Covid-19 has caused many fitness clubs and gyms to temporarily close their doors to the public, making it difficult to generate revenue and maintain a healthy customer base. This article is going to delve into how the pandemic has affected demand for Gyms in the UK and if demand will likely reach the heights it was at before lockdown restrictions. Prior to the limits set by the UK government of social distancing measures, these are some key statistics for the market:
- In the UK, there are around 7,200 fitness clubs and Gyms in the UK.
- Around 10.3 million people in the UK are members of Gyms.
The annual turnover of the Gym and fitness club market in the UK is valued at just over £2 billion per year.
How Has Coronavirus Affected Gyms UK?
Coronavirus has led to the government putting strict guidelines on UK businesses, including closing and limiting Gym capacities in an effort to control the virus. Therefore, we are identifying the effect this has had on the preferences on the British public and the search volumes for keywords such as “Gym” or “Gym Near me”.
Monthly searches for the term “Gym” in the UK. KWFinder used to analyse the search volume.
As we can see from the data, the search volume for the keyword “Gym” in the UK has fluctuated dramatically over the past 18 months and demand tended to coincide with the easing and tightening of lockdown measures. Some key lockdown dates are as follows:
- March 23rd 2020 – First lockdown put into place (Gyms closed))
- June 15th 2020 – Gyms allowed to reopen to the public
- November 5th 2020 – Second lockdown (Gyms closed)
- December 2nd 2020 – Gyms allowed to open as second lockdown ends
- January 6th 2021 – UK enters 3rd national lockdown (Gyms closed)
Even though search volumes are now steadily on the rise once again, a large proportion of gym goers in the UK have opted for home workouts and outdoor workouts in their time away from the fitness clubs. This has resulted in some people having a preference for these alternative workouts rather than the gym environment with some saying they will never set foot in a gym again.
What is the Most Popular Gym Chain UK 2021?
Monthly searches for the largest Gym chains in the UK. KWFinder used to analyse the search volume.
The most searched Gym in the UK is PureGym, generating 206,000 searches per month which is explainable as it is the largest Gym chain in the UK with 294 gyms and over 1 million members. The “no frills” model allows the chain to be accessible to a large proportion of the public, with popularity being fuelled by the affordable membership fees, no fixed term contracts and 24/7 access to good quality gym facilities. “The Gym” operates a similar low-cost model and is the 2nd highest searched gym in the UK, highlighting the preference for low-cost fitness clubs.
Where are Gyms the Most Popular UK 2021?
City | Number of Searches for the term “Gym” Per Every 1000 people |
Salford | 9.53 |
Manchester | 8.22 |
Bristol | 8.02 |
London | 7.55 |
Cambridge | 6.86 |
Edinburgh | 6.75 |
Newcastle-Upon-Tyne | 6.71 |
Bath | 6.65 |
Stockport | 6.52 |
Oxford | 6.13 |
These figures were calculated by dividing the number of searches per area by the total area population and multiplying that figure by 1,000. Number of Searches were found using the Keyword analysis tool KWFinder.
In the UK, the term Gym is proportionally searched the most in Salford followed closely by neighbouring Manchester in second place. The city which ranked the lowest in the UK according to our research was Newport in Wales, with only 0.08 people per every 1000 searching for the term “Gym” each month.
Which Gym is the Most Popular in my Area UK 2021?
Pure Gym is widely popular across the whole of the UK with it being the most popular gym in a large number of cities that we analysed. However, as you can see, Pure gym is not the most popular gym in every city in the UK, with other gyms generating more searches in some cities. We discovered this data by analysing search volumes for each of the 17 most popular gyms in the UK in each city and seeing which gyms came out on top in each city.
Summary: Gym Statistics UK Roundup
To conclude, we found that Gyms and fitness centres are very popular in the UK and search volumes are highly impacted by the pandemic and government lockdowns. Pure Gym is the most popular gym in the UK but in some cities, opinions differ with the likes of JD Gyms being the most popular in Liverpool, Nuffield Health being the most popular in Crawley and so on.
We hope these statistics have been helpful and have aided your understanding of the scope of the gym market in the UK.
