Groundwork

Fitness and classes · Metro area · Connecticut

Gyms in the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT metro area

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for gyms in the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 55 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #141 of 387 scored metro areas
#2 of 5 scored metro areas based in Connecticut

Listings
408
106 chain locations (26%)
Official establishments
178
All fitness and recreational sports centers
Household spending a year
$524.7M
On memberships, classes and admissions · $1,128 a household
Spending per listing
$1.3M
In line with the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
8.8
16% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
1,171,426
+3.0% since 2020

See the gyms around any address in the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford metro area

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 the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford 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

Map listings as of September 2026 show 408 gyms in the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford metro area. Chain locations make up 26% of them, against 28% across the U.S. That is 8.8 per 10,000 households, 16% above the U.S. rate of 7.6.

Households in the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford metro area spend about $524.7M a year on memberships, classes and admissions, or $1,128 per household, 15% above the U.S. average. Spread across 408 gyms, that is $1.3M per gym, in line with the U.S. figure of $1.3M. That spending covers all memberships, classes and admissions, which gyms share with other businesses in the trade.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford metro area was 178 in 2023. That is one for every 2,613 households, against one for every 3,109 across the U.S. The official count takes in all fitness and recreational sports centers, not only gyms: yoga, Pilates and fitness studios are counted too. Since fiscal 2022, 20 SBA-backed loans worth $13.1M have gone to businesses classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford metro area.

Population estimates show the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford metro area grew 3.0% from 2020 to 2025, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). For gyms, the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford metro area has a Groundwork market score of 55 (upper middle): #141 of 387 scored metro areas and #2 of 5 scored metro areas based in Connecticut.

How the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford metro area compares

The same measures for Connecticut 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.

Gyms in Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT metro area compared with Connecticut and the U.S.
MeasureHartford-West Hartford-East Hartford metro areaConnecticutU.S.
Listings per 10k households8.89.17.6
Spending per listing$1.3M$1.3M$1.3M
Households per official establishment (all fitness and recreational sports centers)2,6132,4813,109
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a−7.2%+5.8%
Population growth, 2020–2025+3.0%+3.0%+3.1%
Spending per household on memberships, classes and admissions$1,128$1,158$983
Median household income$95,118$95,781$80,734
Groundwork market score5552

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
178All fitness and recreational sports centers
Employees, 2023
3,255
Annual payroll, 2023
$66.4M
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
408106 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
403The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
20
Amount
$13.1M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford 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. These official figures cover all fitness and recreational sports centers, not only gyms.

Population and households in the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford metro area

Population, 2025 estimate
1,171,426+3.0% since 2020
Households
465,181
Median age
42.0
Homes lived in by their owners
67%
Vehicles per household
1.7
Land area
1,452 sq. mi.
People per square mile
794
Median household income
$95,118
Average household income
$127,867
Median home value
$333,500
Jobs located here
597,826
Daytime population
1,193,128Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford 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 on map listings by name and distance.

Or open the report at the center of the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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The highest-scoring metro areas in Connecticut for gyms, numbered among those based in Connecticut, with the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford metro area marked.

Top metro areas in Connecticut

Metro areas in Connecticut ranked for gyms by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Waterbury-Shelton, CT721267.0$1.5M+3.2%#31 of 387
2Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT554088.8$1.3M+3.0%#141 of 387
3Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT5539011.0$1.3M+3.7%#142 of 387
4Norwich-New London-Willimantic, CT54998.6$1.2M+2.0%#152 of 387
5New Haven, CT442259.8$1.1M+2.5%#255 of 387

Other business types in the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford metro area

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

Questions

How many gyms are in the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT metro area?

There are 408 gyms on map listings in the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford metro area as of September 2026. 106 of them (26%) are chain locations. The listings count gyms and fitness centers. Official counts show 178 businesses with payroll classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in 2023. That count covers all fitness and recreational sports centers (yoga, Pilates and fitness studios included), not only gyms.

How much do households in the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT metro area spend on memberships, classes and admissions?

About $524.7M a year, or $1,128 per household. That is 15% above the U.S. average (an index of 115, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 408 gyms on map listings, it comes to $1.3M per gym. The spending figure covers all memberships, classes and admissions, not only gyms. It is estimated from the incomes of the 465,181 households in the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford metro area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT metro area compare with the U.S. for gyms?

The Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford metro area has 8.8 gyms per 10,000 households, 16% above the U.S. rate of 7.6. Spending per gym is $1.3M, in line with the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the national ratio of gyms to household spending, the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford metro area would have about 403, against 408 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,613 households, against one for every 3,109 across the U.S.

How fast is the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT metro area growing?

Population estimates put the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford metro area at 1,171,426 people in 2025, up 3.0% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 465,181 households. The median household income in the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford metro area is $95,118 a year, 18% above the U.S. median of $80,734.

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 Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford metro area scores 55 for gyms (upper middle), #141 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 Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford metro area. 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 the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford metro area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford 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 Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford 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.