Fitness and classes · County · South Carolina
Gyms in Charleston County, SC
How Charleston County, SC compares with other counties and the U.S. for gyms: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 39 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,281 of 1,792 scored counties
#27 of 32 scored counties in South Carolina
- Listings
- 212
- 57 chain locations (27%)
- Official establishments
- 93
- All fitness and recreational sports centers · +2.2% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $166.3M
- On memberships, classes and admissions · $929 a household
- Spending per listing
- $785K
- 40% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 11.8
- 55% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 436,200
- +6.4% since 2020
See the gyms around any address in Charleston 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 Charleston 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
Map listings as of September 2026 show 212 gyms in Charleston County. Chain locations make up 27% of them, against 28% across the U.S. That is 11.8 per 10,000 households, 55% above the U.S. rate of 7.6.
Household spending on memberships, classes and admissions in Charleston County comes to about $166.3M a year: $929 per household, 5% below the U.S. average. Spread across 212 gyms, that is $785K per gym, 40% 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.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in Charleston County was 93 in 2023, up 2.2% from 2019. That is one for every 1,924 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, 14 SBA-backed loans worth $9.2M have gone to businesses classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in Charleston County.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Charleston County grew 6.4%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for gyms in Charleston County is 39 (lower middle), #1,281 of 1,792 scored counties and #27 of 32 scored counties in South Carolina.
How Charleston County compares
The same measures for South Carolina 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 | Charleston County | South Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 11.8 | 7.1 | 7.6 |
| Spending per listing | $785K | $986K | $1.3M |
| Households per official establishment (all fitness and recreational sports centers) | 1,924 | 3,690 | 3,109 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +2.2% | +8.5% | +5.8% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +6.4% | +8.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on memberships, classes and admissions | $929 | $700 | $983 |
| Median household income | $88,494 | $69,324 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 39 | 47 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 91 → 93All fitness and recreational sports centers · +2.2% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 935
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $17.1M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 21257 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 128The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 14
- Amount
- $9.2M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in Charleston 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 Charleston County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 436,200+6.4% since 2020
- Households
- 178,975
- Median age
- 40.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 64%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 918 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 458
- Median household income
- $88,494+38.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $131,674
- Median home value
- $489,100
- Jobs located here
- 279,531
- Daytime population
- 508,326Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Charleston 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 Charleston County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardGyms across South Carolina
Every South Carolina market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in South Carolina for gyms, numbered among those based in South Carolina, with Charleston County marked.
Top counties in South Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Kershaw County, SC | 77 | 11 | 4.1 | $1.6M | +11.6% | #105 of 1,792 |
| 2Georgetown County, SC | 73 | 13 | 4.8 | $1.5M | +3.8% | #168 of 1,792 |
| 3Dorchester County, SC | 71 | 37 | 5.9 | $1.3M | +10.1% | #215 of 1,792 |
| 4Berkeley County, SC | 71 | 61 | 6.5 | $1.2M | +18.7% | #218 of 1,792 |
| 5Laurens County, SC | 69 | 10 | 3.7 | $1.4M | +6.2% | #255 of 1,792 |
| 6Jasper County, SC | 66 | 6 | 4.6 | $1.4M | +32.2% | #324 of 1,792 |
| 7Lancaster County, SC | 66 | 29 | 7.2 | $1.1M | +18.3% | #335 of 1,792 |
| 8Aiken County, SC | 65 | 37 | 5.3 | $1.3M | +7.3% | #367 of 1,792 |
| 9Oconee County, SC | 59 | 20 | 5.8 | $1.1M | +6.3% | #579 of 1,792 |
| 10York County, SC | 58 | 85 | 7.5 | $1.2M | +8.1% | #617 of 1,792 |
| 27Charleston County, SC | 39 | 212 | 11.8 | $785K | +6.4% | #1,281 of 1,792 |
Other business types in Charleston 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 Charleston County, SC?
There are 212 gyms on map listings in Charleston County as of September 2026. 57 of them (27%) are chain locations. The listings count gyms and fitness centers. Official counts show 93 businesses with payroll classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in 2023, up 2.2% 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 Charleston County, SC spend on memberships, classes and admissions?
About $166.3M a year, or $929 per household. That is 5% below the U.S. average (an index of 95, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 212 gyms on map listings, it comes to $785K per gym. The spending figure covers all memberships, classes and admissions, not only gyms. It is estimated from the incomes of the 178,975 households in Charleston County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Charleston County, SC compare with the U.S. for gyms?
Charleston County has 11.8 gyms per 10,000 households, 55% above the U.S. rate of 7.6. Spending per gym is $785K, 40% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the national ratio of gyms to household spending, Charleston County would have about 128, against 212 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,924 households, against one for every 3,109 across the U.S. The official count rose 2.2% from 2019 to 2023, against +5.8% for the U.S.
How fast is Charleston County, SC growing?
Population estimates put Charleston County at 436,200 people in 2025, up 6.4% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 178,975 households. The median household income in Charleston County is $88,494 a year, 10% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 38.2% 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. Charleston County scores 39 for gyms (lower middle), #1,281 of 1,792 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Charleston 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 Charleston County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Charleston 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 Charleston 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.