Budget chains still exert pressure
Coverage framing Planet Fitness as 'surprisingly affordable' underscores that low‑cost, high‑convenience chains remain a competitive alternative for price‑sensitive consumers. Those chains also often offer extended hours that change the baseline expectations for access and convenience. (lists.eastweststudios.com (tinygrab.com)
Planet Fitness is still selling a national gym membership from $15 a month, and that price point is helping keep budget chains in the fight for cost-conscious members. (planetfitness.com) On its United States site, Planet Fitness says Classic memberships begin at $15 a month and PF Black Card memberships begin at $24.99 a month, with a $49 annual fee and location-based variation in taxes and terms. (planetfitness.com, planetfitness.com) The company said it ended 2025 with about 20.8 million members and 2,896 clubs after opening 181 locations during the year, including 23 corporate-owned sites. (investor.planetfitness.com) Planet Fitness also markets convenience as part of the product. Its club locator says it has 2,700-plus locations and that most clubs are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. (planetfitness.com) That combination of low monthly dues and long hours has become a baseline offer in the lower end of the gym market. Consumers comparing chains are not just weighing treadmills and locker rooms; they are comparing whether a gym is cheap enough to keep and open when they can actually use it. (planetfitness.com, planetfitness.com) Rivals are selling the same convenience in different ways. Anytime Fitness says members get 24/7 access and says its average monthly membership cost is $53, while local terms and fees vary by club. (anytimefitness.com, anytimefitness.com) Crunch pitches the category from the other direction, saying a basic gym membership typically falls between $9.99 and $19.99 depending on location, while its broader network advertises more than 450 locations worldwide. (crunch.com, crunch.com) EōS Fitness also advertises multiple low-price tiers, with a $2.99 monthly processing fee unless members pay by bank draft and an annual membership fee of $59.99 that may apply. (eosfitness.com) The pressure on higher-priced gyms is not that every shopper wants the same club. It is that a chain with thousands of sites, entry pricing at $15, and late-night access keeps setting the reference point that competitors have to answer. (planetfitness.com, investor.planetfitness.com)
