Groundwork

Fitness and classes · Metro area · Michigan

Gyms in the Flint, MI metro area

The gyms in the Flint, MI metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 55 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #140 of 387 scored metro areas
#10 of 15 scored metro areas based in Michigan

Listings
98
30 chain locations (31%)
Official establishments
32
All fitness and recreational sports centers · +39.1% since 2019
Household spending a year
$127.5M
On memberships, classes and admissions · $762 a household
Spending per listing
$1.3M
In line with the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
5.9
22% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
401,093
−1.1% since 2020

See the gyms around any address in the Flint 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 Flint 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

As of September 2026, map listings count 98 gyms in the Flint metro area. Of those, 30 are chain locations, or 31%, against 28% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 5.9, 22% below the U.S. rate of 7.6.

Household spending on memberships, classes and admissions in the Flint metro area comes to about $127.5M a year: $762 per household, 22% below the U.S. average. That works out to $1.3M per gym, in line with the U.S. figure of $1.3M. That spending covers all memberships, classes and admissions, which gyms share with other businesses in the trade.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in the Flint metro area was 32 in 2023, up 39.1% from 2019. That is one for every 5,229 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, 5 SBA-backed loans worth $1.9M have gone to businesses classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in the Flint metro area.

Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Flint metro area declined 1.1%, against +3.1% for the U.S. For gyms, the Flint metro area has a Groundwork market score of 55 (upper middle): #140 of 387 scored metro areas and #10 of 15 scored metro areas based in Michigan.

How the Flint metro area compares

The same measures for Michigan 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 Flint, MI metro area compared with Michigan and the U.S.
MeasureFlint metro areaMichiganU.S.
Listings per 10k households5.96.57.6
Spending per listing$1.3M$1.4M$1.3M
Households per official establishment (all fitness and recreational sports centers)5,2294,3833,109
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+39.1%+8.1%+5.8%
Population growth, 2020–2025−1.1%+0.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on memberships, classes and admissions$762$902$983
Median household income$62,281$72,875$80,734
Groundwork market score5560

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
32All fitness and recreational sports centers · +39.1% over the period
Employees, 2023
320
Annual payroll, 2023
$10.1M
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
9830 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
98The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
5
Amount
$1.9M

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

Population, 2025 estimate
401,093−1.1% since 2020
Households
167,334
Median age
41.3
Homes lived in by their owners
71%
Vehicles per household
1.7
Land area
637 sq. mi.
People per square mile
633
Median household income
$62,281+28.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$84,062
Median home value
$182,400
Jobs located here
125,696
Daytime population
375,742Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Flint 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 Flint 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 Michigan for gyms, numbered among those based in Michigan (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Flint metro area marked.

Top metro areas in Michigan

Metro areas in Michigan ranked for gyms by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Monroe, MI77284.4$2M+0.7%#17 of 387
2Battle Creek, MI66254.7$1.6M−0.6%#62 of 387
3Traverse City, MI64497.5$1.3M+2.2%#71 of 387
4Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI631,1406.4$1.5M+0.1%#74 of 387
5Lansing-East Lansing, MI631367.0$1.2M+1.4%#80 of 387
6Muskegon-Norton Shores, MI62385.6$1.3M+1.8%#88 of 387
7Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI623337.6$1.3M+2.8%#89 of 387
South Bend-Mishawaka, IN-MI61755.8$1.4M+0.1%#92 of 387
8Saginaw, MI60405.1$1.5M−1.1%#100 of 387
9Jackson, MI60396.2$1.3M−0.4%#104 of 387
10Flint, MI55985.9$1.3M−1.1%#140 of 387

Other business types in the Flint metro area

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

Questions

How many gyms are in the Flint, MI metro area?

The Flint metro area has 98 gyms on map listings as of September 2026. 30 of them (31%) are chain locations. The listings count gyms and fitness centers. Official counts show 32 businesses with payroll classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in 2023, up 39.1% 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 Flint, MI metro area spend on memberships, classes and admissions?

About $127.5M a year, or $762 per household. That is 22% below the U.S. average (an index of 78, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 98 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 167,334 households in the Flint metro area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Flint, MI metro area compare with the U.S. for gyms?

The Flint metro area has 5.9 gyms per 10,000 households, 22% below 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 5,229 households, against one for every 3,109 across the U.S. The official count rose 39.1% from 2019 to 2023, against +5.8% for the U.S.

How fast is the Flint, MI metro area growing?

Population estimates put the Flint metro area at 401,093 people in 2025, down 1.1% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 167,334 households. The median household income in the Flint metro area is $62,281 a year, 23% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 28.2% 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 Flint metro area scores 55 for gyms (upper middle), #140 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 Flint 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 Flint metro area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Flint 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 Flint 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.