Groundwork

Fitness and classes · County · Delaware

Gyms in New Castle County, DE

The gyms in New Castle County, DE, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 49 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #949 of 1,792 scored counties
#2 of 3 scored counties in Delaware

Listings
170
58 chain locations (34%)
Official establishments
113
All fitness and recreational sports centers · −2.6% since 2019
Household spending a year
$203.1M
On memberships, classes and admissions · $906 a household
Spending per listing
$1.2M
8% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
7.6
In line with the U.S.
Population, 2025
588,026
+3.0% since 2020

See the gyms around any address in New Castle 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 New Castle County. 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

At $906 per household (8% below the U.S. average), households in New Castle County spend about $203.1M a year on memberships, classes and admissions. That is about $1.2M of household spending for each gym on map listings, 8% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M. The spending figure covers all memberships, classes and admissions, not only gyms.

New Castle County has 170 gyms on map listings as of September 2026. 58 of them (34%) are chain locations, against 28% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 7.6, in line with the U.S. rate of 7.6.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in New Castle County was 113 in 2023, down 2.6% from 2019. That is one for every 1,984 households, against one for every 3,109 across the U.S. That count covers all fitness and recreational sports centers (yoga, Pilates and fitness studios included), not only gyms. Since fiscal 2022, 13 SBA-backed loans worth $5.7M have gone to businesses classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in New Castle County.

Population estimates put the population change in New Castle County from 2020 to 2025 at +3.0%, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). For gyms, New Castle County has a Groundwork market score of 49 (lower middle): #949 of 1,792 scored counties and #2 of 3 scored counties in Delaware.

How New Castle County compares

The same measures for Delaware 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 New Castle County, DE compared with Delaware and the U.S.
MeasureNew Castle CountyDelawareU.S.
Listings per 10k households7.67.37.6
Spending per listing$1.2M$1.1M$1.3M
Households per official establishment (all fitness and recreational sports centers)1,9842,3653,109
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−2.6%−3.4%+5.8%
Population growth, 2020–2025+3.0%+6.9%+3.1%
Spending per household on memberships, classes and admissions$906$838$983
Median household income$91,166$84,954$80,734
Groundwork market score4937

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
116 → 113All fitness and recreational sports centers · −2.6% over the period
Employees, 2023
2,099
Annual payroll, 2023
$40.6M
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
17058 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
156The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
13
Amount
$5.7M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in New Castle 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 New Castle County

Population, 2025 estimate
588,026+3.0% since 2020
Households
224,173
Median age
40.7
Homes lived in by their owners
69%
Vehicles per household
1.7
Land area
426 sq. mi.
People per square mile
1,356
Median household income
$91,166+23.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$120,517
Median home value
$352,200
Jobs located here
298,174
Daytime population
607,117Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in New Castle 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 New Castle County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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The highest-scoring counties in Delaware for gyms, numbered among those based in Delaware, with New Castle County marked.

Top counties in Delaware

Counties in Delaware ranked for gyms by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Sussex County, DE59777.2$1.1M+16.1%#582 of 1,792
2New Castle County, DE491707.6$1.2M+3.0%#949 of 1,792
3Kent County, DE45476.6$1M+6.8%#1,097 of 1,792

Other business types in New Castle County

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

Questions

How many gyms are in New Castle County, DE?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 170 gyms in New Castle County. 58 of them (34%) are chain locations. The listings count gyms and fitness centers. Official counts show 113 businesses with payroll classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in 2023, down 2.6% from 2019. The official count takes in all fitness and recreational sports centers, not only gyms: yoga, Pilates and fitness studios are counted too.

How much do households in New Castle County, DE spend on memberships, classes and admissions?

About $203.1M a year, or $906 per household. That is 8% below the U.S. average (an index of 92, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 170 gyms on map listings, it comes to $1.2M 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 224,173 households in New Castle County and national spending patterns by income.

How does New Castle County, DE compare with the U.S. for gyms?

New Castle County has 7.6 gyms per 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 7.6. Spending per gym is $1.2M, 8% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the U.S. ratio of gyms to household spending, New Castle County would have about 156, against 170 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,984 households, against one for every 3,109 across the U.S. The official count fell 2.6% from 2019 to 2023, against +5.8% for the U.S.

How fast is New Castle County, DE growing?

Population estimates put New Castle County at 588,026 people in 2025, up 3.0% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 224,173 households. Median household income in New Castle County is $91,166, 13% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 23.4%, 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. New Castle County scores 49 for gyms (lower middle), #949 of 1,792 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in New Castle 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 New Castle County

Screening a site or an acquisition in New Castle 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 New Castle 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.