SC | 59 | 15 | 6.8 | $731K | +3.7% | #636 of 2,088 |
| 12Darlington County, SC | 56 | 16 | 6.3 | $876K | +0.1% | #756 of 2,088 |
| 13Aiken County, SC | 55 | 82 | 11.7 | $596K | +7.3% | #825 of 2,088 |
| 14Colleton County, SC | 54 | 11 | 6.7 | $814K | +2.2% | #841 of 2,088 |
| 15Anderson County, SC | 54 | 95 | 11.3 | $571K | +7.7% | #881 of 2,088 |
| 16York County, SC | 53 | 165 | 14.5 | $609K | +8.1% | #913 of 2,088 |
| 17Spartanburg County, SC | 53 | 140 | 10.6 | $601K | +15.6% | #915 of 2,088 |
| 18Clarendon County, SC | 51 | 7 | 5.7 | $882K | +0.7% | #983 of 2,088 |
| 19Newberry County, SC | 50 | 13 | 8.5 | $656K | +4.8% | #1,050 of 2,088 |
| 20Orangeburg County, SC | 48 | 25 | 7.6 | $641K | −0.9% | #1,166 of 2,088 |
| 21Beaufort County, SC | 48 | 138 | 16.8 | $535K | +8.9% | #1,187 of 2,088 |
| 22Chesterfield County, SC | 47 | 16 | 9.1 | $535K | +3.4% | #1,228 of 2,088 |
| 23Williamsburg County, SC | 46 | 5 | 4.1 | $1.1M | −4.0% | #1,237 of 2,088 |
| 24Sumter County, SC | 46 | 33 | 8.0 | $707K | −0.3% | #1,245 of 2,088 |
| 25Horry County, SC | 45 | 214 | 13.5 | $474K | +20.9% | #1,328 of 2,088 |
Show all 46 counties
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 26Marion County, SC | 44 | 5 | 4.1 | $960K | −2.9% | #1,332 of 2,088 |
| 27Florence County, SC | 43 | 53 | 10.0 | $597K | +1.2% | #1,385 of 2,088 |
| 28Greenwood County, SC | 40 | 29 | 10.4 | $513K | +1.5% | #1,494 of 2,088 |
| 29Lexington County, SC | 40 | 187 | 15.3 | $473K | +7.7% | #1,498 of 2,088 |
| 30Greenville County, SC | 40 | 382 | 17.3 | $449K | +10.6% | #1,500 of 2,088 |
| 31Charleston County, SC | 38 | 414 | 23.1 | $402K | +6.4% | #1,573 of 2,088 |
| 32Pickens County, SC | 37 | 70 | 13.4 | $461K | +5.7% | #1,596 of 2,088 |
| 33Richland County, SC | 36 | 260 | 15.5 | $440K | +4.6% | #1,630 of 2,088 |
| 34Marlboro County, SC | 35 | 5 | 5.1 | $762K | −3.8% | #1,639 of 2,088 |
| 35Chester County, SC | 33 | 11 | 8.4 | $581K | +2.2% | #1,699 of 2,088 |
| 36Union County, SC | 17 | 10 | 8.6 | $519K | −1.4% | #1,995 of 2,088 |
| 37Dillon County, SC | 9 | 11 | 10.2 | $449K | −2.9% | #2,064 of 2,088 |
| Abbeville County, SC | Not scored | 4 | 4.1 | $1.4M | +2.3% | |
| Fairfield County, SC | Not scored | 1 | 1.1 | $4.7M | −2.6% | |
| Barnwell County, SC | Not scored | 2 | 2.5 | $2M | +0.4% | |
| Hampton County, SC | Not scored | 4 | 5.5 | $781K | −1.9% | |
| Lee County, SC | Not scored | 4 | 6.3 | $623K | −5.0% | |
| Calhoun County, SC | Not scored | 4 | 6.5 | $896K | +0.6% | |
| Bamberg County, SC | Not scored | 1 | 2.2 | $2M | −3.5% | |
| McCormick County, SC | Not scored | 3 | 7.1 | $712K | +7.3% | |
| Allendale County, SC | Not scored | 2 | 6.2 | $679K | −7.4% |
Markets with fewer than 5 gyms and studios on map listings, and counties under 10,000 people, aren’t scored; they’re listed last in each table.
Questions
How many gyms and studios are in South Carolina?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 2,808 gyms and studios in South Carolina. 576 of them (21%) are chain locations. The listings count gyms, fitness studios, martial arts and dance studios. Official counts show 967 businesses with payroll classed as fitness centers and recreation instruction in 2023, up 5.9% from 2019.
How much do households in South Carolina spend on memberships, classes and admissions?
About $1.5B a year, or $700 per household. That is 29% below the U.S. average (an index of 71, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 2,808 gyms and studios on map listings, it comes to $528K per location. It is estimated from the incomes of the 2,117,989 households in South Carolina and national spending patterns by income.
How does South Carolina compare with the U.S. for gyms and studios?
South Carolina has 13.3 gyms and studios per 10,000 households, 11% below the U.S. rate of 14.9. Spending per location is $528K, 20% below the U.S. figure of $662K. At the U.S. ratio of gyms and studios to household spending, South Carolina would have about 2,239, against 2,808 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,190 households, against one for every 1,641 across the U.S. The official count rose 5.9% from 2019 to 2023, against +8.2% for the U.S.
Which market in South Carolina has the highest market score for gyms and studios?
Among 10 scored metro areas in or partly in South Carolina, the Spartanburg metro area scores highest, at 57 (upper middle). Among 6 scored small-town markets in or partly in South Carolina, the Murrells Inlet area scores highest, at 68 (upper middle). Among 37 scored counties in South Carolina, Laurens County scores highest, at 71 (upper middle). Scores compare each market with others of its kind across the U.S.
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. South Carolina scores 49 for gyms and studios (lower middle), #27 of the 50 states and DC.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in South Carolina. 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.
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Top markets for gyms and studios across the U.S. · All business types in South Carolina
Related business types in South Carolina
- Gyms1,503 listings
- Yoga, Pilates and fitness studios400 listings
- Martial arts and dance studios905 listings
Screening a site or an acquisition in South Carolina?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
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.