A home gym requires a larger upfront investment than your standard monthly gym membership but can work out cheaper in the long run.
Let’s break it down.
Gym Membership Costs Vs Home Gym Equipment Costs
Traditional gym membership in the United States can cost you an average of about $700 per year.
However, these numbers do not include additional costs like the gym registration fee, getting to the gym, and accessories like apparel, water bottles, gym mats, and more.
Let us look at the numbers of a traditional gym, CrossFit gym, and home gym.
Traditional Gym Cost
The average gym cost in 2021 in the U.S. was $58 per month. This means an expense of $6,960 in 10 years.
CrossFit Gym Cost
Boutique and CrossFit gyms are way more expensive than your basic gym. You must have family and friends who spend between $100 to $200 a month on a CrossFit membership.
In fact, according to a recent survey, the average membership of a CrossFit Affiliate in the United States costs about $155, which translates to about $1860. If you multiply this amount by 10, that’s a whopping $18,600 for a 10-year membership — and that is not even factoring in inflation.
Home Gym Cost
It is hard to generalize how much people spend on average to setup their home gym. However, the research we conducted suggested that most people spend within a range of $1,000 to $10,000 with the average home gym cost around $4000 on a basement or garage gym set up.
If you work out regularly, having a gym at home can cut your costs drastically.
Comparison Table
| Total Average Cost After 1 Year | Total Average Cost After 10 Year | |
| Traditional Gym | $696 | $6,960 |
| CrossFit Gym | $1,860 | $18,600 |
| Home Gym | $4,000 | $4,000 |
How Much Does Home Gym Equipment Cost?
Aside from the cost of your garage remodeling, you will also need to consider the cost of the equipment for your gym.
Rack
A squat rack is essential to your gym and if you are a regular gym user, this rack will be one of the most used equipment in the room.
The squat rack can help you squat safely when you are using barbells. The rack allows you to move the weight up and down easily and allow you to shift your bar on the rack once you are finished.
On average, a squat rack can cost you anywhere between $200 to $1,000+. If you are on a budget, you can try a rack that falls on the lower side of this range. However, steer clear of $50 or $100 racks as they won’t hold up and are an injury risk in the gym.
If money is not an issue though, you can get top-quality racks for $600 to up to $2,000.
If you want professionals to assemble your squat rack, you have to pay a further $70 to $90.
To get you started, check out some of our most popular articles –
- Best Budget Power Racks
- 5 Best Power Racks with Lat Pulldown
- 6 Best Half Racks for Your Home Gym
- Half Rack vs. Full Power Rack – What’s Best for Your Home Gym?
- 7 Best Wall-Mounted Folding Squat Racks
Barbells
The barbell is another very important piece of equipment in your gym and it can be sold for a wide range of prices, starting from as low as $30 and going up to $1,500 and even more.
Most people go for low-priced barbells and have a good experience with them; however, you need to make sure the manufacturers are reliable and the barbell has adequate tensile strength. Otherwise, they are a safety risk.
Here’s all you need to know about barbells – How to Choose the Right Barbell for Your Home Gym.
If you are a beginner user, you can start with a basic bar that comes around $100 with a low load capacity. However, you may want to upgrade to a better bar in a few months, which can cost you around $300 to $350.
If you want to compete, you should start saving up since a competition barbell can cost you around $1,000.
Here is some information to check out before buying a barbell:
- 5 Best Budget Barbells For a Home Gym
- 7 Barbell Exercises for Building Strength at Home
- 6 Best Barbell Pads for Hip Thrusts & Squats
- Barbells Vs. Dumbbells – What’s Best for Your Home Gym?
- 6 Best Barbell Storage Racks for Home Gyms
Plates
Plates are the weights that you stack on your barbell, even though you can use them independently of it as well.
Most commonly, plates come in sizes ranging from 3 pounds to 25 pounds or even more. On average a set of iron plates can cost between $100 to $150.
However, bumper plates can be more expensive with medium-priced 300lb to 400lb bumper plates costing around $450 to $700. If you want to go to the high end, you can also find plates for as much as $1,500.
Find out more here – Bumper Plates or Steel Plates: What is Best for Your Home Gym? and here Best Bumper Plates for Your Home Gym.
Bench
You can use the bench in conjunction with racks to perform exercises like the bench press.
Benches are also useful for dumbbell and barbell exercises and for bodyweight exercises and come in a variety of forms, including flat, inclined, and adjustable.
We like the space-saving features of foldable weight benches.
A basic bench can cost around $50 but you can also get a good quality bench at $200.
Buying a quality bench is essential for your safety; having said that, it doesn’t mean you should spend a fortune on one either.
There are benches in the market which cost anywhere between $800 to $1,000, but a reasonably priced bench will serve you just as well.
If you want a professional to assemble your bench, it can cost a further $50 to $60.
Dumbbells
Dumbbells are smaller weights that are designed to be held in each hand and work smaller muscles groups in the arms and upper body.
Dumbbells sizes start from 1 pound and go as high as 50 pounds. These are some of the most affordable gym equipment you can buy and can cost anywhere from $2 to $50 for a set of two.
You can also buy a full set of dumbbells for as much as $150 to $300 depending on how many pieces are in the set.
We like the versatility of adjustable dumbbells.
For recreational gym users, though, a set of standard dumbbells retailing at $0.10 per pound are a good investment. However, if you can afford to spend a little more, you can find an adjustable set between $100 and $150.
Check out our guide to the best dumbbells for a home gym.
Kettlebells
Kettlebells are balls of weight with a looped handle. These can be lifted, swung, and curled and they offer versatility when it comes to weightlifting. They come in the same sizes as dumbbells though you can purchase them as a single item, in pairs, or in sets.
They can cost anywhere between $20 to $200, depending on their weight.
Again, we recommend going for adjustable kettlebells if you can.
Cardio Machines
Cardio machines come in a wide variety of forms. You can choose not to include cardio machines in your gym; however, if you do want to get them, they can range in cost anywhere from $20 to over $1500.
Treadmill: Treadmills come in powered form as well as manual which simply consist of a belt on a set of rollers. Treadmills can come with a lot of setting and options which is why they are offered in a wide range of costs. A basic treadmill starts around $400 and its assembly can cost a further $125 to $200.
Elliptical Machine: Elliptical machines are equipped with pedals and levers that you can operate with your arms. Like treadmills, they can also come with a lot of settings and programs or just be very basic. Elliptical machines usually start around $300.
An elliptical machine’s assembly cost is around $90 to $150.
Exercise Bike: Exercise bikes come in many forms. There are exercise bikes which allow you to lean back or sit upright. There are some which also come with resistance wheels or hand pedals. A basic exercise bike starts around $300, but can cost a whole lot more depending on the features you want in it.
An exercise bike’s assembly cost is around $90 to $150.
6 Best Air Bikes for Your Home Gym.
Battle Rope: The average cost of a battle rope is around $75. Here are our favorites – Best Battle Ropes For Your Home Gym.
Speed Rope: A speed rope is a very simple and effective way to get some cardio done. The starting price of speed rope is around $20.
Air Rower: Air rowers are typically equipped with a sliding seat and a pulley or chain that turns a tub of water or a fan. However, some less expensive models come with stationary seats and handles that can move against different resistance. Basic air rowers start from around $250.
To find the best value (high quality but affordable) equipment, check out our list of the Best Budget Home Gym Equipment.
Used vs New
Sometimes, you may be lucky enough to get good-quality second-hand gym equipment online from places like eBay and Craig’s List. This equipment is listed by people who don’t need to use it anywhere and are looking for ways to recoup some of their cost.
However, there are some things that you are better off getting brand new, like your barbells. However, there shouldn’t be an issue getting all your weights second-hand.
Just make sure the equipment you buy is in good condition.
Where To Find Gym Equipment
Thanks to the spike in fitness at home, there are now more and more places to buy your gym equipment. These include:
Amazon: Amazon is a great source for buying gym equipment and offers products for every budget. Although they do not have a lot of very high-end equipment, you can still find thousands of types of gym equipment from good-quality brands.
Premium Gym Equipment Brands: There are dozens of brands that offer top-quality gym equipment across the US, our favorite is Rogue Fitness.
Discount Gym Equipment Brands: Check out HulkFit, Fitness Factory, SportsRoyals, Fringe Sport, Sunny Health & Fitness.
Cheap Equipment vs Quality Equipment
Even though you do not have to bust the bank to get quality gym equipment, very cheap gym equipment tends to be low quality.
There are some equipment that can cost you in the long run if you buy them cheap like your squat rack and barbells. They can result in injury and wastage of hard-earned money. However, equipment like plates and dumbbells can be bought cheap.
Just make sure that if you buy cheap equipment, it is from a reputable company and has all the features you need.
Additional Hidden Costs
If you want to turn your garage into a gym and require remodeling, this will require further investment on your part. You can expect to pay about $6,000 to $11,000 to remodel a garage, including finishing the space, and installing heating, electricity, and plumbing.
This cost is excluding the cost of equipment.
Home Gym Lighting
The best place to create a gym is where you can have plenty of natural lighting. However, if your garage does not have that much natural lighting, or if you want to exercise during the night, we recommend that you install lighting fixtures at your home gym.
If you want to go cheap, you can add some 500k LED lighting, which mimics natural sunlight, for under $100. Even a minor upgrade like this can make a huge difference in the ambiance of the garage.
If you want to really brighten things up, you can make an added budget of $300 to $800 for recessed lighting. If your garage is being remodeled from scratch, this is a good route to take.
Home Gym Flooring
The very first option for flooring is to do nothing at all. An excellent home gym can be built on bare cement or wooden floor in your garage. If you take this route, it will cost you approximately $0.
However, if you do prefer some sort of flooring, then the next most cost-effective option are carpet remnants. You can buy a full carpet remnant at around $100 and there are hundreds of gyms in the United States that use old carpet to cover their floor.
If you require some traction for your gym shoes and a degree of resilience and resistance from your flooring, you can opt for a rubber floor. Rubber flooring is also durable, soft, and safe, so you can prevent injury if you fall on it.
Rubber flooring can be rolled out or it can be installed in the form of tiles.
Typically, the cost of rubber flooring per square foot is anywhere between $2 to $12, depending on its quality and type of installation. If you want to remain on the cheap but good quality side, you can get a nice, low-odor rubber flooring for just $4.
If you order roll-out rubber flooring, you will also not need to deal with the installation cost. You can just roll it out on your gym floor and be done.
Another cost-effective option is foam tiles that can be quickly installed over all kinds of flooring including cement, wood, and tile.
Foam flooring can cost anywhere between $0.50 to $5 square foot and it has a DIY installation.
Vinyl flooring is another material which is resilient enough to handle most workouts. Plus it comes in a variety of colors and patterns and costs an average of $2 to $8 square foot.
Polished concrete is also a good option and can cost you anywhere between $1,500 to $3,800, depending on the size of your gym. However, keep in mind that although his flooring is very durable, it does not make for a soft fall.
Electric Wiring
If your garage does not have enough power to operate all your gym machines, you can upgrade your electrical panel which can cost your anywhere between $500 to $2,100. You will also need to hire an electrician to install additional outlets and get sufficient amperage. This can cost you a further $160 to $500.
Air Circulation and Ventilation
Garages can be stuffy place so it is important that you add some air circulation and ventilation to your gym. Typically, the price of an HVAC unit is around $2,000 to $5,000. If you don’t want to pay that much, you can simply install a ceiling fan for between $140 and $350.
If your garage has the tendency to get humid, you can also install a dehumidifier for the price of $1,300 to $3,800.
Bottom Line
When you compare the yearly cost of a home gym to the yearly cost of a traditional or CrossFit gym, you can see why the former is worth it.
You may find the initial investment to be a bit daunting, but remember that this is a one-time cost and once your home gym is ready and all the equipment bought, you will need to spend virtually $0 for several years, if you use it right.
