Fitness and classes · Metro area · Texas
Gyms and studios in the Brownsville-Harlingen, TX metro area
How the Brownsville-Harlingen, TX 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 34 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #333 of 387 scored metro areas
#17 of 26 scored metro areas based in Texas
- Listings
- 251
- 38 chain locations (15%)
- Official establishments
- 38
- +18.8% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $72.6M
- On memberships, classes and admissions · $524 a household
- Spending per listing
- $289K
- 56% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 18.1
- 21% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 433,946
- +3.0% since 2020
See the gyms and studios around any address in the Brownsville-Harlingen 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 Brownsville-Harlingen 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
For gyms and studios, the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area has a Groundwork market score of 34 (lower middle): #333 of 387 scored metro areas and #17 of 26 scored metro areas based in Texas. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.
As of September 2026, map listings count 251 gyms and studios in the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area. 38 of them (15%) are chain locations, against 20% across the U.S. That is 18.1 per 10,000 households, 21% above the U.S. rate of 14.9.
Households in the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area spend about $72.6M a year on memberships, classes and admissions, or $524 per household, 47% below the U.S. average. Spread across 251 gyms and studios, that is $289K per location, 56% below the U.S. figure of $662K.
In 2023, official counts showed 38 businesses with payroll in the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area classed as fitness centers and recreation instruction, up 18.8% from 2019. That is one for every 3,643 households, against one for every 1,641 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $280K have gone to businesses classed as fitness centers and recreation instruction in the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area grew 3.0%, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area compares
The same measures for Texas 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 | Brownsville-Harlingen metro area | Texas | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 18.1 | 15.0 | 14.9 |
| Spending per listing | $289K | $539K | $662K |
| Households per official establishment | 3,643 | 1,718 | 1,641 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +18.8% | +19.7% | +8.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +3.0% | +8.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on memberships, classes and admissions | $524 | $810 | $983 |
| Median household income | $52,601 | $78,476 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 34 | 45 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 38+18.8% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 321
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $5M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 25138 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 110The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 2
- Amount
- $280K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as fitness centers and recreation instruction in the Brownsville-Harlingen 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 Brownsville-Harlingen metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 433,946+3.0% since 2020
- Households
- 138,433
- Median age
- 33.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 65%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 892 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 478
- Median household income
- $52,601+35.7% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $71,931
- Median home value
- $136,500
- Jobs located here
- 146,355
- Daytime population
- 405,619Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Brownsville-Harlingen 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 Brownsville-Harlingen 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 Texas
Every Texas market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Texas for gyms and studios, numbered among those based in Texas, with the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Texas
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Odessa, TX | 69 | 57 | 8.8 | $798K | +5.0% | #39 of 387 |
| 2Midland, TX | 67 | 94 | 13.5 | $705K | +9.8% | #54 of 387 |
| 3Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX | 52 | 3,952 | 14.8 | $583K | +10.3% | #171 of 387 |
| 4Sherman-Denison, TX | 52 | 79 | 14.3 | $495K | +12.8% | #175 of 387 |
| 5Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | 50 | 4,637 | 16.0 | $573K | +10.6% | #192 of 387 |
| 6San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX | 47 | 1,360 | 14.1 | $545K | +9.5% | #222 of 387 |
| 7Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX | 46 | 1,905 | 19.3 | $528K | +14.0% | #238 of 387 |
| 8Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX | 45 | 161 | 10.8 | $617K | +0.5% | #242 of 387 |
| 9Killeen-Temple, TX | 45 | 235 | 13.2 | $488K | +7.2% | #253 of 387 |
| 10Amarillo, TX | 41 | 122 | 11.8 | $587K | +2.7% | #278 of 387 |
| 17Brownsville-Harlingen, TX | 34 | 251 | 18.1 | $289K | +3.0% | #333 of 387 |
Other business types in the Brownsville-Harlingen 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 classes34
- Gyms34
- Yoga, Pilates and fitness studios51
- Martial arts and dance studios34
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many gyms and studios are in the Brownsville-Harlingen, TX metro area?
The Brownsville-Harlingen metro area has 251 gyms and studios on map listings as of September 2026. 38 of them (15%) are chain locations. The listings count gyms, fitness studios, martial arts and dance studios. Official counts show 38 businesses with payroll classed as fitness centers and recreation instruction in 2023, up 18.8% from 2019.
How much do households in the Brownsville-Harlingen, TX metro area spend on memberships, classes and admissions?
About $72.6M a year, or $524 per household. That is 47% below the U.S. average (an index of 53, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 251 gyms and studios on map listings, it comes to $289K per location. It is estimated from the incomes of the 138,433 households in the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Brownsville-Harlingen, TX metro area compare with the U.S. for gyms and studios?
The Brownsville-Harlingen metro area has 18.1 gyms and studios per 10,000 households, 21% above the U.S. rate of 14.9. Spending per location is $289K, 56% below the U.S. figure of $662K. At the national ratio of gyms and studios to household spending, the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area would have about 110, against 251 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 3,643 households, against one for every 1,641 across the U.S. The official count rose 18.8% from 2019 to 2023, against +8.2% for the U.S.
How fast is the Brownsville-Harlingen, TX metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area at 433,946 people in 2025, up 3.0% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 138,433 households. Median household income in the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area is $52,601, 35% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 35.7%, 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 Brownsville-Harlingen metro area scores 34 for gyms and studios (lower middle), #333 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 Brownsville-Harlingen 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 Brownsville-Harlingen metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Brownsville-Harlingen 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 Brownsville-Harlingen 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.