Groundwork

Fitness and classes · Metro area · Louisiana

Gyms in the Lafayette, LA metro area

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for gyms in the Lafayette, LA metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 24 out of 100: Low

Ranked #374 of 387 scored metro areas
#7 of 10 scored metro areas based in Louisiana

Listings
149
46 chain locations (31%)
Official establishments
57
All fitness and recreational sports centers · +14.6% since 2019
Household spending a year
$105.3M
On memberships, classes and admissions · $641 a household
Spending per listing
$707K
46% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
9.1
20% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
423,758
+3.8% since 2020

See the gyms around any address in the Lafayette 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 Lafayette 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

The Groundwork market score for gyms in the Lafayette metro area is 24 (low), #374 of 387 scored metro areas and #7 of 10 scored metro areas based in Louisiana. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.

Map listings as of September 2026 show 149 gyms in the Lafayette metro area. Of those, 46 are chain locations, or 31%, against 28% across the U.S. That is 9.1 per 10,000 households, 20% above the U.S. rate of 7.6.

Household spending on memberships, classes and admissions in the Lafayette metro area comes to about $105.3M a year: $641 per household, 35% below the U.S. average. That is about $707K of household spending for each gym on map listings, 46% 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.

Official counts show 57 businesses with payroll classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in the Lafayette metro area in 2023, up 14.6% from 2019. That is one for every 2,884 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, 4 SBA-backed loans worth $1M have gone to businesses classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in the Lafayette metro area. Population estimates show the Lafayette metro area grew 3.8% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How the Lafayette metro area compares

The same measures for Louisiana 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 Lafayette, LA metro area compared with Louisiana and the U.S.
MeasureLafayette metro areaLouisianaU.S.
Listings per 10k households9.18.27.6
Spending per listing$707K$788K$1.3M
Households per official establishment (all fitness and recreational sports centers)2,8843,5463,109
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+14.6%+3.9%+5.8%
Population growth, 2020–2025+3.8%−0.7%+3.1%
Spending per household on memberships, classes and admissions$641$646$983
Median household income$60,892$60,756$80,734
Groundwork market score2420

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
57All fitness and recreational sports centers · +14.6% over the period
Employees, 2023
689
Annual payroll, 2023
$10.9M
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
14946 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
81The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
4
Amount
$1M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in the Lafayette 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 Lafayette metro area

Population, 2025 estimate
423,758+3.8% since 2020
Households
164,378
Median age
38.6
Homes lived in by their owners
68%
Vehicles per household
1.7
Land area
2,834 sq. mi.
People per square mile
146
Median household income
$60,892
Average household income
$88,260
Median home value
$214,400
Jobs located here
177,096
Daytime population
415,749Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Lafayette 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 Lafayette 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 Louisiana for gyms, numbered among those based in Louisiana, with the Lafayette metro area marked.

Top metro areas in Louisiana

Metro areas in Louisiana ranked for gyms by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Hammond, LA37366.9$843K+5.8%#313 of 387
2Slidell-Mandeville-Covington, LA341019.6$856K+5.3%#327 of 387
3Alexandria, LA28508.9$676K−2.5%#363 of 387
4Baton Rouge, LA272918.7$828K+2.1%#366 of 387
5Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux, LA25577.1$883K−3.5%#370 of 387
6Monroe, LA25606.9$823K−1.9%#371 of 387
7Lafayette, LA241499.1$707K+3.8%#374 of 387
8Lake Charles, LA18768.3$827K−3.8%#381 of 387
9New Orleans-Metairie, LA173589.0$758K−3.4%#383 of 387
10Shreveport-Bossier City, LA151237.8$763K−2.3%#384 of 387

Other business types in the Lafayette metro area

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

Questions

How many gyms are in the Lafayette, LA metro area?

There are 149 gyms on map listings in the Lafayette metro area as of September 2026. 46 of them (31%) are chain locations. The listings count gyms and fitness centers. Official counts show 57 businesses with payroll classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in 2023, up 14.6% 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 Lafayette, LA metro area spend on memberships, classes and admissions?

About $105.3M a year, or $641 per household. That is 35% below the U.S. average (an index of 65, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 149 gyms on map listings, it comes to $707K per gym. The spending figure covers all memberships, classes and admissions, not only gyms. It is estimated from the incomes of the 164,378 households in the Lafayette metro area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Lafayette, LA metro area compare with the U.S. for gyms?

The Lafayette metro area has 9.1 gyms per 10,000 households, 20% above the U.S. rate of 7.6. Spending per gym is $707K, 46% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the national ratio of gyms to household spending, the Lafayette metro area would have about 81, against 149 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,884 households, against one for every 3,109 across the U.S. The official count rose 14.6% from 2019 to 2023, against +5.8% for the U.S.

How fast is the Lafayette, LA metro area growing?

Population estimates put the Lafayette metro area at 423,758 people in 2025, up 3.8% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 164,378 households. The median household income in the Lafayette metro area is $60,892 a year, 25% below 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 Lafayette metro area scores 24 for gyms (low), #374 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 Lafayette 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 Lafayette metro area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Lafayette 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 Lafayette 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.