Groundwork

Fitness and classes · Metro area · South Carolina

Gyms and studios in the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC metro area

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for gyms and studios in the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 48 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #210 of 387 scored metro areas
#4 of 8 scored metro areas based in South Carolina

Listings
149
31 chain locations (21%)
Official establishments
57
−11.1% since 2019
Household spending a year
$81.9M
On memberships, classes and admissions · $858 a household
Spending per listing
$550K
17% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
15.6
5% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
242,966
+12.0% since 2020

See the gyms and studios around any address in the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal 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 Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal 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

Households in the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal metro area spend about $81.9M a year on memberships, classes and admissions, or $858 per household, 13% below the U.S. average. That works out to $550K per location, 17% below the U.S. figure of $662K.

There are 149 gyms and studios on map listings in the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal metro area as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 21% of them, against 20% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 15.6, 5% above the U.S. rate of 14.9.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as fitness centers and recreation instruction in the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal metro area was 57 in 2023, down 11.1% from 2019. That is one for every 1,675 households, against one for every 1,641 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 9 SBA-backed loans worth $3.7M have gone to businesses classed as fitness centers and recreation instruction in the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal metro area.

Population estimates put the population change in the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal metro area from 2020 to 2025 at +12.0%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for gyms and studios in the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal metro area is 48 (lower middle), #210 of 387 scored metro areas and #4 of 8 scored metro areas based in South Carolina.

How the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal metro area compares

The same measures for South Carolina 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 Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC metro area compared with South Carolina and the U.S.
MeasureHilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal metro areaSouth CarolinaU.S.
Listings per 10k households15.613.314.9
Spending per listing$550K$528K$662K
Households per official establishment1,6752,1901,641
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−11.1%+5.9%+8.2%
Population growth, 2020–2025+12.0%+8.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on memberships, classes and admissions$858$700$983
Median household income$83,304$69,324$80,734
Groundwork market score4849

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
57−11.1% over the period
Employees, 2023
564
Annual payroll, 2023
$11.2M
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
14931 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
124The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
9
Amount
$3.7M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as fitness centers and recreation instruction in the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal 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 Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal metro area

Population, 2025 estimate
242,966+12.0% since 2020
Households
95,451
Median age
47.2
Homes lived in by their owners
76%
Vehicles per household
1.8
Land area
1,231 sq. mi.
People per square mile
185
Median household income
$83,304+28.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$120,028
Median home value
$439,500
Jobs located here
79,620
Daytime population
225,611Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal 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.

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Gyms, studios and classes across South Carolina

Every South Carolina market ranked →

The highest-scoring metro areas in South Carolina for gyms and studios, numbered among those based in South Carolina (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal metro area marked.

Top metro areas in South Carolina

Metro areas in South Carolina ranked for gyms and studios by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Spartanburg, SC5715010.5$595K+14.3%#124 of 387
Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC5526611.5$610K+4.7%#141 of 387
2Sumter, SC50338.0$707K−0.3%#186 of 387
3Florence, SC50698.8$661K+0.9%#187 of 387
4Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC4814915.6$550K+12.0%#210 of 387
5Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach, SC4421413.5$474K+20.9%#256 of 387
Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC431,69515.7$545K+10.1%#261 of 387
6Charleston-North Charleston, SC4260518.0$472K+10.7%#274 of 387
7Greenville-Anderson-Greer, SC4056214.6$485K+9.0%#292 of 387
8Columbia, SC3948514.3$480K+6.0%#297 of 387

Other business types in the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal 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 Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC metro area?

As of September 2026, map listings count 149 gyms and studios in the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal metro area. 31 of them (21%) are chain locations. The listings count gyms, fitness studios, martial arts and dance studios. Official counts show 57 businesses with payroll classed as fitness centers and recreation instruction in 2023, down 11.1% from 2019.

How much do households in the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC metro area spend on memberships, classes and admissions?

About $81.9M a year, or $858 per household. That is 13% below the U.S. average (an index of 87, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 149 gyms and studios on map listings, it comes to $550K per location. It is estimated from the incomes of the 95,451 households in the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal metro area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC metro area compare with the U.S. for gyms and studios?

The Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal metro area has 15.6 gyms and studios per 10,000 households, 5% above the U.S. rate of 14.9. Spending per location is $550K, 17% below the U.S. figure of $662K. At the U.S. ratio of gyms and studios to household spending, the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal metro area would have about 124, against 149 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,675 households, against one for every 1,641 across the U.S. The official count fell 11.1% from 2019 to 2023, against +8.2% for the U.S.

How fast is the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC metro area growing?

Population estimates put the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal metro area at 242,966 people in 2025, up 12.0% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 95,451 households. The median household income in the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal metro area is $83,304 a year, 3% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 28.2% 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 Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal metro area scores 48 for gyms and studios (lower middle), #210 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 Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal 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 Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal metro area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal 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 Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal 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.