Fitness and classes · Metro area · Florida
Gyms in the Gainesville, FL metro area
How the Gainesville, FL metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for gyms: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 35 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #323 of 387 scored metro areas
#19 of 22 scored metro areas based in Florida
- Listings
- 120
- 29 chain locations (24%)
- Official establishments
- 40
- All fitness and recreational sports centers · +5.9% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $95.1M
- On memberships, classes and admissions · $667 a household
- Spending per listing
- $792K
- 39% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 8.4
- 11% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 359,036
- +5.4% since 2020
See the gyms around any address in the Gainesville 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 Gainesville 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, the Gainesville metro area has a Groundwork market score of 35 (lower middle): #323 of 387 scored metro areas and #19 of 22 scored metro areas based in Florida. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.
As of September 2026, map listings count 120 gyms in the Gainesville metro area. Of those, 29 are chain locations, or 24%, against 28% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 8.4, 11% above the U.S. rate of 7.6.
Households in the Gainesville metro area spend about $95.1M a year on memberships, classes and admissions, or $667 per household, 32% below the U.S. average. That works out to $792K per gym, 39% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M. That spending covers all memberships, classes and admissions, which gyms share with other businesses in the trade.
In 2023, official counts showed 40 businesses with payroll in the Gainesville metro area classed as fitness and recreational sports centers, up 5.9% from 2019. That is one for every 3,562 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, 6 SBA-backed loans worth $1.7M have gone to businesses classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in the Gainesville metro area. Population estimates show the Gainesville metro area grew 5.4% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Gainesville metro area compares
The same measures for Florida 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 | Gainesville metro area | Florida | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 8.4 | 8.0 | 7.6 |
| Spending per listing | $792K | $951K | $1.3M |
| Households per official establishment (all fitness and recreational sports centers) | 3,562 | 3,136 | 3,109 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +5.9% | +10.4% | +5.8% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +5.4% | +8.7% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on memberships, classes and admissions | $667 | $764 | $983 |
| Median household income | $61,468 | $74,568 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 35 | 40 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 40All fitness and recreational sports centers · +5.9% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 598
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $10.5M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 12029 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 73The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 6
- Amount
- $1.7M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in the Gainesville 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 Gainesville metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 359,036+5.4% since 2020
- Households
- 142,499
- Median age
- 38.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 59%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 2,344 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 149
- Median household income
- $61,468+31.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $91,169
- Median home value
- $266,200
- Jobs located here
- 152,641
- Daytime population
- 368,793Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Gainesville 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 Gainesville metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardGyms across Florida
Every Florida market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Florida for gyms, numbered among those based in Florida, with the Gainesville metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Florida
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Wildwood-The Villages, FL | 86 | 17 | 2.4 | $2.9M | +21.1% | #3 of 387 |
| 2Homosassa Springs, FL | 76 | 24 | 3.4 | $1.7M | +11.1% | #18 of 387 |
| 3Punta Gorda, FL | 73 | 45 | 5.0 | $1.3M | +15.5% | #28 of 387 |
| 4Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL | 69 | 142 | 4.9 | $1.3M | +19.8% | #43 of 387 |
| 5Panama City-Panama City Beach, FL | 66 | 50 | 5.7 | $1.2M | +15.7% | #63 of 387 |
| 6Naples-Marco Island, FL | 63 | 124 | 7.5 | $1.3M | +10.6% | #79 of 387 |
| 7Ocala, FL | 61 | 83 | 5.0 | $1.1M | +17.3% | #96 of 387 |
| 8Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL | 60 | 224 | 6.8 | $1.1M | +14.4% | #105 of 387 |
| 9Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL | 55 | 183 | 7.1 | $1.1M | +9.1% | #147 of 387 |
| 10Sebring, FL | 51 | 25 | 5.3 | $1M | +9.7% | #186 of 387 |
| 19Gainesville, FL | 35 | 120 | 8.4 | $792K | +5.4% | #323 of 387 |
Other business types in the Gainesville 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
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many gyms are in the Gainesville, FL metro area?
The Gainesville metro area has 120 gyms on map listings as of September 2026. 29 of them (24%) are chain locations. The listings count gyms and fitness centers. Official counts show 40 businesses with payroll classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in 2023, up 5.9% from 2019. That count covers all fitness and recreational sports centers (yoga, Pilates and fitness studios included), not only gyms.
How much do households in the Gainesville, FL metro area spend on memberships, classes and admissions?
About $95.1M a year, or $667 per household. That is 32% below the U.S. average (an index of 68, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 120 gyms on map listings, it comes to $792K per gym. The spending figure covers all memberships, classes and admissions, not only gyms. It is estimated from the incomes of the 142,499 households in the Gainesville metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Gainesville, FL metro area compare with the U.S. for gyms?
The Gainesville metro area has 8.4 gyms per 10,000 households, 11% above the U.S. rate of 7.6. Spending per gym is $792K, 39% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the national ratio of gyms to household spending, the Gainesville metro area would have about 73, against 120 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 3,562 households, against one for every 3,109 across the U.S. The official count rose 5.9% from 2019 to 2023, against +5.8% for the U.S.
How fast is the Gainesville, FL metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Gainesville metro area at 359,036 people in 2025, up 5.4% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 142,499 households. The median household income in the Gainesville metro area is $61,468 a year, 24% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 31.2% 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 Gainesville metro area scores 35 for gyms (lower middle), #323 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 Gainesville 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 Gainesville metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Gainesville 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 Gainesville 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.