Groundwork

Fitness and classes · Metro area · Washington

Gyms in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA metro area

The gyms in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 71 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #33 of 387 scored metro areas
#5 of 11 scored metro areas based in Washington

Listings
1,209
355 chain locations (29%)
Official establishments
614
All fitness and recreational sports centers · +4.6% since 2019
Household spending a year
$2.6B
On memberships, classes and admissions · $1,623 a household
Spending per listing
$2.2M
66% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
7.5
In line with the U.S.
Population, 2025
4,161,883
+3.3% since 2020

See the gyms around any address in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue 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 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue 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 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro area scores 71 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for gyms, ranking #33 of 387 scored metro areas and #5 of 11 scored metro areas based in Washington. That puts it in the top 10% of metro areas for gyms.

As of September 2026, map listings count 1,209 gyms in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro area. Of those, 355 are chain locations, or 29%, against 28% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 7.5, in line with the U.S. rate of 7.6.

Household spending on memberships, classes and admissions in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro area comes to about $2.6B a year: $1,623 per household, 65% above the U.S. average. That is about $2.2M of household spending for each gym on map listings, 66% above 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 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro area was 614 in 2023, up 4.6% from 2019. That is one for every 2,620 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, 97 SBA-backed loans worth $52.5M have gone to businesses classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro area. Population estimates put the population change in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro area from 2020 to 2025 at +3.3%, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%).

How the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro area compares

The same measures for Washington 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 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA metro area compared with Washington and the U.S.
MeasureSeattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro areaWashingtonU.S.
Listings per 10k households7.57.17.6
Spending per listing$2.2M$2M$1.3M
Households per official establishment (all fitness and recreational sports centers)2,6202,9083,109
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+4.6%+6.9%+5.8%
Population growth, 2020–2025+3.3%+3.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on memberships, classes and admissions$1,623$1,386$983
Median household income$115,177$98,141$80,734
Groundwork market score7174

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
614All fitness and recreational sports centers · +4.6% over the period
Employees, 2023
12,809
Annual payroll, 2023
$302.5M
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
1,209355 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
2,006The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
97
Amount
$52.5M

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

Population, 2025 estimate
4,161,883+3.3% since 2020
Households
1,608,596
Median age
38.9
Homes lived in by their owners
60%
Vehicles per household
1.8
Land area
5,870 sq. mi.
People per square mile
692
Median household income
$115,177+32.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$158,706
Median home value
$717,500
Jobs located here
2,129,194
Daytime population
4,229,343Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue 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.

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The highest-scoring metro areas in Washington for gyms, numbered among those based in Washington (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro area marked.

Top metro areas in Washington

Metro areas in Washington ranked for gyms by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA84776.5$1.9M+2.8%#4 of 387
2Longview-Kelso, WA80276.1$1.6M+3.5%#12 of 387
3Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard, WA74666.1$2.3M+2.7%#23 of 387
4Mount Vernon-Anacortes, WA73356.7$1.8M+2.4%#25 of 387
5Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA711,2097.5$2.2M+3.3%#33 of 387
6Yakima, WA70525.9$1.5M+1.0%#37 of 387
7Kennewick-Richland, WA69817.5$1.6M+6.5%#41 of 387
Lewiston, ID-WA69197.1$1.4M+1.5%#42 of 387
Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA667607.5$1.8M+1.0%#57 of 387
8Bellingham, WA62707.4$1.5M+3.9%#85 of 387

Other business types in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro area

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

Questions

How many gyms are in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA metro area?

The Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro area has 1,209 gyms on map listings as of September 2026. 355 of them (29%) are chain locations. The listings count gyms and fitness centers. Official counts show 614 businesses with payroll classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in 2023, up 4.6% 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 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA metro area spend on memberships, classes and admissions?

About $2.6B a year, or $1,623 per household. That is 65% above the U.S. average (an index of 165, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 1,209 gyms on map listings, it comes to $2.2M per gym. The spending figure covers all memberships, classes and admissions, not only gyms. It is estimated from the incomes of the 1,608,596 households in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA metro area compare with the U.S. for gyms?

The Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro area has 7.5 gyms per 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 7.6. Spending per gym is $2.2M, 66% above the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the national ratio of gyms to household spending, the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro area would have about 2,006, against 1,209 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,620 households, against one for every 3,109 across the U.S. The official count rose 4.6% from 2019 to 2023, against +5.8% for the U.S.

How fast is the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA metro area growing?

Population estimates put the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro area at 4,161,883 people in 2025, up 3.3% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 1,608,596 households. The median household income in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro area is $115,177 a year, 43% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 32.6% 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 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro area scores 71 for gyms (upper middle), #33 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 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue 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 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue 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 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue 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.