Planet Fitness franchise: cost, fees & unit track record
Opening a Planet Fitness franchise takes $1,504,600 – $5,158,500 all-in, per its franchise disclosure filings (data as of 2026-05). The initial franchise fee is not disclosed in the filings we cover. Ongoing, franchisees pay a royalty of 7% on sales plus an ad-fund contribution of up to 9%. To qualify, Planet Fitness asks for $600,000 in liquid cash and a $1,500,000 net worth. Anything the filings do not state is marked "Not disclosed" below — never estimated.
Planet Fitness franchise costs and fees
| Verification mark | Cost item | Low | High | Range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise feeOne-time, paid to the franchisor at signing | Not disclosed1 | Not disclosed1 | ||
| Initial investment (all-in)FDD Item 7-derived range: build-out, equipment, opening costs | $1,504,600 | $5,158,500 | $1,504,600 to $5,158,500 | |
| Net worth requiredFranchisor's stated qualification minimum | $1,500,000 | $1,500,000 | $1,500,000 | |
| Liquid cash requiredFranchisor's stated qualification minimum | $600,000 | $600,000 | $600,000 | |
| Cash to open (all-in range) | $1,504,600 | $5,158,500 | $1,504,600 to $5,158,500 | |
- 1 "Not disclosed" means Planet Fitness's filings do not state this figure. We publish the gap instead of estimating it.
| RoyaltyOngoing, % of sales | 7% |
|---|---|
| Ad fundOngoing, % of sales | Up to 9% |
| Initial termLength of the first franchise agreement | 10 years |
See the full Planet Fitness cost breakdown — what's in that number and what isn't
How Planet Fitness's cost compares
A dollar figure means more with a yardstick. Here is where Planet Fitness's disclosed cost sits against the Health & Fitness category:
- Minimum startup cost of $1,504,600 — about 8.1× the Health & Fitness median of $184,861.
Category medians are computed from the Health & Fitness brands in our data that disclosed each figure — a benchmark for scale, not a quality judgment. See all Health & Fitness franchises
Free info kit — costs, fees, and unit track record. You choose who may follow up.
Figures look outdated? Report outdated info.
How Planet Fitness's units have held up
Openings and closures from FDD Item 20-style unit history, 2012–2022: began the window at 457 units; 1,215 units opened, 18 closed, ending at 2,082 units. (partial records: 2016, 2017, 2018 are not in the source data — totals span the reported years only.)
What about earnings?
We don't publish per-brand earnings figures — for Planet Fitness or anyone else. The only primary source is Item 19 of the brand's own franchise disclosure document (FDD), and no law requires a franchisor to publish one, so the "average owner income" numbers circulating elsewhere are usually unsourced or survivorship-biased. Ask Planet Fitness for its current FDD and read Item 19 yourself — and if there is no Item 19, that silence is information too.
What this data can't tell you
Everything on this page comes from disclosure filings — fees, ranges, and unit counts. Four questions that matter just as much are not in any filing we can source, so we say so instead of guessing:
- The hours and the labor
- No dataset field says whether Planet Fitness is a manage-from-a-laptop business or a 60-hour week in disguise. Item 15 of the FDD states whether you're obligated to run the business personally, and Item 11 lists what the franchisor actually does for you — then ask current owners what their week looks like (validation calls), not the sales team.
- How hands-on the ownership really is
- "Semi-absentee" is a pitch, not a filing field. Treat any hands-off claim as unverified until it's consistent with Item 15 and with what multiple current franchisees tell you — what absentee ownership actually means.
- Your territory — whether it's protected, and whether it's open
- Two territory questions sit outside our data. Whether Planet Fitness grants a protected or exclusive area is set in Item 12 of the FDD and varies brand to brand — some grant none, and the carve-outs (online sales, national accounts) matter as much as the map. And filing data can't say what's open in your market this month; only Planet Fitness can confirm current availability. Ask both before you inquire, and get the answer in writing.
- What owners earn
- Covered honestly above: our dataset has no earnings fields, the only primary source is the brand's own Item 19, and here is how to read that evidence.
About the Planet Fitness franchise
Planet Fitness is a health & fitness franchisor with 2,082 units at the end of 2022 (FDD Item 20-style unit history). Between 2012 and 2022, it began the window at 457 units; its filings record 1,215 unit openings and 18 closures, ending at 2,082 units (partial records: 2016, 2017, 2018 are not in the source data — totals span the reported years only).
Disclosure filings report 15 franchise-related lawsuits. Review Item 3 of the FDD. (as of 2026-05)
From the franchisor's materials
PLANET FITNESS businesses are fitness training facilities offering exercise machines and free weights, fitness training services, tanning services, related services and ancillary goods. We offer for sale PLANET FITNESS franchises for new locations and for existing fitness facilities that want to convert to a PLANET FITNESS.
Planet Fitness franchise: quick answers
- How much does a Planet Fitness franchise cost?
- $1,504,600 – $5,158,500 all-in to open, per Planet Fitness's franchise disclosure filings (data as of 2026-05).
- How many Planet Fitness units are there?
- 2,082 units at the end of 2022 (FDD Item 20-style unit history).
- How have Planet Fitness's units held up?
- 99.8% of units at risk between 2020 and 2022 did not close, per our metric recomputed from FDD Item 20-style unit history (methodology published on our verification page).
- Is Planet Fitness SBA-eligible?
- Planet Fitness is flagged SBA-eligible in our dataset (as of 2026-05). Confirm current status on the SBA Franchise Directory before relying on it for financing.