PureGym vs The Gym Group vs JD Gyms: Best For PTs?
A trainer-first comparison of the big UK gym chains — licence models, floor hours, member type and how easy it really is to fill a diary at each one.
Every newly qualified personal trainer in the UK asks the same question: which gym should I go into? PureGym, The Gym Group, JD Gyms and Everlast Gyms all take on self-employed PTs, all charge for the privilege, and all promise footfall.
The honest answer is that the brand on the door matters far less than the system you run inside it. But the environments genuinely differ, and picking the wrong one for your personality and pricing will cost you months.
FORGE is independent and not affiliated with any gym operator named here. Fees and terms vary by site — always confirm locally.
The Model Is Basically The Same Everywhere
Across the big UK chains, personal training is almost always self-employed. You pay a licence or agreement fee for the right to train paying clients on site, you keep your client revenue, you set your own prices, and lower fee tiers usually come with required floor hours.
That means three things are true wherever you go:
- The fee arrives whether you have clients or not.
- Nobody is obliged to hand you leads.
- Your income is set by your rate, your retention and your conversion — not by the gym.
PureGym: Volume And Reach
Huge national footprint and very high member numbers per site. Excellent for a new trainer who needs reps — conversations, consultations, sessions — at speed. Fees range widely by location, and the busiest city sites charge the most.
Best for: new trainers building experience fast, and trainers who'll actually work peak floor hours.
Full breakdown: Personal trainers at PureGym.
The Gym Group: 24/7 Is The Edge
Similar low-cost, high-volume model, with 24/7 access at most sites. The overlooked advantage is time: 5am shift workers and 10pm finishers are underserved almost everywhere and extremely loyal once they've found a trainer who'll work those hours.
Best for: trainers happy to own unsociable slots, and those who want volume without fighting for the 6pm peak.
Full breakdown: Personal trainers at The Gym Group.
JD Gyms: Younger, Louder, Content-Led
A younger, more aesthetics-driven membership with strong free-weights areas. Presence and content matter more here than anywhere else — the trainers who fill up are visible, specific and known for a result.
Budgets per client can be tighter, which pushes you towards challenges, small groups and hybrid coaching rather than pure one-to-one.
Full breakdown: Personal trainers at JD Gyms.
Everlast Gyms: Premium Members, Premium Rates
Bigger facilities, boxing and combat-sport space, classes and often recovery areas. Members pay more, so they'll pay more for coaching — provided you price and present like the building you're standing in.
Fees tend to be higher, which bites harder while you're learning to sell, but the maths is far kinder once you're charging £50–£65 a session.
Full breakdown: Personal trainers at Everlast Gyms.
How To Actually Choose
Forget the brand for a second and answer five questions about the specific site:
- What's the fee, and what's my break-even in sessions? If you can't cover it with four clients, it's too high for your current rate.
- How many PTs are already here, and how full are they? Ask them, not the manager.
- Has trainer turnover been high? PTs leaving in numbers means the leads aren't there.
- When are the floor hours? Cheap tiers that eat your peak selling time aren't cheap.
- Can I run semi-private and small groups? That single permission can double your hourly rate.
The Uncomfortable Truth
Two trainers can stand on the same floor in the same gym on the same licence. One earns £1,400 a month and blames the footfall. The other earns £5,000 and never mentions it. The difference is a repeatable system: conversations booked into assessments, assessments closed with a real consultation, clients kept with four-weekly reviews and pre-booked slots.
That system is what Forge Academy teaches — free, 14 modules, built for UK personal trainers on commercial gym floors.