5 Gym Membership Fees You Need To Know About

Signing up for a gym membership should be simple right? So why do you hear so often about gym members complaining they have been overcharged or charged for something they didn’t know about? Well, today we’ll cover all the fees your gym membership might incur so you can avoid any unwanted surprises.

 

Let’s start by saying that the most important thing to do when you sign up for a gym membership is to read the contract. We repeat – READ YOUR CONTRACT. Your membership contract will contain all the details about your membership and any associated fees whether payable immediately or down the track. As most disputes about gym membership contracts arise from unexpected fees charged to a member, let’s cover some of the most common ones that you need to understand and should be covered in your gym membership contract.

 

Membership Fee

Your membership fee is the amount you will pay to use the gym on an ongoing basis. This fee is usually paid weekly/fortnightly/monthly for memberships that are ongoing (i.e. have no end date) or upfront and in full for memberships that have a set term (e.g. 12 months). While ongoing memberships allow you the flexibility to cancel at any time, membership will probably be cheaper if you commit to a set term. However, if your situation changes and you can’t use your membership anymore, with upfront memberships you are still liable for any payments and fees for the agreed period.  They can also often “automatically renew” so make sure you understand what happens when your initial membership term has run its course. Lastly, make sure your contract covers how you and your membership will be impacted should your gym decide to raise their membership fees.

 

Joining Fee

When you join a gym, they may charge you a joining fee. Although some gyms these days have removed this fee altogether, a joining fee is often used to cover business costs incurred as a result of you becoming a member such as membership cards and administration time.

 

Cancellation fee

If you commit to an upfront membership with a specified term, there will most likely be a penalty if you decide to cancel. Your gym may have given you a special rate for your commitment and they have assumed from a business standpoint that you will be a member for a certain period of time. Whether you will be refunded for the remainder of your membership (minus any cancellations fees) should also be covered in your contract. Even with ongoing weekly/fortnightly/monthly gym memberships, you might still need to pay a small fee if you decide to cancel your membership. Your membership might not cease immediately (e.g. it may still run for another week, fortnight or month from your notice of cancellation and you must pay for this period). Make sure you understand what you’re up for if you do decide to leave.

 

Annual fee

Many, if not all, gyms charge what is known as an annual or yearly fee. It is a small, one-off fee charged once a year that most often goes towards maintaining the standard of your membership and the club (e.g. equipment maintenance and gym upgrades). Your contract must cover whether you will be charged an annual fee, so again make sure you read your contract.

 

Debit Fees

A common fee that often gets missed is what is called a debit fee. It is a fee that is automatically added to your membership billing when you choose to pay by credit or debit card. This fee is most often charged with ongoing memberships, and is used by your gym to cover merchant fees charged by card payment processors. Make sure you check your contract for any additional debit fees, or simply choose to have your membership deducted from a bank account to avoid this fee.

 

Pause fee

A pause, hold or freeze fee allows you to temporarily suspend your gym membership and some or even all of your membership fee payments. Let’s say you are going overseas for a few months or sustain an injury that will prevent you from going to the gym – instead of paying for a membership you can’t use or cancelling your membership and incurring cancellation and re-joining fees, you can simply put it on pause.  Where a lot of gym members become unstuck is assuming that this pause is included and for free.  While some gyms and membership levels won’t charge for a pause, often there will still be a small ongoing fee required and a time limit. For example, if your monthly membership costs $40, your pause fee could be $5 a month for a maximum of 3 months. While pause fees are most common for ongoing memberships, upfront memberships may be able to be paused as well with some form of credit applied at the end of the predefined period. Remember to read your contract and find out if a membership pause is allowed and what fees it will incur.