While more Gen Z-ers are embracing fitness than ever before, a new report from ABC Fitness reveals how easier cancellation procedures and shifting member expectations are testing retention strategies for gyms and studios
Gen Z isn’t the future of fitness anymore. According to ABC Fitness’ newly released 2025 Year-End Wellness Watch Report, it’s the main market right now.
Nearly half of all new gym joins in 2025 came from Gen Z, per ABC Fitness, a data point that demonstrated just how decisively younger consumers are shaping the industry’s growth engine.
But the same report by the fitness software giant reveals a growing tension beneath the surface. Because even as Gen Z continues to fuel new memberships, gyms are seeing more members walk back out.
Gen Z Is Driving the Front Door
The report is based on ABC Fitness’ analysis of behavior from more than 40 million members across 30,000 gyms, studios and health clubs alongside consumer research conducted by ClubIntel.
The topline takeaway is difficult to miss: Gyms recorded 7.2 million new joins in 2025, with Gen Z accounting for 47% of that total.
As ABC Fitness chief customer officer Mike Escobedo tells Athletech News, the company is hearing from operators that they are increasingly navigating a member base that is younger, more digitally fluent and less tolerant of friction.
“They want fast onboarding, flexible payment options and experiences that feel personal from day one,” Escobedo said.
That race for Gen Z members is already playing out among high-value, low-price (HVLP) gym operators, many of which have made younger consumers a core target — Planet Fitness has repeatedly pointed to Gen Z as its fastest-growing membership cohort.
PureGym is making a similar Gen Z-focused play in the Northeast. Following its acquisition of Blink Fitness, the HVLP operator, a hit in the U.K., has made a significant investment in upgrading more than 50 sites across New York and New Jersey with expanded fitness offerings and 24/7 access. The gyms now operate under the PureGym banner.
Gyms Grapple With Easier Cancellations
Although gym check-ins inched up 1% year-over-year and are up 11% since 2021, cancellations climbed 8%, suggesting that while some members are deeply engaged, others are bailing just as quickly.
Notably, the rise in gym cancellations also coincided with the fitness industry’s reckoning with “click-to-cancel” this year, following a new Federal Trade Commission rule requiring businesses, including gyms, to make cancellation processes as easy as signing up.
While the rule has faced court challenges and ongoing uncertainty at the federal level, many operators have nonetheless enacted more transparent cancellation policies, often aligning with existing or emerging state-level requirements.
Boutique fitness studios, however, told a different story. New joins declined 3% and check-ins remained flat, but cancellations fell 6%, demonstrating a stronger commitment among those who did sign up.
Retention Starts With Connection
Community, in particular, appears to play a major role in retention. According to ABC Fitness, 47% of Gen Z members say it is the primary reason they stick with fitness, and roughly one in three members interacts with fitness communities on a daily basis.
The emphasis on community is not new. In a prior ABC Fitness report released this fall, social connection emerged as a primary driver of both gym joins and long-term engagement.
“Growth will come from removing barriers to join, strengthening community touchpoints and using technology to keep members engaged between visits,” Escobedo said.
The quality of engagement also can’t be dismissed, ABC Fitness chief strategy officer Mohamed Iqbal pointed out. The data shows check-ins climbed past 600 million in 2025, even as new member acquisition softened, suggesting that fitness operators that invest in coaching, community and smart technology are set to win.
“Motivation isn’t the issue — connection is,” Iqbal told ATN. “Studios that leaned into engagement proved this out, cutting cancellations by 6% year-over-year despite fewer new joins.”
Pilates Proves Loyalty Beats Volume
Pilates, the breakout fitness modality of the post-pandemic era, earned a dedicated spotlight in the ABC Fitness report, and the data reinforces why.
While Pilates attracts fewer new members overall, it consistently delivers stronger engagement and retention than other formats. In 2025, Pilates studios saw new joins decline 6.1% year over year, but check-ins rose 4.3% and cancellations fell 8.8%, demonstrating that, at least in Pilates, fewer members doesn’t mean weaker performance. Instead, it often means a more committed, consistent member base.
And while Pilates has long been associated with boutique studios and higher price points, at least one HVLP player is beginning to challenge that assumption. Crunch Fitness is bringing reformer Pilates into its big-box model through its top franchise group, CR Fitness Holdings, which plans to open a dedicated reformer Pilates studio inside a new Crunch location in McKinney, Texas.
The Big Takeaway
Altogether, the ABC Fitness’ 2025 Year-End Wellness Watch Report suggests that the challenge heading into 2026 isn’t attracting members, but designing experiences that make them want to stay, especially as competition intensifies in the low-price gym sector.
“Members are telling us something very clear in the data: they want fitness that fits their lives and their communities,” ABC Fitness CEO Bill Davis said. “The brands that will win 2026 are the ones that pair easy, flexible ways to join and pay with experiences that make people feel like they belong the moment they walk through the door.”
