Business Valuation Guide
What Is a Gym Worth?
Most gyms sell for 1.8x to 3.2x Seller's Discretionary Earnings, with the midpoint near 2.5x. A gym with $250,000 of SDE would typically fall between $450,000 and $800,000.
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Gyms are membership businesses, so they are valued on the durability of that membership base. Monthly recurring dues are exactly the kind of revenue buyers pay premiums for, provided churn is low and the members are not there for one particular trainer.
How to value a gym
Start with Seller's Discretionary Earnings (SDE): net profit plus the owner's pay and perks, interest, depreciation and one-time costs.
Then apply the industry multiple. For gyms that band runs 1.8x to 3.2x, and where a specific business lands inside it is decided by the factors below. Typical SDE margin for this category runs around 14% of revenue, which is a useful sanity check: if your margin is far off that, the multiple moves with it.
Above roughly $1M to $2M of EBITDA the buyer pool changes. Individual buyers give way to private equity platforms and strategic acquirers, and pricing restates onto an EBITDA multiple of 4x to 6.5x rather than a multiple of SDE.
What raises the value of a gym
- A stable membership base with low monthly churn
- Contracted memberships rather than month-to-month only
- Additional revenue from personal training, classes, supplements or childcare
- Equipment recently replaced with remaining useful life
- A long assignable lease with adequate parking
What lowers it
- High membership churn, which means the buyer refills a leaking bucket
- Members attached to one trainer or the owner personally
- Aging equipment facing near-term capital replacement
- A big-box competitor opening nearby on price
- Seasonal membership swings with no off-season offering
Who buys gyms
Independent gym operators adding locations, franchisees converting an existing site, and fitness professionals buying their first facility.
Selling a gym: what to expect
A typical sale runs 6 to 12 months from going to market to closing, assuming your financials are ready when you start. Membership churn is the number a buyer asks for first. A gym with stable membership and low monthly attrition prices well; one where members cycle through quickly is bought on assets rather than earnings.
Gym valuation: common questions
How much is a gym worth?
Most independent gyms sell for roughly 1.8x to 3.2x Seller's Discretionary Earnings, with equipment usually included in that price rather than added on top. Membership stability and churn decide where inside the range you land.
What is the gym valuation formula?
Recast earnings into SDE, then apply the multiple. The industry also quotes per-member figures as a shorthand, but that ignores dues level, churn and cost base, so it misleads more often than it helps. Members are only worth what they pay and how long they stay.
How much is a CrossFit or boutique gym worth?
Same earnings method, but affiliate and boutique gyms often depend more heavily on specific coaches and community, which is a form of owner dependence. Where the community is genuinely attached to a coach who is leaving, buyers discount accordingly.
What is the average price of a gym?
There is no single average, because price tracks earnings rather than revenue. At the midpoint multiple of 2.5x SDE, gyms at $500,000 of SDE sell around $1,250,000, and at $1,000,000 of SDE around $2,500,000. Typical SDE margin in this category runs near 14% of revenue, so a gym doing $1,000,000 in revenue would often carry about $140,000 of SDE and land near $350,000.
How much can I sell my gym for?
Take your Seller's Discretionary Earnings and multiply by 1.8x to 3.2x. Where you land inside that band is decided by owner dependence, customer concentration, recurring revenue and the quality of your books. A gym at the top of the range looks materially different from one at the bottom, and most of those differences can be improved in the twelve months before a sale.
What EBITDA multiple do gyms sell for?
SDE multiples of 1.8x to 3.2x apply to owner-operated gyms. Once earnings pass roughly $1M to $2M of EBITDA the buyer pool shifts to private equity and strategic acquirers, and pricing restates onto an EBITDA multiple of 4x to 6.5x. The two are not comparable: SDE includes the owner's compensation and EBITDA does not, so the same business shows a higher SDE multiple than EBITDA multiple.
How long does it take to sell a gym?
Typically 6 to 12 months from going to market to closing, assuming financials are ready. Membership churn is the number a buyer asks for first. A gym with stable membership and low monthly attrition prices well; one where members cycle through quickly is bought on assets rather than earnings.
Is there a gym valuation calculator?
Yes, at the top of this page. It applies the 1.8x to 3.2x band for gyms, adjusted for owner hours, margin and years in business, and returns a range rather than one number.
Do I need a gym appraisal or a valuation?
To decide whether to sell a gym, a market valuation: what a buyer would likely pay. A certified appraisal is usually needed only for divorce, estate, tax, litigation or a buyer's SBA loan, and costs far more.
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Multiples reflect broker transaction data including the BizBuySell Insight Report and aggregated 2024-2025 USA small business sales, and mirror the bands used by the Exit Ready valuation calculator. They are planning estimates, not a formal appraisal, and not investment advice. Market multiples move; this page was last updated 2026-08-19.