Want to Know Which South African Gym to Choose? Here's a Membership Comparison

First off, the most important thing is that you’re thinking of exercising. It’s a known fact that even regular, moderate cardio exercise can go a long way towards heart health, among other things. However, it’s not to say that the best way to work out is by joining a gym. Many gyms may be making lots of money from people who join and barely ever (or never) go to gym. Sometimes we lock ourselves into gym contracts as part of an aspiration, when actually another method of exercising would have been more appropriate.

So, before reading the below price comparison, consider going for a run around your own neighborhood, walking your dog, going for weekend hikes (along safe trails), or investing in weight lifting equipment or a treadmill to keep at home. That way, you avoid paying for the overheads and profit of South African gym companies.

Viva Gym (link)

Viva gyms are currently in four major cities: Cape Town, Johannesburg, Port Elizabeth and Pretoria.

They have a single session drop-in option and 2 contract options: monthly and yearly.

The single-session drop-in fee is R100 and perfect should you only want to train for one-day or have your friends pop in for a bro sesh with you.

The month to month contract option eliminates the hassle of having to commit to a long term contract.

The yearly contract has a 12-month commitment and then rolls into a monthly membership

Both the contracts require that you pay a joining fee. For the monthly contract, this ranges from R330 – R350 depending on the gym.

For the 12 month membership, the joining fee is R260 – R290.

Monthly contracts are in the region of R329 – R349 and yearly contracts range from R259 – R289.

Zone Fitness (link)

Zone Fitness membership options range from R200 – R600.

Their joining fees are between R50 – R100 and the access cards cost R50.

A 12-month contract is R250 per month and their 24-month local membership with access to a single club is R225. Should you want a Super Club membership, this will set you back R299 per month.

Planet Fitness (link)

Planet Fitness has four different membership options.

Their joining fees range from R100 – R300.

Just Gym is their value gym group which offers members all the offerings of Planet Fitness, without the trimmings.

There are differences in class offerings as well.

A Just Gym membership starts at R199 whereas the Planet Fitness membersships vary depending on the area of the gym. The lowest membership begins at R399 and escalates to R899.

Should you want national access, your joining fee will be R600 with a monthly rate of R999.

Platinum members will be charged an R900 joining fee and a monthly fee of R1199.

Virgin Active (link)

Virgin Active have two clubs: Health Clubs and Collection Clubs.

The Health Clubs are their standard clubs whilst their Collections Clubs feature a lot more bells and whistles.

There are a number of membership options available:

Virgin Active Off-Peak Health Club membership: *R240 – R750 per month.
Virgin Active Health Club membership: *R270 – R995 per month
Virgin Active Health Club Premier Select membership: *R640 – R780 per month
Virgin Active Premier membership: *R890 – R1,095 per month
The classic collection membership will cost you *R1,500 – R2,350 per month.

Considerations

Some South African medical aid schemes offer discounts for memberships to certain gyms, so it is a good idea to call yours and find out if that applies. Also, it’s a good idea to call the gym you are considering to find out what equipment and facilities they have on site, to avoid signing up and discovering that your gym can’t cater to your specific needs. Ultimately, the most important thing, whether you go to a gym, or choose some other method, is that you’re exercising consistently.

For information as to how Relocation Africa can help you with your Mobility, Immigration, Research, Remuneration, and Expat Tax needs, email marketing@relocationafrica.com, or call us on +27 21 763 4240.

Sources: [1], [2]. Image sources: Stage 7 Photography [1], [2].