What a gym membership really costs in its first year
Updated from prices checked on each gym’s own website.
A gym’s first-year cost is its monthly dues × 12 plus its joining fee and its annual fee, and those fees can add a third or more to the advertised price. At LA Fitness – Autry Pond Rd, the fees add $168 to twelve months of $24.99/mo.
The formula
- Monthly dues × 12. A plan billed every two weeks is 26 payments a year, not 24: $19.99 every two weeks is $519.74 a year.
- + the joining fee (also called enrollment, initiation, start-up or processing fee), paid once.
- + the annual fee (a “maintenance” or “membership” fee), charged once a year on top of the dues.
- + any fee every member must pay, such as a key card or a “rate lock”.
| Gym | Advertised | Dues × 12 | Real first year | Fees add |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LA Fitness – Autry Pond Rd | $24.99/mo | $299.88 | $467.88 | $168 |
| LA Fitness – Bandera Rd | $24.99/mo | $299.88 | $467.88 | $168 |
| LA Fitness – N Loop 1604 W | $24.99/mo | $299.88 | $467.88 | $168 |
| LA Fitness – US-281 N | $24.99/mo | $299.88 | $467.88 | $168 |
| LA Fitness – W Loop 1604 N | $24.99/mo | $299.88 | $467.88 | $168 |
| Fitness Connection – SW Military Dr | $14.99/mo | $179.88 | $300.87 | $120.99 |
| Fitness Connection – TX-151 | $14.99/mo | $179.88 | $300.87 | $120.99 |
| Fitness Connection – West Ave | $14.99/mo | $179.88 | $300.87 | $120.99 |
| Crunch Fitness – Bandera Rd | $9.99/mo | $119.88 | $219.87 | $99.99 |
| Crunch Fitness – N Interstate 35 | $9.99/mo | $119.88 | $219.87 | $99.99 |
| Crunch Fitness – San Pedro Ave | $9.99/mo | $119.88 | $219.87 | $99.99 |
| Crunch Fitness – Seguin Rd | $9.99/mo | $119.88 | $219.87 | $99.99 |
Compare gyms by the first-year column, not the advertised one. How we check every price.
