Fitness and classes · Small-town market · Michigan
Gyms in the Sault Ste. Marie, MI area
How the Sault Ste. Marie, MI area compares with other small-town markets and the U.S. for gyms: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 23 out of 100: Low
Ranked #472 of 506 scored small-town markets
#17 of 17 scored small-town markets based in Michigan
- Listings
- 13
- 2 chain locations (15%)
- Official establishments
- n/a
- Fewer than 3, or not published
- Household spending a year
- $9.6M
- On memberships, classes and admissions · $681 a household
- Spending per listing
- $738K
- 43% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 9.2
- 21% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 36,081
- −1.9% since 2020
See the gyms around any address in the Sault Ste. Marie 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 Sault Ste. Marie 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 Sault Ste. Marie area has a Groundwork market score of 23 (low): #472 of 506 scored small-town markets and #17 of 17 scored small-town markets based in Michigan. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.
At $681 per household (31% below the U.S. average), households in the Sault Ste. Marie area spend about $9.6M a year on memberships, classes and admissions. That works out to $738K per gym, 43% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M. The spending figure covers all memberships, classes and admissions, not only gyms.
There are 13 gyms on map listings in the Sault Ste. Marie area as of September 2026. 2 of them (15%) are chain locations, against 28% across the U.S. That comes to 9.2 for every 10,000 households, 21% above the U.S. rate of 7.6.
Official counts don’t publish a figure for fitness and recreational sports centers in the Sault Ste. Marie area, since they leave out counts under 3. Population estimates show the Sault Ste. Marie area declined 1.9% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How the Sault Ste. Marie 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.
| Measure | Sault Ste. Marie area | Michigan | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 9.2 | 6.5 | 7.6 |
| Spending per listing | $738K | $1.4M | $1.3M |
| Households per official establishment (all fitness and recreational sports centers) | n/a | 4,383 | 3,109 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +8.1% | +5.8% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −1.9% | +0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on memberships, classes and admissions | $681 | $902 | $983 |
| Median household income | $62,217 | $72,875 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 23 | 60 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- n/aAll fitness and recreational sports centers
- Employees, 2023
- n/a
- Annual payroll, 2023
- n/a
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 132 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 7The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 0
- Amount
- $0
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in the Sault Ste. Marie 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 Sault Ste. Marie area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 36,081−1.9% since 2020
- Households
- 14,080
- Median age
- 42.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 75%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 1,559 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 23
- Median household income
- $62,217+33.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $76,569
- Median home value
- $161,900
- Jobs located here
- 11,286
- Daytime population
- 35,358Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Sault Ste. Marie area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. 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 Sault Ste. Marie area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardGyms across Michigan
Every Michigan market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Michigan for gyms, numbered among those based in Michigan (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Sault Ste. Marie area marked.
Top small-town markets in Michigan
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Holland, MI | 86 | 29 | 6.4 | $1.5M | +2.1% | #9 of 506 |
| 2Coldwater, MI | 74 | 8 | 4.7 | $1.5M | +2.5% | #29 of 506 |
| 3Hillsdale, MI | 72 | 8 | 4.5 | $1.7M | 0.0% | #36 of 506 |
| 4Adrian, MI | 71 | 22 | 5.7 | $1.4M | −1.6% | #45 of 506 |
| Marinette, WI-MI | 64 | 14 | 4.8 | $1.5M | +0.3% | #99 of 506 |
| 5Owosso, MI | 64 | 19 | 6.8 | $1.1M | −0.4% | #106 of 506 |
| 6Ludington, MI | 61 | 8 | 6.2 | $1.2M | 0.0% | #136 of 506 |
| 7Houghton, MI | 59 | 11 | 7.1 | $1.1M | +1.8% | #162 of 506 |
| 8Sturgis, MI | 53 | 19 | 8.0 | $900K | +0.1% | #229 of 506 |
| 9Big Rapids, MI | 51 | 14 | 8.4 | $801K | +4.7% | #248 of 506 |
| 17Sault Ste. Marie, MI | 23 | 13 | 9.2 | $738K | −1.9% | #472 of 506 |
Other business types in the Sault Ste. Marie 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 Sault Ste. Marie, MI area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 13 gyms in the Sault Ste. Marie area. 2 of them (15%) are chain locations. The listings count gyms and fitness centers. No official count is published for fitness and recreational sports centers in the Sault Ste. Marie area: counts under 3 are left out.
How much do households in the Sault Ste. Marie, MI area spend on memberships, classes and admissions?
About $9.6M a year, or $681 per household. That is 31% below the U.S. average (an index of 69, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 13 gyms on map listings, it comes to $738K 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 14,080 households in the Sault Ste. Marie area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Sault Ste. Marie, MI area compare with the U.S. for gyms?
The Sault Ste. Marie area has 9.2 gyms per 10,000 households, 21% above the U.S. rate of 7.6. Spending per gym is $738K, 43% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the U.S. ratio of gyms to household spending, the Sault Ste. Marie area would have about 7, against 13 on map listings.
How fast is the Sault Ste. Marie, MI area growing?
Population estimates put the Sault Ste. Marie area at 36,081 people in 2025, down 1.9% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 14,080 households. Median household income in the Sault Ste. Marie area is $62,217, 23% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 33.8%, 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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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 Sault Ste. Marie area scores 23 for gyms (low), #472 of 506 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Sault Ste. Marie 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 Sault Ste. Marie area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Sault Ste. Marie 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 Sault Ste. Marie 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.