Fitness and classes · County · Arkansas
Gyms in Polk County, AR
How Polk County, AR compares with other counties and the U.S. for gyms: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 18 out of 100: Low
Ranked #1,687 of 1,792 scored counties
#28 of 33 scored counties in Arkansas
- Listings
- 6
- 1 chain location (17%)
- Official establishments
- n/a
- Fewer than 3, or not published
- Household spending a year
- $4M
- On memberships, classes and admissions · $509 a household
- Spending per listing
- $670K
- 49% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 7.6
- In line with the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 19,486
- +1.6% since 2020
See the gyms around any address in Polk County
The site report maps the gyms 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 Polk County. 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
The Groundwork market score for gyms in Polk County is 18 (low), #1,687 of 1,792 scored counties and #28 of 33 scored counties in Arkansas. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
Households in Polk County spend about $4M a year on memberships, classes and admissions, or $509 per household, 48% below the U.S. average. That is about $670K of household spending for each gym on map listings, 49% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M. The spending figure covers all memberships, classes and admissions, not only gyms.
Polk County has 6 gyms on map listings as of September 2026. One of them (17%) is a chain location, against 28% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 7.6, in line with the U.S. rate of 7.6.
Official counts don’t publish a figure for fitness and recreational sports centers in Polk County, since they leave out counts under 3. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Polk County grew 1.6%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How Polk County compares
The same measures for Arkansas and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all memberships, classes and admissions by the gyms 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 | Polk County | Arkansas | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 7.6 | 6.7 | 7.6 |
| Spending per listing | $670K | $919K | $1.3M |
| Households per official establishment (all fitness and recreational sports centers) | n/a | 4,693 | 3,109 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +8.0% | +5.8% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +1.6% | +3.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on memberships, classes and admissions | $509 | $617 | $983 |
| Median household income | $49,191 | $60,773 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 18 | 40 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- n/aAll fitness and recreational sports centers
- Employees, 2023
- n/a
- Annual payroll, 2023
- n/a
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 61 chain location
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 3The 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 and recreational sports centers in Polk County, 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. These official figures cover all fitness and recreational sports centers, not only gyms.
Population and households in Polk County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 19,486+1.6% since 2020
- Households
- 7,898
- Median age
- 44.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 79%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 857 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 23
- Median household income
- $49,191+29.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $67,957
- Median home value
- $138,400
- Jobs located here
- 5,915
- Daytime population
- 18,129Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Polk County?
These figures cover the whole county. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the gyms on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of Polk County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardGyms across Arkansas
Every Arkansas market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Arkansas for gyms, numbered among those based in Arkansas, with Polk County marked.
Top counties in Arkansas
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Lonoke County, AR | 65 | 15 | 5.3 | $1.3M | +3.5% | #369 of 1,792 |
| 2Benton County, AR | 60 | 90 | 8.0 | $1.1M | +16.0% | #536 of 1,792 |
| 3Saline County, AR | 59 | 32 | 6.4 | $1.1M | +7.6% | #580 of 1,792 |
| 4Faulkner County, AR | 48 | 40 | 8.1 | $821K | +8.2% | #1,011 of 1,792 |
| 5Miller County, AR | 46 | 7 | 4.3 | $1.2M | −0.5% | #1,049 of 1,792 |
| 6Garland County, AR | 46 | 23 | 5.3 | $1M | −0.6% | #1,059 of 1,792 |
| 7Craighead County, AR | 45 | 34 | 7.7 | $813K | +4.8% | #1,113 of 1,792 |
| 8Crawford County, AR | 45 | 19 | 8.1 | $712K | +4.1% | #1,118 of 1,792 |
| 9Mississippi County, AR | 44 | 5 | 3.2 | $1.7M | −6.7% | #1,121 of 1,792 |
| 10White County, AR | 43 | 22 | 7.4 | $701K | +4.2% | #1,180 of 1,792 |
| 28Polk County, AR | 18 | 6 | 7.6 | $670K | +1.6% | #1,687 of 1,792 |
Other business types in Polk County
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
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many gyms are in Polk County, AR?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 6 gyms in Polk County. One of them (17%) is a chain location. The listings count gyms and fitness centers. No official count is published for fitness and recreational sports centers in Polk County: counts under 3 are left out.
How much do households in Polk County, AR spend on memberships, classes and admissions?
About $4M a year, or $509 per household. That is 48% below the U.S. average (an index of 52, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 6 gyms on map listings, it comes to $670K per gym. That spending covers all memberships, classes and admissions, which gyms share with other businesses in the trade. It is estimated from the incomes of the 7,898 households in Polk County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Polk County, AR compare with the U.S. for gyms?
Polk County has 7.6 gyms per 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 7.6. Spending per gym is $670K, 49% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the U.S. ratio of gyms to household spending, Polk County would have about 3, against 6 on map listings.
How fast is Polk County, AR growing?
Population estimates put Polk County at 19,486 people in 2025, up 1.6% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 7,898 households. Median household income in Polk County is $49,191, 39% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 29.5%, 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. Polk County scores 18 for gyms (low), #1,687 of 1,792 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Polk County. It maps the gyms 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 · All 56 business types in Polk County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Polk County?
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 Polk County. 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.