Planet Fitness Ends Q1 With 20.6M Members
Planet Fitness is staying in shape amid economic woes, with Gen Z continuing to lead membership growth
Planet Fitness isn’t feeling the pinch of economic uncertainty. Instead, it’s seeing momentum from Gen Z consumers, whose spending habits have positioned the fitness giant as an experience-driven brand and who may influence its growing pipeline of testing initiatives, including changes to the physical layout of its clubs.
The popular fitness operator reported a strong start to 2025, posting an 11.5% increase in total revenue to $276.7 million for the first quarter compared to the same period last year. System-wide same-club sales rose 6.1%, while overall system-wide sales climbed to $1.3 billion. The HVLP fitness chain also expanded its footprint during the quarter, opening 19 new clubs — 16 franchise-owned and three corporate-owned — bringing its global total to 2,741 locations as of the end of March.
Notably, Planet Fitness ended the quarter with approximately 20.6 million members, an increase of about 900,000 from the end of 2024.
“Given the strength and durability of our model, we delivered this healthy growth against a backdrop of increasing volatility in the macro-economic environment,” Planet Fitness CEO Colleen Keating said. “We are a resilient brand and continue to strengthen our leadership position by offering consumers a place to get a high-quality workout at an incredible value in our Judgement Free atmosphere.”
Pricing Tests
Keating noted that several experiments are underway – in addition to testing changes to club layouts, Planet Fitness will make a decision about a potential system-wide Black Card price adjustment until after the anniversary of its Classic Card price increase. The change took effect last June, bumping the Classic Card cost from $10 to $15 per month for new members.
The fitness franchise has been testing new pricing for its Black Card membership—currently $24.99 per month—with pilot programs at $27.99 and $29.99. The experiment follows the rollout of a $5 Classic Card price increase, which began last year. Black Card members enjoy access to all Planet Fitness locations, free guest passes and use of amenities like massage chairs and tanning beds.
Planet Fitness took its Black Card amenities on the road in March with a mobile “spa” equipped with a HydroMassage bed, massage chair and CryoLounge+ and even offered free HydroMassage sessions to non-members and non-Black Card holders during tax season as a stress-relief perk.
Several Planet Fitness locations have introduced red light therapy and spray tanning, both of which have been well received and could potentially become premium perks for Black Card members down the line, Keating hinted.
Gen Z Powers Growth
“Gen Z continues to lead our membership growth and has been the fastest-growing demographic group of our membership since 2021,” Keating said on Thursday’s earnings call. “To further this momentum, we’re excited to announce that we will be running the High School Summer Pass program again this year. This has been incredibly successful at building brand loyalty and is a cost-effective program.”
Keating pointed to younger members, particularly Gen Z, as a key source of stability amid broader market uncertainty. They have also influenced Planet’s decision to bolster its strength training offerings.
“Fitness is really a part of their lifestyle,” Keating said. “So as we’ve seen a little bit of the consumer sentiment and pullback in consumer spending, what we’ve generally seen is less spending on product, but maintain spending on experiences. And when we think about Gen Zs and millennials, not only are we an experience, we are really a part of their lifestyle. So we are feeling confident about the consumer and our member that’s reflected in the reiteration of our guidance.”
Tariff Talk
Amid ongoing concerns about tariffs, Planet Fitness says it’s closely monitoring potential impacts while staying focused on its growth strategy.
“Our teams are in discussion with our vendors and working through what potential tariff impacts mean to our business and franchisee unit economics,” Keating said. “We are taking a thoughtful approach focused on the things we can control to continue to execute on our strategic imperatives. We are in communication with our franchisees and at current tariff levels, do not see a material impact to our 2025 targets.”
Planet Fitness CFO Jay Stasz noted that the HVLP giant could have an advantage as cost-conscious consumers look to cut expenses without giving up their fitness routines.
“In this kind of environment, we could benefit from a trade-down from some of the higher priced clubs,” he said.
Click-to-Cancel Rollout
Planet Fitness is also keeping cool over the Federal Trade Commission’s click-to-cancel upcoming deadline and even sees potential upside. The new rule requires businesses to make it easier for consumers to cancel recurring subscriptions and memberships online. Keating suggested that, based on a small test, making cancellations easier could actually lead to more sign-ups, as potential members feel more confident knowing they have the flexibility to cancel as easily as they can join.
“We remain committed to delivering a great member experience, and we want to make the cancellation process as seamless as the join process,” Stasz added. “Given that the challenge to the regulation did not result in any changes to the ruling, we’re underway with rolling out online cancel functionality system-wide to meet the mandated deadline of May 14.”
Stasz noted that over 35% of Planet Fitness locations had already implemented click-to-cancel functionality prior to April, including all corporate-owned clubs, where the feature has been in place for more than 18 months.