Planet Fitness stands as a prominent health club chain, one of the best 10 GYM in USA. It is suggesting strong reactions in the fitness community—people either embrace it totally or dismiss it entirely. Few have a neutral stance. For those accustomed to home workouts and considering a gym transition, a Planet Fitness membership might be an excellent choice. It caters to those seeking personal fitness enhancements, a community vibe, and the expertise of Planet Fitness’s in-house trainers. However, powerlifters, Olympic weightlifters, or enthusiasts of instructor-led HIIT sessions like those at Orangetheory Fitness might find it lacking due to certain absent facilities.
In this review, we explain the cost of a Planet Fitness membership, how to cancel one, and what it’s like to try out a facility as a guest. After reading our review, you might choose not to join one near you. Still, you’ll know how Planet Fitness operates, what their places look like, and the feel of the place before you try it for yourself.
Planet Fitness Membership
Planet Fitness says they are a “judgment free zone.” They aim to attract beginners and people who want to lose weight. The details I give next about PF memberships and places come from both research and my own trip to a Planet Fitness spot in Beckley, West Virginia. There, I trained and talked to the staff about maybe getting a membership for me.
Membership Overview
Planet Fitness has three kinds of memberships: Prepaid, Classic, and the PF Black Card. With the Prepaid and Classic Memberships, you can use the club where you signed up as much as you want (times change based on the place), use the PF Mobile App, and get free training in the club.
The PF Black Card is what Planet Fitness talks about a lot. You get everything from the above two memberships plus online training, the chance to bring a friend for free, the option to go to any PF place all over the world, and special stuff in the Black Club area. This includes things like water massages, massage chairs, red light therapy, tanning beds, and half-off some drinks they sell. Most of people wandering what will be the how much cost of Gym memberships in USA. It depends on many factors such as location, gym time duration, competition, services.
Planet Fitness Membership Cost
You can pay ahead for a whole year’s membership for $199. You don’t have to pay to join or to leave, but if you choose this, you won’t get your money back.
The Classic membership costs $10 every month and the PF Black Card costs $24.99 every month. You also have to pay a one-time joining fee. The staff person told me this fee can change every day. The day I went there, the Classic membership had a joining fee of $62.98, and for the PF Black Card, it was $37.15. Sometimes it’s less, sometimes it’s more, and during some special deals, it might even be free.
Besides the joining fee, you also have to pay $39 every year on October 1st as long as you’re a member. For both the Classic and PF Black Card memberships, the money comes directly from your bank account or credit card every month. You can’t pay these monthly fees ahead of time.
Right now, they don’t offer memberships for families. But, in summer 2022, they let students in middle school and up train without any charge.
How to Cancel a Planet Fitness Membership
If you need to move or just want to stop your membership, you have to fill out a form at the place where you first joined. It doesn’t cost anything to stop your membership, and you can still use it for the last month you already paid for.
Your membership can also stop if the bosses decide to end it. A big talk about Planet Fitness is the “lunk alarm” that people say rings if you’re too loud when you work out.
The staff actually handles the lunk alarm, and they can make it ring from their desk if they think you’re too loud. If that alarm rings, the bosses might choose to stop your membership.
Things We Enjoy at Planet Fitness:
- Lots of places to work out, like the leg and abs area, 30-minute space, and the 360-degree spot.
- Many lines of things like ellipticals, treadmills, stair steppers, and bikes that don’t move.
- Plenty of machines to give your whole body a good workout.
- You can easily find places to clean up all around the place.
- The PF Black Card gives you some more cool stuff.
Things We Don’t Enjoy at Planet Fitness:
- They don’t have barbells, places to do flat-bench presses, or spots to do squats. The heaviest dumbbell is 75 lbs.
- Some more fees, like the joining cost that changes every day and the yearly payment on October 1.
- Ellipticals and bikes that let you sit back don’t let you change how hard they are to use.
- They don’t let families join together.
FAQs About Planet Fitness
Is the Black Card worth getting at Planet Fitness?
If you like using tanning beds, massages, and other special things that come with the Black Card, then yes, it’s a good idea to get it. It’s also good if you travel a lot and want to use different PF places.
If you don’t care about these extras, the Classic or Prepaid membership should work for you.
Can I take a friend to Planet Fitness?
If you have a Black Card, you can bring a friend anytime, but not the same friend every day. If you have a Classic card and your friend might join as a new member, the staff might let them work out for free that day.
When I tried Planet Fitness to see if I wanted to join, they let me use the gym for free. But I had to give them my details and take a picture at their desk. They didn’t ask for any payment details.
Does Planet Fitness have clothing rules?
Planet Fitness’ website says they want members to be themselves, but they have some rules. For example, you can’t wear open shoes, jeans, or pants with metal rings. Your shoes need to be clean. You also can’t wear clothes that you can see through or clothes with bad words or pictures of violent things.
How much do I have to pay for a personal trainer at Planet Fitness?
You don’t have to pay anything extra to use a PF trainer at the place where you join. This is part of all the membership plans. But they don’t let trainers from outside train people at their places, even if the trainer is a member too.
