Gym Membership Prices: Cost Comparison of Every Major Brand

Why brand-by-brand pricing is so hard to find

Gym chains do not publish national pricing. Each location sets its own rates based on local real estate, competition, and corporate subsidy structure. A Planet Fitness in Manhattan costs more than a Planet Fitness in Topeka. An Equinox in LA costs less than an Equinox in Hudson Yards. The numbers below are national averages compiled from FITT Finder index of 150,000+ fitness businesses, current as of June 2026. For city-specific data, see our gym membership cost by city dashboard. For the printable worksheet, grab our gym membership cost comparison worksheet. For the full Equinox cost breakdown including destination clubs, see our Equinox membership cost guide.

The 20 major gym brands compared

Below is the full brand-by-brand breakdown. All numbers are national averages for a single-club standard adult membership as of June 2026. Initiation fees are the published rate before negotiation. Real first-year cost is monthly fee multiplied by 12, plus initiation fee, plus the annual maintenance fee.

Budget tier: Planet Fitness, Crunch, Blink

Planet Fitness is the cheapest national option at $15 a month for the basic Classic card and $24.99 for the Black Card, which lets you bring a guest and use any location. The trade-off is real. Planet Fitness locations have no free weights over 75 pounds, no squat racks in most locations, and a "lunk alarm" that discourages heavy lifting. If your goal is general fitness, cardio, and machine circuits, Planet Fitness is a good value. The $39 annual fee billed in October brings the real first-year cost to $219 to $338 depending on the plan. Planet Fitness publishes its rates on its website, which is unusual in the industry.

Crunch Fitness at $20 to $40 a month is the next step up. The base plan includes group classes, which Planet Fitness does not offer. Crunch locations vary widely in quality. Some are essentially Planet Fitness clones with red paint. Others are full-service gyms with free weights, squat racks, and a serious class schedule. Tour before you sign. Blink Fitness, owned by Equinox, sits at $15 to $30 a month and offers cleaner facilities than Planet Fitness at a similar price point. If you want a budget gym that does not feel like a budget gym, Blink is the best option in major Northeast and West Coast cities.

Mid tier: LA Fitness, Anytime, Gold’s, 24 Hour, YMCA For the full LA Fitness cost breakdown, see our [LA Fitness membership cost guide](/resources/for-seekers/la-fitness-membership-cost).

Mid-tier gyms run $30 to $60 a month with initiation fees of $50 to $150. This is where most American gym members land. LA Fitness is the largest mid-tier chain by location count (700+ in the US). Anytime Fitness is the largest by 24/7 access. Gold’s Gym has the strongest strength-training heritage but has been losing locations since 2020. 24 Hour Fitness filed for bankruptcy in 2020 and emerged smaller but still operates 300+ clubs, mostly on the West Coast. The YMCA, often overlooked, has 2,600+ locations and charges $40 to $70 a month with no initiation fee at most locations. The Y includes pools, group classes, gym access, and often child care. Scholarships are available for families below 200% of the federal poverty line. For the full Anytime Fitness cost breakdown including 24/7 access, see our Anytime Fitness membership cost guide.

The mid-tier category is where you will see the biggest variance in quality. A well-managed LA Fitness can feel like a premium gym. A poorly managed one can feel like a budget gym with a higher price tag. Tour two locations of the same chain before signing. Read our how to compare gyms near you checklist for the 20-point scoring rubric.

Premium tier: Life Time and Equinox

Life Time at $80 to $160 a month and Equinox at $185 to $280 a month are the two national premium chains. Both include pools, group classes, towels, and locker-room amenities in the base membership. The difference is positioning. Life Time is built around family and resort-style facilities: outdoor pools, kids programming, tennis courts, cafes. Equinox is built around affluent urban professionals: eucalyptus steam rooms, Kiehl’s products, and a members-only culture. Life Time’s initiation fee is $100 to $300. Equinox’s is $100 to $300. Neither negotiates much. Both waive initiation during slow months (May, June, October, November). Life Time’s membership page and Equinox’s membership page both list starting rates, which is rare in the industry.

Boutique tier: Orangetheory, Barry’s, SoulCycle, F45, Solidcore

Boutique studios do not charge initiation fees. They sell class packs or unlimited monthly. Pricing is per-class, not per-month. A single class at Barry’s is $38 to $42. A single class at Orangetheory is $28 to $38. Unlimited monthly at Orangetheory is $169 to $199. Unlimited at Barry’s is $260 to $320. Boutique studios are not a replacement for a full-service gym. They are a replacement for one slice of your weekly training. If you train 3 or more times a week at one boutique format, unlimited monthly is cheaper than class packs. If you train once a week, class packs are cheaper. The economics work best when you commit to one format. Our Pilates vs yoga vs barre guide walks through which boutique format fits which goal.

CrossFit: a category of its own

CrossFit is not a chain. It is a franchised affiliate model. Each affiliate sets its own pricing. The national average is $150 to $200 a month for unlimited classes. Some affiliates in major cities charge $250 or more. Some in smaller markets charge $120. CrossFit includes coaching in every class, which is why the monthly rate is higher than a mid-tier gym. The value proposition is personal-training-level coaching in a group setting. The downside is that the coaching quality varies wildly by affiliate. Tour two CrossFit boxes before signing. Watch a class. The CrossFit affiliate directory lists every box globally. Read our first CrossFit class guide before you walk in.

Real first-year cost: the only number that matters

The monthly rate is marketing. Real first-year cost is what you actually pay. The formula is: monthly fee multiplied by 12, plus initiation fee, plus annual maintenance fee, plus any mandatory add-ons. The table in section 2 above shows the real first-year cost for all 20 brands. The cheapest national chain by real first-year cost is Planet Fitness at $220 to $379. The most expensive is Equinox at $2,320 to $3,759. A 10x difference for what is, structurally, the same product: access to fitness equipment.

The question is not which is cheapest. The question is which is cheapest per visit. A $220-a-year Planet Fitness membership you use 4 times is $55 a visit. A $2,320-a-year Equinox membership you use 200 times is $11.60 a visit. The expensive gym is cheaper if you actually go. This is the entire game. For the full Planet Fitness cost breakdown including the Black Card, see our Planet Fitness membership cost guide.

How to negotiate gym membership prices

Almost every line item is negotiable at the mid-tier and below. Premium chains (Equinox, Life Time) negotiate less. Boutique studios do not negotiate at all. At mid-tier chains, the initiation fee is waivable 70% of the time, the monthly rate can usually be reduced 10 to 15% by citing a competitor, and the annual fee can be deferred. The phrase that works: "I am ready to sign today if you can do X." Where X is your specific ask. The word "today" is the lever. If they say no, walk. They will usually call you back within 48 hours. The Federal Trade Commission health club guide covers your cancellation rights in most states, which strengthens your negotiating position.

Real comparison: three brands in Chicago

A seeker in Chicago in February 2026 compared Planet Fitness ($15/month, $1 initiation, $39 annual), LA Fitness ($34.99/month, $99 initiation, $49 annual), and Equinox ($215/month, $100 initiation, no annual). Real first-year cost: $220, $568, $2,680. The seeker planned to train 4 times a week for strength and cardio. Planet Fitness had no squat rack and capped dumbbells at 75 pounds. LA Fitness had 2 squat racks and a free-weight area but was overcrowded at 6pm with 20-minute waits. Equinox had 6 squat racks, no waits, a pool, and group classes included. He signed up at Equinox and attended 188 times in 12 months. Cost per visit: $14.25. His LA Fitness alternative would have cost $3.02 per visit if he had gone 188 times, but he estimated he would have gone 60 times due to the crowding, making it $9.47 per visit. He paid more per visit by going to Equinox, but he went 3x more often. Net result: he spent $2,108 more per year and trained 128 more times. Whether that is worth it depends on your budget. The math is honest. See the Chicago gym directory for current listings.

Boutique vs full-service: which is the better deal

If you train 3 or more times a week at one boutique format (Orangetheory, Barry’s, Solidcore), unlimited monthly is the better deal at $160 to $280 a month. If you train twice a week, a 10-pack every 3 months at $250 to $400 is cheaper. If you train once a week, drop-in at $28 to $42 is cheapest but still $1,456 to $2,184 a year. Boutique studios are the most expensive option in fitness per visit. They are also the option with the highest retention, because the coaching and community keep people showing up. Whether you value the format enough to pay 3x what a full-service gym costs is the question. Our ClassPass vs gym membership vs direct guide walks through the math for seekers who want to try multiple formats without committing.

The hidden fee trap: personal training packages

The single biggest budget blowout is not the monthly fee. It is the personal training package. Sales reps earn commission on training packages and will pressure you to add them at sign-up. A typical pitch is "3 sessions for $149." Sounds reasonable. The catch: sessions expire in 30 days, and the trainer will try to upsell you to a 24-session package at $1,800 to $2,400. If you want a trainer, hire one outside the gym network. Independent trainers in most major cities charge $60 to $100 per session, with no package commitment. Read our how to find a personal trainer guide for the full vetting process.

Methodology and data freshness

These numbers come from FITT Finder index of 150,000+ listed fitness businesses, scraped and verified quarterly, plus published rates on each chain’s website as of June 2026, plus 412 member-reported data points submitted through our pricing feedback form between January and May 2026. Individual gyms may vary. Always confirm pricing directly before signing. The data is most accurate for the 30 largest US metro areas. Smaller markets may see pricing 10 to 20% below the closest comparable major city.

Bottom line

Gym membership prices by brand vary 10x between Planet Fitness and Equinox. The right gym for you depends on your goals, your budget, and your actual visit frequency. A cheap gym you never visit is more expensive than a premium gym you visit 200 times. Use the gym comparison checklist before you sign anything. If you need to cancel, our how to cancel a gym membership guide walks through your legal rights and the script.