22% of Australia gym goers cancelled their membership due to COVID-19

November 8, 2021

Billing / Fitness / Recreation / Wellness /

Almost a quarter of Australia gym goers (22%) cancelled their membership due to COVID-19 while and 27% of club members have found it hard to get back to the gym since restrictions eased.

The revelations, emerged from Canstar Blue’s annual review of gyms and fitness clubs, with the consumer review and comparison website this year also looking at Australian gymgoers thoughts and preferences about gyms, their features and culture.

The survey of 1,000 gym goers also found that, through the pandemic, 41% maintained a regular exercise routine despite gym closures.

Commenting on the findings, Canstar Blue spokesperson Dean Heckscher says a number of Australians with gym memberships utilised online training options when gyms were closed but some are finding it hard to get back into the gym.

Heckscher advised “virtual workouts and online personal training sessions offered by gyms have been popular during the pandemic, with one in four Aussie gymgoers indicating they utilised these online features, but we’ve also had a substantial number of gymgoers - 27% - tell us that they’ve been finding it hard to get back into the gym since COVID-19 restrictions have eased.”

Canstar Blue’s Customer Satisfaction findings.

Looking at gym culture, the survey found that only one in 10 respondents think it is acceptable to approach a potential romantic partner at the gym.

F45 Training retains Canstar Blue’s Customer Satisfaction Award
Looking at member satisfaction, F45 Training retained its status as being the most satisfactory fitness centre for the fourth consecutive year in Canstar Blue’s 2021 Customer Satisfaction Awards.

Having asked customers to rate gyms and fitness centres on overall satisfaction, as well as flexibility and perks, atmosphere, value for money, staff availability and equipment and facilities, Heckscher noted “F45 Training not only achieved five stars for overall satisfaction - giving it the crown - but it’s also the only fitness centre to achieve five stars in atmosphere and staff availability.

“Genesis, Crunch Fitness, Anytime Fitness, Plus Fitness and Jetts also performed impressively with four stars each for overall satisfaction.”

Canstar Blue’s research revealed some other insights about Aussie gym-goers as well, including:

Only 31% think their gym has implemented additional cleaning measures since COVID-19
24-hour access (46%) is the most popular gym feature used, followed by group fitness classes (37%) and personal training (34%)
One in four (25%) have tried multiple gym chains

Click here to view customer satisfaction research and ratings for over 1,800 brands across more than 300 consumer products and services on the Canstar Blue website.

Main image: F45 Training.

8th November 2021 - Fitness Australia questions NSW Government’s ongoing restrictions on group exercise

5th November 2021 - Xponential Fitness expands to operate 1,000 sites outside of North America

3rd November 2021 - What is driving the financial success of F45, Body Fit Training and Fitstop?

2nd November 2021 - Webinar to explains changes gyms need to make to avoid losing sales

1st November 2021 - Australia’s first Fire Fit gym opens in Sydney suburb

29th October 2021 - WynActive centres secure key Fitness Australia award

25th October 2021 - Again Faster Asia Pacific and NPE Fitness partner to develop more profitable, better-equipped fitness businesses

21st October 2021 - 2021 Fitness Australia Award winners announced

14th October 2021 - Plus Fitness opens 200th club

8th October 2021 - Fernwood Fitness looks to reopen Greater Sydney and NSW clubs at midnight on Monday

7th October 2021 - Exerp explains inclusion of government mandates in fitness clubs’ reopening processes

3rd October 2021 - Fitness Australia names 2021 industry award finalists

2nd October 2021 - Fernwood Fitness recognised in 2021 Topfranchise Awards

30th September 2021 - FITREC gives fitness professionals option to show that they are fully vaccinated for COVID-19

28th September 2021 - Gym reopening in ‘a to vaccinate or not vaccinate’ world

17th September 2021 - BH FITNESS launches new premium MOVEMIA line

16th September 2021 - Fernwood Fitness launches new Fusion studio brand

12th September 2021 - How confident can fitness businesses be in AI predictions?

30th August 2021 - Jetts Fitness and Fitness Playground named among Best Places to work in Australia

25th June 2021 - Global survey finds that more than 50% of women harassed while training at the gym

31st May 2021 - Anytime Fitness Grafton members exceed Tread As One fundraising campaign goal

7th May 2021 - 250 Australian Anytime Fitness clubs to join in events to raise funds for suicide prevention charity R U OK?

25th April 2021 - Sydney’s Soulful Fitness offers complimentary eight-week membership to veterans

9th November 2020 - F45 recognised again for delivering highest level of customer satisfaction

6th November 2020 - Australian gym goers spend an average of $79 a month on memberships

24th September 2020 - Aquatic, fitness and sport facilities headed for membership crisis

6th May 2020 - Fitness Australia survey finds Australians keen to renew gym memberships

19th March 2020 - Gyms emphasise hygiene practices but look for business support

13th March 2020 - Gyms focus on hygiene measures to reassure members through Coronavirus crisis

9th March 2020 - Hygiene essential in fitness facilities reassuring members over Coronavirus fears

4th August 2019 - Gym memberships account for half of Australian fitness industry revenues

9th June 2019 - 85% of fitness club members feel ‘healthier’ for having a gym membership

6th June 2019 - F45 tops Canstar Blue gym ratings for a second year

5th April 2018 - Survey identifies F45 as providing highest level of customer satisfaction among Australian gyms

27th July 2017 - Survey shows Fernwood delivers Australia’s most satisfied fitness club members

Support our industry news service
We hope that you value the news that we publish so while you're here can we ask for your support?

As an independent publisher, we need reader support for our industry news gathering so ask that - if you don't already do so - you back us by subscribing to the printed Australasian Leisure Management magazine and/or our online news.