Fitness and classes · Metro area · West Virginia
Gyms in the Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH metro area
How the Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for gyms: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 40 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #279 of 387 scored metro areas
#2 of 7 scored metro areas based in West Virginia
- Listings
- 86
- 39 chain locations (45%)
- Official establishments
- 22
- All fitness and recreational sports centers
- Household spending a year
- $94M
- On memberships, classes and admissions · $618 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.1M
- 16% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 5.7
- 25% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 365,965
- −2.6% since 2020
See the gyms around any address in the Huntington-Ashland 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 Huntington-Ashland metro 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
Households in the Huntington-Ashland metro area spend about $94M a year on memberships, classes and admissions, or $618 per household, 37% below the U.S. average. That is about $1.1M of household spending for each gym on map listings, 16% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M. The spending figure covers all memberships, classes and admissions, not only gyms.
There are 86 gyms on map listings in the Huntington-Ashland metro area as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 45% of them, against 28% across the U.S. That comes to 5.7 for every 10,000 households, 25% below the U.S. rate of 7.6.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in the Huntington-Ashland metro area was 22 in 2023. That is one for every 6,917 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, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $889K have gone to businesses classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in the Huntington-Ashland metro area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Huntington-Ashland metro area declined 2.6%, against +3.1% for the U.S. For gyms, the Huntington-Ashland metro area has a Groundwork market score of 40 (lower middle): #279 of 387 scored metro areas and #2 of 7 scored metro areas based in West Virginia.
How the Huntington-Ashland metro area compares
The same measures for West 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.
| Measure | Huntington-Ashland metro area | West Virginia | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 5.7 | 5.3 | 7.6 |
| Spending per listing | $1.1M | $1.1M | $1.3M |
| Households per official establishment (all fitness and recreational sports centers) | 6,917 | 6,175 | 3,109 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | −12.6% | +5.8% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −2.6% | −1.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on memberships, classes and admissions | $618 | $595 | $983 |
| Median household income | $60,078 | $59,608 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 40 | 36 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 22All fitness and recreational sports centers
- Employees, 2023
- 510
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $6.1M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 8639 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 72The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 2
- Amount
- $889K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in the Huntington-Ashland 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 Huntington-Ashland metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 365,965−2.6% since 2020
- Households
- 152,165
- Median age
- 42.3
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 74%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 2,916 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 127
- Median household income
- $60,078
- Average household income
- $80,719
- Median home value
- $154,700
- Jobs located here
- 137,552
- Daytime population
- 362,067Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Huntington-Ashland 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 Huntington-Ashland metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardGyms across West Virginia
Every West Virginia market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in West Virginia for gyms, numbered among those based in West Virginia (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Huntington-Ashland metro area marked.
Top metro areas in West Virginia
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV | 80 | 43 | 3.6 | $2M | +7.1% | #10 of 387 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | 66 | 1,732 | 7.3 | $1.7M | +3.3% | #59 of 387 |
| 1Wheeling, WV-OH | 52 | 26 | 4.5 | $1.4M | −3.6% | #165 of 387 |
| Winchester, VA-WV | 52 | 42 | 7.6 | $1.1M | +6.5% | #174 of 387 |
| 2Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH | 40 | 86 | 5.7 | $1.1M | −2.6% | #279 of 387 |
| 3Charleston, WV | 35 | 48 | 5.5 | $1.1M | −4.7% | #320 of 387 |
| 4Beckley, WV | 29 | 27 | 6.0 | $850K | −4.3% | #354 of 387 |
| 5Parkersburg-Vienna, WV | 27 | 25 | 6.6 | $858K | −2.3% | #365 of 387 |
| 6Morgantown, WV | 25 | 43 | 7.5 | $933K | +1.3% | #369 of 387 |
| 7Weirton-Steubenville, WV-OH | 18 | 31 | 6.2 | $998K | −3.6% | #380 of 387 |
Other business types in the Huntington-Ashland metro 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 Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH metro area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 86 gyms in the Huntington-Ashland metro area. 39 of them (45%) are chain locations. The listings count gyms and fitness centers. Official counts show 22 businesses with payroll classed as fitness and recreational sports centers in 2023. 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 Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH metro area spend on memberships, classes and admissions?
About $94M a year, or $618 per household. That is 37% below the U.S. average (an index of 63, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 86 gyms on map listings, it comes to $1.1M 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 152,165 households in the Huntington-Ashland metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH metro area compare with the U.S. for gyms?
The Huntington-Ashland metro area has 5.7 gyms per 10,000 households, 25% below the U.S. rate of 7.6. Spending per gym is $1.1M, 16% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the U.S. ratio of gyms to household spending, the Huntington-Ashland metro area would have about 72, against 86 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 6,917 households, against one for every 3,109 across the U.S.
How fast is the Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Huntington-Ashland metro area at 365,965 people in 2025, down 2.6% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 152,165 households. Median household income in the Huntington-Ashland metro area is $60,078, 26% below the U.S. median of $80,734.
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 Huntington-Ashland metro area scores 40 for gyms (lower middle), #279 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 Huntington-Ashland 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 Huntington-Ashland metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Huntington-Ashland 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 Huntington-Ashland 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.