Groundwork

Fitness and classes · County · Missouri

Gyms in Clay County, MO

How Clay County, MO compares with other counties and the U.S. for gyms: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 68 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #275 of 1,792 scored counties
#8 of 48 scored counties in Missouri

Listings
74
28 chain locations (38%)
Official establishments
30
All fitness and recreational sports centers · +3.5% since 2019
Household spending a year
$102.1M
On memberships, classes and admissions · $999 a household
Spending per listing
$1.4M
6% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
7.2
5% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
265,032
+4.3% since 2020

See the gyms around any address in Clay 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 Clay County. 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

Household spending on memberships, classes and admissions in Clay County comes to about $102.1M a year: $999 per household, 2% above the U.S. average. That is about $1.4M of household spending for each gym on map listings, 6% above the U.S. figure of $1.3M. The spending figure covers all memberships, classes and admissions, not only gyms.

Clay County has 74 gyms on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 28 are chain locations, or 38%, against 28% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 7.2, 5% below the U.S. rate of 7.6.

In 2023, official counts showed 30 businesses with payroll in Clay County classed as fitness and recreational sports centers, up 3.5% from 2019. That is one for every 3,406 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, 9 SBA-backed loans worth $3.2M have gone to businesses classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in Clay County.

Population estimates put the population change in Clay County from 2020 to 2025 at +4.3%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). Clay County scores 68 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for gyms, ranking #275 of 1,792 scored counties and #8 of 48 scored counties in Missouri. That puts it in the top quarter of counties.

How Clay County compares

The same measures for Missouri 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 Clay County, MO compared with Missouri and the U.S.
MeasureClay CountyMissouriU.S.
Listings per 10k households7.27.07.6
Spending per listing$1.4M$1.2M$1.3M
Households per official establishment (all fitness and recreational sports centers)3,4063,5993,109
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+3.5%+11.3%+5.8%
Population growth, 2020–2025+4.3%+1.9%+3.1%
Spending per household on memberships, classes and admissions$999$869$983
Median household income$88,468$70,702$80,734
Groundwork market score6850

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
29 → 30All fitness and recreational sports centers · +3.5% over the period
Employees, 2023
479
Annual payroll, 2023
$7.9M
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
7428 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
78The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
9
Amount
$3.2M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in Clay 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 Clay County

Population, 2025 estimate
265,032+4.3% since 2020
Households
102,171
Median age
38.7
Homes lived in by their owners
69%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
398 sq. mi.
People per square mile
649
Median household income
$88,468+25.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$108,962
Median home value
$275,600
Jobs located here
117,697
Daytime population
242,115Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Clay 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 Clay County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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The highest-scoring counties in Missouri for gyms, numbered among those based in Missouri, with Clay County marked.

Top counties in Missouri

Counties in Missouri ranked for gyms by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Warren County, MO9053.6$2.6M+9.2%#10 of 1,792
2Lincoln County, MO90125.3$1.8M+11.4%#15 of 1,792
3Cass County, MO87255.8$1.7M+7.1%#27 of 1,792
4Jefferson County, MO80515.8$1.6M+2.7%#70 of 1,792
5Callaway County, MO7763.6$2.2M+3.2%#97 of 1,792
6Newton County, MO76125.4$1.4M+6.1%#126 of 1,792
7Stone County, MO7264.4$1.7M+4.1%#181 of 1,792
8Clay County, MO68747.2$1.4M+4.3%#275 of 1,792
9Christian County, MO67288.0$1.2M+8.3%#305 of 1,792
10St. Charles County, MO641448.9$1.4M+4.9%#399 of 1,792

Other business types in Clay County

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

Questions

How many gyms are in Clay County, MO?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 74 gyms in Clay County. 28 of them (38%) are chain locations. The listings count gyms and fitness centers. Official counts show 30 businesses with payroll classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in 2023, up 3.5% 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 Clay County, MO spend on memberships, classes and admissions?

About $102.1M a year, or $999 per household. That is 2% above the U.S. average (an index of 102, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 74 gyms on map listings, it comes to $1.4M 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 102,171 households in Clay County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Clay County, MO compare with the U.S. for gyms?

Clay County has 7.2 gyms per 10,000 households, 5% below the U.S. rate of 7.6. Spending per gym is $1.4M, 6% above the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the U.S. ratio of gyms to household spending, Clay County would have about 78, against 74 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 3,406 households, against one for every 3,109 across the U.S. The official count rose 3.5% from 2019 to 2023, against +5.8% for the U.S.

How fast is Clay County, MO growing?

Population estimates put Clay County at 265,032 people in 2025, up 4.3% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 102,171 households. Median household income in Clay County is $88,468, 10% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 25.5%, 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. Clay County scores 68 for gyms (upper middle), #275 of 1,792 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Clay 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 Clay County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Clay 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 Clay 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.