Fitness and classes · Metro area · Massachusetts
Gyms in the Worcester, MA metro area
The gyms in the Worcester, MA metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 58 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #117 of 387 scored metro areas
#1 of 6 scored metro areas based in Massachusetts
- Listings
- 299
- 67 chain locations (22%)
- Official establishments
- 115
- All fitness and recreational sports centers · +17.4% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $375.7M
- On memberships, classes and admissions · $1,119 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.3M
- 3% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 8.9
- 17% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 888,502
- +3.7% since 2020
See the gyms around any address in the Worcester 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 Worcester 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
Map listings as of September 2026 show 299 gyms in the Worcester metro area. Chain locations make up 22% of them, against 28% across the U.S. That comes to 8.9 for every 10,000 households, 17% above the U.S. rate of 7.6.
Households in the Worcester metro area spend about $375.7M a year on memberships, classes and admissions, or $1,119 per household, 14% above the U.S. average. Spread across 299 gyms, that is $1.3M per gym, 3% 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 115 businesses with payroll classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in the Worcester metro area in 2023, up 17.4% from 2019. That is one for every 2,920 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, 17 SBA-backed loans worth $13.4M have gone to businesses classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in the Worcester metro area.
Population estimates show the Worcester metro area grew 3.7% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for gyms in the Worcester metro area is 58 (upper middle), #117 of 387 scored metro areas and #1 of 6 scored metro areas based in Massachusetts.
How the Worcester metro area 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 | Worcester metro area | Massachusetts | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 8.9 | 9.1 | 7.6 |
| Spending per listing | $1.3M | $1.4M | $1.3M |
| Households per official establishment (all fitness and recreational sports centers) | 2,920 | 2,264 | 3,109 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +17.4% | −3.3% | +5.8% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +3.7% | +2.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on memberships, classes and admissions | $1,119 | $1,248 | $983 |
| Median household income | $95,939 | $103,960 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 58 | 52 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 115All fitness and recreational sports centers · +17.4% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,635
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $33.1M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 29967 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 289The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 17
- Amount
- $13.4M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in the Worcester 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 Worcester metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 888,502+3.7% since 2020
- Households
- 335,826
- Median age
- 41.3
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 66%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 1,511 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 574
- Median household income
- $95,939
- Average household income
- $124,653
- Median home value
- $423,700
- Jobs located here
- 355,505
- Daytime population
- 797,239Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Worcester 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 Worcester 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 Massachusetts
Every Massachusetts market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Massachusetts for gyms, numbered among those based in Massachusetts (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Worcester metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Massachusetts
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Worcester, MA | 58 | 299 | 8.9 | $1.3M | +3.7% | #117 of 387 |
| 2Amherst Town-Northampton, MA | 58 | 52 | 8.4 | $1.2M | +10.4% | #118 of 387 |
| 3Springfield, MA | 57 | 123 | 6.7 | $1.3M | +0.2% | #124 of 387 |
| 4Pittsfield, MA | 57 | 45 | 7.8 | $1.2M | −1.2% | #126 of 387 |
| 5Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | 55 | 1,897 | 9.8 | $1.4M | +2.3% | #139 of 387 |
| 6Barnstable Town, MA | 51 | 95 | 9.0 | $1.3M | +2.4% | #179 of 387 |
| Providence-Warwick, RI-MA | 49 | 556 | 8.2 | $1.2M | +2.1% | #201 of 387 |
Other business types in the Worcester 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 Worcester, MA metro area?
There are 299 gyms on map listings in the Worcester metro area as of September 2026. 67 of them (22%) are chain locations. The listings count gyms and fitness centers. Official counts show 115 businesses with payroll classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in 2023, up 17.4% 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 Worcester, MA metro area spend on memberships, classes and admissions?
About $375.7M a year, or $1,119 per household. That is 14% above the U.S. average (an index of 114, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 299 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 335,826 households in the Worcester metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Worcester, MA metro area compare with the U.S. for gyms?
The Worcester metro area has 8.9 gyms per 10,000 households, 17% above the U.S. rate of 7.6. Spending per gym is $1.3M, 3% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the national ratio of gyms to household spending, the Worcester metro area would have about 289, against 299 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,920 households, against one for every 3,109 across the U.S. The official count rose 17.4% from 2019 to 2023, against +5.8% for the U.S.
How fast is the Worcester, MA metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Worcester metro area at 888,502 people in 2025, up 3.7% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 335,826 households. The median household income in the Worcester metro area is $95,939 a year, 19% 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 Worcester metro area scores 58 for gyms (upper middle), #117 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 Worcester 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 Worcester metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Worcester 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 Worcester 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.