Groundwork

Fitness and classes · Metro area · Virginia

Gyms in the Lynchburg, VA metro area

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for gyms in the Lynchburg, VA metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 32 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #341 of 387 scored metro areas
#7 of 9 scored metro areas based in Virginia

Listings
68
20 chain locations (29%)
Official establishments
34
All fitness and recreational sports centers · +26.9% since 2019
Household spending a year
$67M
On memberships, classes and admissions · $648 a household
Spending per listing
$985K
24% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
6.6
13% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
269,169
+2.9% since 2020

See the gyms around any address in the Lynchburg 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 Lynchburg 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

The Lynchburg metro area scores 32 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for gyms, ranking #341 of 387 scored metro areas and #7 of 9 scored metro areas based in Virginia. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.

Households in the Lynchburg metro area spend about $67M a year on memberships, classes and admissions, or $648 per household, 34% below the U.S. average. That works out to $985K per gym, 24% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M. The spending figure covers all memberships, classes and admissions, not only gyms.

The Lynchburg metro area has 68 gyms on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 29% of them, against 28% across the U.S. That comes to 6.6 for every 10,000 households, 13% below the U.S. rate of 7.6.

In 2023, official counts showed 34 businesses with payroll in the Lynchburg metro area classed as fitness and recreational sports centers, up 26.9% from 2019. That is one for every 3,041 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, 4 SBA-backed loans worth $3.7M have gone to businesses classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in the Lynchburg metro area. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Lynchburg metro area grew 2.9%, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%).

How the Lynchburg metro area compares

The same measures for Virginia 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 Lynchburg, VA metro area compared with Virginia and the U.S.
MeasureLynchburg metro areaVirginiaU.S.
Listings per 10k households6.66.97.6
Spending per listing$985K$1.4M$1.3M
Households per official establishment (all fitness and recreational sports centers)3,0412,7593,109
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+26.9%+9.6%+5.8%
Population growth, 2020–2025+2.9%+2.8%+3.1%
Spending per household on memberships, classes and admissions$648$960$983
Median household income$68,996$93,170$80,734
Groundwork market score3254

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
34All fitness and recreational sports centers · +26.9% over the period
Employees, 2023
523
Annual payroll, 2023
$7.9M
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
6820 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
52The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
4
Amount
$3.7M

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

Population, 2025 estimate
269,169+2.9% since 2020
Households
103,401
Median age
41.5
Homes lived in by their owners
72%
Vehicles per household
2.1
Land area
2,121 sq. mi.
People per square mile
124
Median household income
$68,996+28.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$88,223
Median home value
$239,700
Jobs located here
98,871
Daytime population
253,827Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

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

Top metro areas in Virginia

Metro areas in Virginia ranked for gyms by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV661,7327.3$1.7M+3.3%#59 of 387
1Richmond, VA603346.3$1.4M+5.5%#102 of 387
2Staunton-Stuarts Draft, VA52265.0$1.3M+3.2%#169 of 387
3Winchester, VA-WV52427.6$1.1M+6.5%#174 of 387
4Harrisonburg, VA48306.0$1.2M+3.5%#212 of 387
Kingsport-Bristol, TN-VA46685.2$1.1M+2.3%#235 of 387
5Charlottesville, VA43768.4$1.1M+3.1%#261 of 387
6Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC405067.2$1.1M+0.9%#278 of 387
7Lynchburg, VA32686.6$985K+2.9%#341 of 387
8Roanoke, VA29866.5$1M+0.4%#350 of 387

Other business types in the Lynchburg metro area

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

Questions

How many gyms are in the Lynchburg, VA metro area?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 68 gyms in the Lynchburg metro area. 20 of them (29%) are chain locations. The listings count gyms and fitness centers. Official counts show 34 businesses with payroll classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in 2023, up 26.9% 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 the Lynchburg, VA metro area spend on memberships, classes and admissions?

About $67M a year, or $648 per household. That is 34% below the U.S. average (an index of 66, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 68 gyms on map listings, it comes to $985K 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 103,401 households in the Lynchburg metro area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Lynchburg, VA metro area compare with the U.S. for gyms?

The Lynchburg metro area has 6.6 gyms per 10,000 households, 13% below the U.S. rate of 7.6. Spending per gym is $985K, 24% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the U.S. ratio of gyms to household spending, the Lynchburg metro area would have about 52, against 68 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 3,041 households, against one for every 3,109 across the U.S. The official count rose 26.9% from 2019 to 2023, against +5.8% for the U.S.

How fast is the Lynchburg, VA metro area growing?

Population estimates put the Lynchburg metro area at 269,169 people in 2025, up 2.9% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 103,401 households. Median household income in the Lynchburg metro area is $68,996, 15% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 28.3%, 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 Lynchburg metro area scores 32 for gyms (lower middle), #341 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 Lynchburg 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 Lynchburg metro area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Lynchburg 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 Lynchburg 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.