Fitness and classes · County · Massachusetts
Gyms in Essex County, MA
How Essex County, MA compares with other counties and the U.S. for gyms: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 57 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #650 of 1,792 scored counties
#11 of 14 scored counties in Massachusetts
- Listings
- 293
- 61 chain locations (21%)
- Official establishments
- 132
- All fitness and recreational sports centers · +3.1% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $380.7M
- On memberships, classes and admissions · $1,216 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.3M
- In line with the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 9.4
- 24% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 826,653
- +2.3% since 2020
See the gyms around any address in Essex 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 Essex 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
Household spending on memberships, classes and admissions in Essex County comes to about $380.7M a year: $1,216 per household, 24% above the U.S. average. Spread across 293 gyms, that is $1.3M per gym, in line with the U.S. figure of $1.3M. The spending figure covers all memberships, classes and admissions, not only gyms.
There are 293 gyms on map listings in Essex County as of September 2026. 61 of them (21%) are chain locations, against 28% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 9.4, 24% above the U.S. rate of 7.6.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in Essex County was 132 in 2023, up 3.1% from 2019. That is one for every 2,372 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, 25 SBA-backed loans worth $12.4M have gone to businesses classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in Essex County.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Essex County grew 2.3%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for gyms in Essex County is 57 (upper middle), #650 of 1,792 scored counties and #11 of 14 scored counties in Massachusetts.
How Essex County compares
The same measures for Massachusetts 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 | Essex County | Massachusetts | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 9.4 | 9.1 | 7.6 |
| Spending per listing | $1.3M | $1.4M | $1.3M |
| Households per official establishment (all fitness and recreational sports centers) | 2,372 | 2,264 | 3,109 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +3.1% | −3.3% | +5.8% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +2.3% | +2.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on memberships, classes and admissions | $1,216 | $1,248 | $983 |
| Median household income | $101,883 | $103,960 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 57 | 52 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 128 → 132All fitness and recreational sports centers · +3.1% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 4,143
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $92.3M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 29361 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 293The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 25
- Amount
- $12.4M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in Essex 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 Essex County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 826,653+2.3% since 2020
- Households
- 313,147
- Median age
- 42.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 64%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 493 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 1,651
- Median household income
- $101,883+28.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $140,108
- Median home value
- $619,100
- Jobs located here
- 329,644
- Daytime population
- 736,954Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Essex 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 Essex County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardGyms across Massachusetts
Every Massachusetts market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Massachusetts for gyms, numbered among those based in Massachusetts, with Essex County marked.
Top counties in Massachusetts
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Franklin County, MA | 69 | 16 | 5.1 | $1.6M | −0.3% | #243 of 1,792 |
| 2Bristol County, MA | 63 | 174 | 7.4 | $1.3M | +2.9% | #428 of 1,792 |
| 3Worcester County, MA | 62 | 299 | 8.9 | $1.3M | +3.7% | #460 of 1,792 |
| 4Hampshire County, MA | 62 | 52 | 8.4 | $1.2M | +10.4% | #464 of 1,792 |
| 5Middlesex County, MA | 61 | 655 | 10.3 | $1.5M | +2.8% | #489 of 1,792 |
| 6Berkshire County, MA | 61 | 45 | 7.8 | $1.2M | −1.2% | #504 of 1,792 |
| 7Plymouth County, MA | 59 | 189 | 9.3 | $1.4M | +3.5% | #559 of 1,792 |
| 8Hampden County, MA | 59 | 123 | 6.7 | $1.3M | +0.2% | #569 of 1,792 |
| 9Norfolk County, MA | 58 | 305 | 10.8 | $1.4M | +2.2% | #600 of 1,792 |
| 10Suffolk County, MA | 57 | 269 | 8.2 | $1.4M | +0.1% | #639 of 1,792 |
| 11Essex County, MA | 57 | 293 | 9.4 | $1.3M | +2.3% | #650 of 1,792 |
Other business types in Essex 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 Essex County, MA?
As of September 2026, map listings count 293 gyms in Essex County. 61 of them (21%) are chain locations. The listings count gyms and fitness centers. Official counts show 132 businesses with payroll classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in 2023, up 3.1% 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 Essex County, MA spend on memberships, classes and admissions?
About $380.7M a year, or $1,216 per household. That is 24% above the U.S. average (an index of 124, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 293 gyms on map listings, it comes to $1.3M 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 313,147 households in Essex County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Essex County, MA compare with the U.S. for gyms?
Essex County has 9.4 gyms per 10,000 households, 24% above the U.S. rate of 7.6. Spending per gym is $1.3M, in line with the U.S. figure of $1.3M. The count on map listings matches the U.S. ratio of gyms to household spending. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,372 households, against one for every 3,109 across the U.S. The official count rose 3.1% from 2019 to 2023, against +5.8% for the U.S.
How fast is Essex County, MA growing?
Population estimates put Essex County at 826,653 people in 2025, up 2.3% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 313,147 households. Median household income in Essex County is $101,883, 26% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 28.5%, 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. Essex County scores 57 for gyms (upper middle), #650 of 1,792 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Essex 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 Essex County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Essex 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 Essex 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.