Planet Fitness advertises Classic from $15 a month and Black Card from $24.99, and then adds a $49 annual fee that surprises people every year. Your local club is independently owned, so the price, startup fee and even the annual fee can differ from the national headline. This autumn the company also said it paused a planned national Black Card increase to $29.99, is testing regional prices, and plans a limited-time $10 Classic promotion that would be a legacy-protected rate for those who join. We read Planet Fitness’s own FAQ and membership pages, listened to its latest earnings call, and rebuilt the true annual cost, the cost per visit, and the exact notice you must give to leave.
Key Answers Before You Join
These are the questions where the ads and the paperwork drift apart. Each answer is short on purpose; the sections that follow carry the math and the exceptions.
Classic memberships begin at $15 and Black Card memberships begin at $24.99, billed monthly, according to Planet Fitness’s own membership page. It adds that prices vary by location, that memberships may include a 12-month commitment, and that clubs are independently owned and operated.
At the advertised starting prices, $229 a year for Classic and $348.88 for Black Card, counting twelve months of dues and the $49 annual fee. Add any startup fee and local taxes. Some club pages show higher annual fees and a $29.99 Black Card, so your own club’s page is the number that counts.
Possibly. On its October earnings call, the company said it paused the nationwide rollout of a higher Black Card price, is running regional and local price tests, and plans a limited-time $10 Classic promotion nationwide. It said a joining rate is protected for as long as you stay a member.
The annual fee, charged once a year on top of monthly dues. To stop it, Planet Fitness says your club must receive your request at least eight days before the annual fee date. Your fee date is on your agreement and in your member portal.
Planet Fitness’s FAQ lists mailing written notice to your home club, visiting it in person, or logging in to the online member portal. It adds that some procedures vary by location and state. Notice must reach the club at least eight days before your next billing date.
Only if you will use what it adds: any of 2,900+ clubs, a free guest on every visit, the Black Card Spa where offered, premium app workouts and 50% off select drinks. Spa amenities vary by club, so ask which ones yours has.
Yes, from age 13 with a parent or guardian’s permission. Thirteen-year-olds must be accompanied, many clubs require that for 14-year-olds, and 15 to 17-year-olds need a signed waiver. The company also runs a free High School Summer Pass each summer.
Mostly. Planet Fitness’s club-use policy says a Black Card member who visits a club other than the home club more than 10 times in a calendar month may be charged a $5 per visit franchise fee. Check your home club’s policy if you split time between locations.
No. Cancellation must go through the club, the mail or the member portal. Many clubs bill by electronic transfer from a checking account, and an unpaid draft can create an overdue balance, and the FAQ says partial payments on an overdue balance are not accepted.
What You Will Actually Pay Near You, and How to Find Your Exact Price
The national price is a starting line. The number on your agreement comes from the owner of the club you pick.
Planet Fitness’s own membership page is careful with its wording. Classic memberships begin at $15 and Black Card memberships begin at $24.99, billed monthly. The same fine print adds that memberships may include a 12-month commitment, that state and local taxes may apply, that a $49 annual fee applies, that prices may vary depending on location and that locations are independently owned and operated. In our review of the page we found that every one of those qualifiers changes the number you will actually pay.
Third-party price pages show how much variation is hiding behind them. Examples we found pair the $15 Classic price with startup fees that run from $1 to $59 and annual fees of $49 or $59, and show Black Card at $24.99 in some clubs and $29.99 in others. Those club examples come from a price-comparison site, not Planet Fitness, so treat them as illustrations of the spread rather than your quote. The takeaway is simple: open the join page for the specific club you would use, not the national page.
| Option | Reported price | Annual cost with $49 fee | The catch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Classic | From $15 a month | $229 | Home club only; startup fee and tax extra |
| Black Card | From $24.99 a month | $348.88 | Some clubs show $29.99; spa features vary by club |
| Classic at the legacy $10 rate | $10 a month | $169 | Only for people who joined before the 2024 change |
| Limited-time $10 Classic promotion | $10 a month if you join in the window | $169 | Company says the rate stays while you remain a member |
| Day fee | Set by the club | Not a membership | Full day fee counts toward joining within 30 days with a receipt |
| High School Summer Pass | Free | $0 | Teens only; no obligation to continue, per the company’s program description |
Open the join page for the exact club, not just the brand, and screenshot the monthly dues, startup fee, annual fee and commitment length for each tier. Then ask the front desk four things and get the answers in writing: What is my annual fee date? Is there a minimum term and what is the buyout? Which payment method do you accept? And is online cancellation turned on at this club?
If two clubs are within a reasonable drive, price both. Independent owners set their own startup offers, and a gap of a few dollars a month between clubs adds up over a year.
Planet Fitness says your home club is the best source for billing and membership help. Its member services department handles inquiries when a club is closed.
Classic Versus Black Card, and the Fees Around Them
The two tiers are separated by $9.99 a month at the starting prices. Here is what the extra buys, and what the fine print says about it.
| Feature | Classic | Black Card | The catch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Club access | Your home club | Any of 2,900+ clubs | Black Card visits to a club other than home beyond 10 a month may cost $5 each |
| Guests | No guest privileges | One guest every visit | Guest must be 18 or older, or a teen with a parent; guests do not get Black Card perks |
| Free in-club training | Yes, at participating clubs | Yes, at participating clubs | Small groups, first come, first served |
| App workouts | Free PF app | PF+ premium workouts | App features also free to non-members |
| Black Card Spa | Not included | Massage chairs, HydroMassage and more | HydroMassage, tanning and some pods are at participating clubs only |
| Tanning | Not included | Where offered | 18 or older, once per 24 hours, and state law limits apply |
| Drinks | Not included | 50% off select drinks | Availability can vary by club |
The spa is not the same everywhere
Planet Fitness’s membership page lists the Black Card Spa as massage chairs, HydroMassage, tanning, a Total Body Enhancement booth that uses red light, a Wellness Pod and a Recovery Lounge, then footnotes most of them as available at participating locations only. On the earnings call, the CEO said the company has expanded a test of new spa modalities to 100 clubs and that most of its members, roughly two-thirds, are on Black Card. That is a company claim worth reading two ways. It shows the tier is popular, and it shows the list of amenities is still moving.
The practical consequence is that you should ask which amenities your club has before you upgrade. A Black Card membership at a club with only massage chairs is a different product from one at a club with every pod. Ask to see the spa area, and ask the owner whether any modalities are planned or in a trial.
The $5 franchise fee almost nobody mentions
Planet Fitness’s published club-use policy sets rules for visiting a club that is not your home club. It says Black Card members must be granted use of the amenities at all locations, but that if a Black Card member visits a club other than the home club more than 10 times in a calendar month, a $5 per visit franchise fee may apply. It adds that members on older $10 and $15 non-reciprocal memberships may use other clubs for a $5 franchise fee. The policy is written for the clubs, so ask yours how it applies it.
For a traveler, the fee is irrelevant. For someone who splits workouts between a home club and a club near work, the limit of 10 visits a month is a real ceiling. If that is you, count visits for a month before assuming Black Card is all-you-can-visit.
Startup fee, annual fee and taxes
| Charge | Amount or rule | What Planet Fitness says | The catch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Startup fee | Varies by club; examples run $1 to $59 | Varies by promotion and location | Often discounted; ask what it is today |
| Annual fee | $49 standard; some clubs show $59 | Subject to an annual fee of $49; prices may vary by location | Stops only if notice arrives 8 days before the fee date |
| Taxes | State and local | May apply | Added to the draft |
| Buyout fee | $58 | Applies if a minimum-term membership ends before the term | Month-to-month plans have no buyout |
| Overdue balance | No partial payments | Stop by your home club to resolve | Draft-pending status blocks online payments |
| Transfer fee | May apply | Eligibility rules apply | Not available for paid-in-full plans |
The annual fee is the charge people notice last and resent most. It is disclosed on the membership page, but it arrives separately from your monthly draft, and a membership can look cheap at $15 until a $49 draft lands. The sensible way to budget is to divide it across the year: $49 is about $4.08 a month, so Classic really runs about $19.08 a month at the starting price and Black Card about $29.07. Compare gyms on that basis, not on the headline.
Planet Fitness’s FAQ also explains why many clubs ask for a checking account. It says payment methods vary by location, many clubs accept checking accounts only, and an electronic funds transfer lets the membership continue without interruption if a card is lost or expires. That is convenient, and it also means a billing mistake comes straight out of your bank balance, so keep a cushion in the account you give them.
What is free, and what to ignore
Both tiers include free small-group fitness training at participating clubs, first come, first served, and trainers must be employed by the franchise: outside trainers are not allowed. The PF app is free to everyone, with videos and QR codes on machines that explain equipment. The company’s earnings call also mentioned partner perks, including a nutrition and wellness counseling partnership that offers access to physician support. Treat those as extras, because partner offers change and your club decides which it promotes.
Rules that surprise first-timers are worth knowing. Planet Fitness bars phone calls and photos in locker rooms and the spa, requires earbuds for audio, prohibits wearable recording devices and smart glasses, and keeps a Judgement Free Zone policy with a Lunk Alarm that enforces it. It also says no time limits apply to cardio or strength machines outside the 30-minute express circuit. None of this changes the price, but breaking the rules can cost you the membership.
Is It Worth It? The Cost-Per-Visit Math
Planet Fitness is cheap enough that most people never run the numbers. Do it once, because the number that matters is how often you will go.
In our cost-per-visit testing we divided the first-year cost by the number of visits. Classic at $229 works out to $8.81 a visit if you go twice a month, $4.40 weekly, $2.20 twice a week and $1.47 three times a week. Black Card at $348.88 runs $13.42, $6.71, $3.35 and $2.24 at the same frequencies. Even the worst case, twice a month on Black Card, is a modest per-visit price, which is the point of the company’s high value, low price positioning.
The company’s own numbers add a warning. On its October earnings call, management said average monthly attrition runs about 3.5%, in a historical range of 3% to 4%. That is the share of members who quit each month, and it says something about how many people who sign up stop going. Budget gyms succeed partly on members who pay and do not visit; do not be one of them. If your realistic visit count is two a month, the honest comparison is $229 a year against a $10 to $15 monthly app or a community center.
| Visits per week | Visits a year | Classic ($229) per visit | Black Card ($348.88) per visit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Half a week (twice a month) | 26 | $8.81 | $13.42 |
| 1 | 52 | $4.40 | $6.71 |
| 2 | 104 | $2.20 | $3.35 |
| 3 | 156 | $1.47 | $2.24 |
Black Card costs $9.99 more a month at the starting prices, which is $119.88 a year. Make it earn that. If you bring a guest twice a month, you save whatever a day pass costs at your club, which varies by club. If you use the spa four times a month, the extra works out to about $2.50 a visit. If you travel and would otherwise pay day fees, any-club access can pay on its own. If you do none of those, Classic is the better value, and you can upgrade online at any time. Downgrading, Planet Fitness’s FAQ says, means stopping by the club.
The legacy-rate effect
Planet Fitness raised the Classic price from $10 to $15 for new members in 2024, and its management has said repeatedly that people who joined earlier keep their legacy $10 rate. On the October call, the CEO said that a joining price, including the limited-time $10 promotion the company plans to run nationally, is intended to be a legacy-protected rate for as long as the person remains a member. The company also said it saw no significant trade-down from $15 to $10 in a local test, and that it is not contemplating a rollback of the $15 price.
What does that mean for you? It means a membership is more valuable the longer you keep it continuously, because cancelling and rejoining may reset your rate. If you hold a $10 legacy membership, think hard before you cancel in a quiet month, and if you are in a promotion window, ask the club how long the offer runs and whether the rate is written into your agreement. A promise on an earnings call is not a contract; the paper you sign is.
Planet Fitness against a luxury club
| Feature | Planet Fitness | Equinox | What it means for you |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly dues | From $15 (Classic) or $24.99 (Black Card) | Published ranges of roughly $205 to $415 | A year of Black Card costs less than one month at the high end |
| Yearly fee | $49 standard | Initiation fee commonly reported | Different fee structures; compare the first-year total |
| Notice to leave | At least 8 days before the billing date | Varies by state, often 30 to 45 days per guides | Planet Fitness’s published notice is shorter |
| Commitment | May include 12 months; month-to-month exists | 12-month commitment reported by guides | Read the agreement either way |
| Best for | Beginners and budget buyers | Premium amenities and classes | Match the price to the visits |
Find Your Situation
Averages only get you so far. These are the situations where the price or the exit looks different, and the trap each one tends to walk into.
Planet Fitness is one of the cheaper ways to get a gym: $229 a year for Classic at the starting price, which is about $19 a month once the annual fee is spread out. We found no senior discount on the company’s membership page, so assume you pay the regular rate unless your club or a benefit program says otherwise. Some health plans and employers offer fitness benefits, but we did not verify which plans include Planet Fitness, so ask your plan and your club directly before you rely on one.
Two practical points for budgeting. Many clubs bill by electronic transfer from a checking account, so keep a cushion and watch for the annual fee. And the free small-group training is a real benefit if you want guidance without paying for a trainer, though sessions are first come, first served, so go at off-peak times.
Planet Fitness’s FAQ says anyone 13 or older can join with a parent or guardian’s permission. Members who are 13 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian when working out, many clubs require that for 14-year-olds, and 15 to 17-year-olds need a signed waiver. The membership agreement must be signed by the parent or guardian, which means the parent is the one on the hook for fees and notice periods.
Before you pay, check the High School Summer Pass. The company describes it as a free summer program for teenagers that it has run for several years, with no obligation to continue, and said more than 12 million workouts had been logged this summer. Use it to find out whether a teen will really go before you sign a 12-month agreement. Summer Pass details, dates and eligibility ages are set by the program, so confirm them on its page.
Black Card is built for you, with caveats. It gives access to any of 2,900+ clubs, but Planet Fitness’s club-use policy says more than 10 visits in a month to a club other than your home club may carry a $5 per visit franchise fee. For a business traveler it is a bargain. For someone who alternates between a home club and a club near work, count your visits first.
Also remember the home club matters for everything else: cancellation notice goes to the home club, and a transfer is allowed only after you have been a member for at least 90 days, with no overdue balance and a monthly plan.
Planet Fitness’s FAQ says you can transfer online if you are not a minor, have been a member at least 90 days, have not transferred in the past 90 days, have no outstanding dues or fees at your current club, have no financial cosigner or third-party subsidy, and have a monthly plan rather than a paid-in-full one. Its club policy also notes that monthly memberships cannot be transferred from one person to another, that the transfer must be within the same country and that a transfer fee may apply.
If you do not qualify, ask your home club for help. And if you plan to cancel instead, notice must still reach the club at least eight days before your next billing date, so do not wait until you have unpacked.
Use the three routes Planet Fitness lists: mail written notice to your home club, visit it in person, or log in to the member portal. It adds that some procedures vary by state and location, so ask your club which are enabled. Notice must be received at least eight days before your next billing date, because billing changes can take up to seven days to take effect. Many guides still repeat an older cutoff of the 10th and 25th of the month, which does not match the FAQ we read.
Document everything. If you mail a letter, send it by certified mail with return receipt to your home club’s street address, include your full name, address and membership number, and keep the receipt. If you go in person, bring photo ID and ask for a copy of the cancellation form. If you use the portal, screenshot the confirmation. Stopping payments at your bank does not cancel the membership and can leave an unpaid balance.
That is almost certainly the annual fee. Planet Fitness’s page lists it as a standard $49 fee, billed once a year in addition to monthly dues, and some clubs charge more. Your agreement and member portal show the date. To stop the next one, the FAQ says your request must reach the club at least eight days before the annual fee date, so a cancellation sent a week before is too late.
We found no published refund for an annual fee that has already been charged, so do not plan on one. If you believe the charge is wrong, such as billed after a documented cancellation, start with your home club, then member services, and keep the paper trail. If neither helps, ask your bank how to dispute a charge for a service you cancelled.
The company said on its October call that it plans a limited-time $10 Classic Card promotion nationwide and that it is not testing it as a rollback of the $15 price. It also said a joining rate is intended to be legacy-protected for as long as you remain a member. Dates were not disclosed, so you cannot plan around them.
If you have been waiting to join, the safest step is to ask your club when the next promotion is expected and what the startup fee will be. If you are already a $15 member, do not cancel and rejoin to chase a $10 rate: the company said it did not see meaningful trade-down in tests, which suggests few people did, and rejoining may carry a new startup fee and a new annual fee. Do the arithmetic: a $5 monthly saving is $60 a year, and a $49 annual fee and any startup fee can erase most of it.
Only Black Card members can bring a guest every visit, and the guest must be 18 or older, or 13 to 17 with a parent or guardian. Planet Fitness notes that guests may not have access to Black Card perks. Classic members cannot bring guests, but non-members can pay a day fee, and the club policy says the full day fee counts toward membership if the visitor joins that club within 30 days with a valid receipt.
That 30-day credit is useful for a trial. Pay the day fee, work out once, and if you join within the window, the fee comes off your first charges. Keep the receipt.
Planet Fitness’s FAQ says it does not accept partial payments on an overdue balance, and that if your billing status shows draft pending you cannot pay online or in the app until the recurring payment finishes processing. Stop by your home club to resolve an overdue balance. The club policy also says Planet Fitness may bar access if you owe past-due amounts.
Act quickly. Unpaid balances can stack, and the FAQ does not describe a grace period. Update your payment method in My Billing Info & Balance or at the club, ask for a written balance, and keep your receipt.
Cancel and Fix Billing Problems Step by Step
Joining a budget gym takes five minutes. Leaving is easier than it used to be, but it still runs on paperwork. Here is the sequence we would follow, built from Planet Fitness’s FAQ and the state of the law.
Start with the law as it stands. A federal appeals court vacated the FTC’s click-to-cancel rule in July 2025, before it took effect, and the FTC reopened the subject in March 2026 without adopting a replacement. That means your rights depend on your state’s gym and automatic-renewal laws and on general consumer-protection law. Planet Fitness itself says some policies vary by location based on state and local guidelines, and that the online portal is one of its listed ways to end a membership, so look for the cancel option in your account first.
Companies describing their own policies tend to be accurate about the rule and silent about the exceptions, so read two documents: the FAQ and your own agreement. The FAQ says notice must reach the club at least eight days before the next billing date and the annual fee date. The agreement tells you whether you have a minimum term, which triggers a $58 buyout if you leave early. If you are on a no-commitment membership, the membership page says you may cancel at any time without paying a fee.
Check your member portal first and look for a cancel option under your membership. If it is not there, your club may not have enabled it, so use one of the other routes. In person, bring photo ID and ask for a copy of the form. By mail, send a signed letter to your home club’s street address by certified mail with return receipt, including your name, address and membership number. Whichever route you use, calculate the deadline from your billing date and send notice at least eight days earlier, and again eight days before the annual fee date if you want to avoid that charge.
Planet Fitness’s FAQ says that if your membership has a minimum term and ends before the term does, a $58 buyout fee is required. Its membership page defines the commitment as the minimum number of months you will be billed, and says no-commitment memberships can be cancelled at any time without a fee. Look at your agreement before you leave: as we read it, leaving after month eight of a 12-month term at $15 would mean a $58 buyout, while paying out the remaining four months would cost $60. Confirm with your club how the buyout is applied.
Companies change pricing, and Planet Fitness is mid-experiment. Its management said it paused a nationwide Black Card increase to $29.99, is running regional price tests and plans a limited $10 Classic promotion. A securities class action filed in July 2026 on behalf of investors who bought the stock between November 2025 and May 2026 alleges the company concealed marketing problems that dragged down new joins, after the stock fell about 31% in one day in May, with plaintiff-firm summaries attributing that to the company acknowledging its marketing may have pivoted too far. That case is for shareholders; as of the sources we found, there was no member settlement, refund fund or claim form.
Gather your proof of notice and its date, then compare the first charge with your deadline. If the club received your notice at least eight days before the billing date and you were still charged, bring the proof to the home club and ask for a reversal in writing. If that fails, contact member services, which Planet Fitness says is open Monday through Friday during business hours Eastern time. Next, ask your bank how to dispute a charge for a cancelled service, and file complaints with your state attorney general and at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. If a charge arrives inside the eight-day window, expect the club to say it was valid, which is why timing matters more than any appeal.
Prices and policies reflect Planet Fitness’s membership page, FAQ and club policies as we reviewed them in October, and the company’s October earnings call transcript. Locations are independently owned and operated, so your club’s price, startup fee, annual fee and cancellation options may differ from the national starting prices. Examples of club-level prices come from a third-party comparison site and illustrate the spread, not a quote. Cost-per-visit and buyout figures are illustrations that divide or compare published numbers. Statements about lawsuits describe allegations. Nothing here is financial or legal advice. This page is independent and is not affiliated with Planet Fitness or any attorney general’s office.
Key sources: Planet Fitness membership page and Customer Service FAQ · Planet Fitness earnings call transcript (Benzinga) · Athletech News · Eighth Circuit and FTC click-to-cancel coverage · Published Equinox price reports (comparison table only)