Last Updated on October 23, 2026
PureGym scores highest of the ten UK gym and fitness brands compared, at 7.6 out of 10 on the Whito leaderboard.
Opinion and analysis. Whito read every brand below by hand on 22 October 2026, using publicly visible activity only, against fixed anchors and ten UK searches. Each channel is scored 0 to 10, set out under How we scored, so a score describes what we could see on the day, not the quality of the gym. Brands cannot pay to appear or to change a score. Where a figure is not published, we say so.
Many gym owners assume fitness marketing is won on Instagram. On this board the leader wins on something duller: a page for every town. PureGym and The Gym Group took 11 of the 13 search places any brand here earned across 10 UK searches.
PureGym scores 7.6, ahead of Better, the charitable leisure operator, on 7.0 and Virgin Active on 6.4. PureGym shows prices from £18.99 a month on its homepage, answers all of its latest 20 Trustpilot reviews and appeared in 6 of 10 searches.
F45 Training scores lowest at 4.9. It shows no prices, its own Trustpilot profile holds 9 reviews and f45training.com appeared in none of 10 UK searches. Two boutique names, Barry’s and F45 Training, score 0 on reviews because their Trustpilot profiles hold almost no reviews.
The leaderboard
| Rank | Brand | Social | Website | SEO | Paid | Reviews | Brand | Average | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | PureGym | 6 | 10 | 6 | 9 | 10 | 8 | 4 | 7.6 |
| 2 | Better | 6 | 10 | 7 | 4 | 10 | 8 | 4 | 7.0 |
| 3 | Virgin Active | 6 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 10 | 3 | 6 | 6.4 |
| 4 | The Gym Group | 4 | 10 | 0 | 9 | 10 | 4 | 2 | 5.6 |
| 5 | Anytime Fitness | 6 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 10 | 5 | 4 | 5.4 |
| 5 | Barry’s | 4 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 8 | 0 | 6 | 5.4 |
| 5 | Nuffield Health | 0 | 10 | 4 | 5 | 10 | 7 | 2 | 5.4 |
| 8 | David Lloyd | 4 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 8 | 8 | 4 | 5.3 |
| 9 | Third Space | 6 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 10 | 5 | 4 | 5.0 |
| 10 | F45 Training | 6 | 6 | 7 | 3 | 8 | 0 | 4 | 4.9 |
Average is the simple mean of the seven channel scores, rounded to one decimal place. Brands on the same average share a rank and are listed A to Z. All ten brands read 22 October 2026. Meta Ad Library counts were read on 23 October 2026, after the library was unavailable on 22 October.
Company verdicts
PureGym, 7.6
PureGym scores 7.6, the highest of the ten. SEO scores 9, level with The Gym Group: puregym.com appeared in 6 of 10 UK searches, for ‘gym near me UK’ and its own pages for each of the five cities, and a blog adds a point. Its website scores 10 for online joining with prices on the homepage, from £18.99 a month. Reviews score 8 from 4.0 on 67,819 Trustpilot reviews, with replies to all of the latest 20. Email scores 6 for its app, with no newsletter seen. Paid scores 10 with about 4,000 Google ads in 30 days and at least 26 Meta ads.
Better, 7.0
Better scores 7.0, second on the board. Email scores 7, the joint highest here, for a newsletter sign-up, a My Account login and the Better app. Reviews score 8 from 4.1 on 17,096 Trustpilot reviews, with replies to all of the latest 20. Its website scores 10 for online joining and activity booking. better.org.uk appeared for ‘gym near me UK’, so SEO scores 4. Brand scores 4 for one name and a clear line, ‘A Charitable Social Enterprise’. Paid scores 10 for about 2,000 Google ads and about 240 Meta ads.
Virgin Active, 6.4
Virgin Active scores 6.4, third on the board. Brand scores 6, the joint highest here, for one name, a clear line, ‘Social Wellness Clubs’, and the Virgin signature logo. Email scores 7 for its app, a member login and a rewards scheme. Its website scores 10 for online joining with a club credit offer. Reviews score 3, among the lowest here, from 2.6 on 6,080 Trustpilot reviews with no replies on the latest 20, and virginactive.co.uk appeared in none of 10 UK searches.
The Gym Group, 5.6
The Gym Group scores 5.6, fourth on the board. SEO scores 9, level with PureGym: thegymgroup.com appeared in 5 of 10 UK searches with its own pages for each of the five cities, and a blog adds a point. Its website scores 10 for online joining. Reviews score 4 from 3.1 on 31,258 Trustpilot reviews, with no replies on the latest 20. Email scores 0, with no sign-up or app link seen on the homepage, and brand 2 for a consistent name only.
Anytime Fitness, 5.4
Anytime Fitness scores 5.4, level fifth with Barry’s and Nuffield Health. Social scores 6 for five platforms. Reviews score 5 from 4.2 on 2,479 Trustpilot reviews, with no replies on the latest 20. Brand scores 4 for one name and a clear line, ‘Here for you, anytime.’ Its website scores 6: a gym finder and a free trial offer, with no prices and online joining not confirmed from the homepage. Email scores 4 for a member login.
Barry’s, 5.4
Barry’s scores 5.4, level fifth with Anytime Fitness and Nuffield Health. Brand scores 6 for one name, a clear line, ‘The Best Workout in the World’, and the Red Room studio it has used for years. Email scores 7 for a newsletter, an account and a loyalty scheme. Its website scores 10 for booking a first class online. Reviews score 0: the barrys.com Trustpilot profile has no reviews, and an older profile holds 48 at 1.9. barrys.com appeared in none of 10 UK searches.
Nuffield Health, 5.4
Nuffield Health scores 5.4, level fifth with Anytime Fitness and Barry’s. Its website scores 10 for online joining with membership pricing on the page, including a £19 to £39 joining fee. Reviews score 7 from 4.6 on 8,928 Trustpilot reviews, the highest rating here, with a reply to 1 of the latest 20. SEO scores 5: an advice article appeared for ‘best gym for beginners UK’. Social scores 0, as its gyms homepage links no social platforms.
David Lloyd, 5.3
David Lloyd scores 5.3, eighth on the board. Reviews score 8 from 4.4 on 42,667 Trustpilot reviews, with replies to 16 of the latest 20. Its website scores 10 for online joining and tour booking, though the homepage shows no prices. Brand scores 4 for one name and a clear line, ‘Europe’s leading health and wellness group’. Email scores 0, with no sign-up, login or app link seen on the homepage, and davidlloyd.co.uk appeared in none of 10 UK searches.
Third Space, 5.0
Third Space scores 5.0. Social scores 6 for six platforms. Reviews score 5 from 4.4 on 1,376 Trustpilot reviews, with no replies on the latest 20. Its website scores 6 for a page per club and join and tour forms, with no prices shown. Email scores 2 for a single sign-up field, and thirdspace.london appeared in none of 10 UK searches.
F45 Training, 4.9
F45 Training scores 4.9, the lowest of the ten. Email scores 7 for an email sign-up plus the F45 app, and social 6 for seven platforms, the most on the board. Reviews score 0 from 2.8 on 9 Trustpilot reviews. Its website scores 6: the UK address redirects to a section of the global site, with a free trial offer but no prices. Paid scores 8 with 13 Google ads and 17 Meta ads.
What the channels show
Town pages win search
PureGym appeared in 6 of 10 UK searches and The Gym Group in 5, almost all through a page for each city. Better and Nuffield Health appeared once each. The other six appeared in none. Price and cost searches went to publishers and comparison sites, not gyms.
Reviews split budget and boutique
The big operators hold tens of thousands of Trustpilot reviews: PureGym 67,819, David Lloyd 42,667, The Gym Group 31,258. Barry’s and F45 Training hold almost none on their own domains. The reply habit matters too: PureGym and Better answer all of their latest 20, five of the ten answer none.
Online joining is standard
Seven of the ten let you join, book a first class or book a tour online and score 10 for website. Only PureGym and Nuffield Health show a price on the page we read.
Email capture is uneven
Better, Virgin Active, Barry’s and F45 Training score 7 on email. David Lloyd and The Gym Group show no sign-up, login or app link on the homepage, and score 0.
Key lessons for any gym or personal trainer
Build a page for your town
PureGym and The Gym Group took the city searches with a page per location. A single gym or PT can do the same: one page with the town in the title, your address, prices and a way to book.
Reply to every review
PureGym and Better reply to all of their latest 20 Trustpilot reviews. Virgin Active, with 2.6 from 6,080 reviews, replies to none.
Show your price
PureGym puts £18.99 a month on its homepage. Most of the ten make you click through to find a price, which loses the people comparing.
Answer the questions people search
Nuffield Health appeared for ‘best gym for beginners UK’ with one advice article. No gym appeared for the cost searches; a plain page on what your membership or PT session costs is open ground.
Capture an email at the first visit
Better pairs a newsletter, an account and an app. A first-visit sign-up and a reminder in week two is the cheapest way to keep a new member coming back.
Steal this playbook
Five moves from this leaderboard, ranked by return on effort.
- Reply to your latest 20 reviews. PureGym and Better answer all 20; five of the ten answer none.
- Publish a page for your town. Six of the ten appeared in none of 10 UK searches.
- Put your price on the homepage. Only PureGym and Nuffield Health showed one on the page we read.
- Write one page on what membership or PT costs. No gym appeared for the three cost and PT searches.
- Collect an email at the first visit. David Lloyd and The Gym Group score 0 on email.
The evidence behind the scores
One line per channel, as read on the date shown for each brand. Review figures change daily; these are the numbers on the day we looked.
PureGym
Read 22 October 2026 (Meta read 23 October 2026).
- Social 6: Links to TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube, five platforms in all.
- Website 10: Online joining with prices on the homepage (from £18.99 a month plus a joining fee from £10).
- Email 6: The PureGym app; no newsletter form seen.
- SEO 9: 6 of 10 UK web searches returned puregym.com in the top ten (‘gym near me UK’ and its own pages for London, Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds and Bristol), plus credit for a blog and fitness guides.
- Paid 10: Google Ads Transparency Centre, UK, last 30 days, by domain puregym.com: about 4,000 ads. Meta Ad Library, UK, active ads from the PureGym page, read 23 October 2026: at least 26 (209 of about 3,300 keyword results loaded).
- Reviews 8: Trustpilot 4.0 from 67,819 reviews, with a company reply on 20 of the latest 20.
- Brand 4: Same name everywhere and a clear positioning line (‘Welcome to Feeling PureGym Good’); no long-running asset or named people confirmed, and three recent news mentions not checked.
Better
Read 22 October 2026 (Meta read 23 October 2026).
- Social 6: Links to Facebook, Instagram, X and YouTube, four platforms in all.
- Website 10: Online joining and activity booking (‘Join now’).
- Email 7: A newsletter sign-up, a My Account login and the Better app (App Store and Google Play).
- SEO 4: 1 of 10 UK web searches returned better.org.uk in the top ten (‘gym near me UK’); no advice library found.
- Paid 10: Google Ads Transparency Centre, UK, last 30 days, by domain better.org.uk: about 2,000 ads. Meta Ad Library, UK, active ads from the Better (@BetterUK) page, read 23 October 2026: about 240.
- Reviews 8: Trustpilot 4.1 from 17,096 reviews, with a company reply on 20 of the latest 20.
- Brand 4: Same name everywhere and a clear positioning line (‘A Charitable Social Enterprise’); no long-running asset or named people confirmed, and three recent news mentions not checked.
Virgin Active
Read 22 October 2026 (Meta read 23 October 2026).
- Social 6: Links to TikTok, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram, four platforms in all.
- Website 10: Online joining (‘Join now’), with a joining offer of up to £250 club credit on the homepage.
- Email 7: The Virgin Active app, a member login and a rewards scheme (‘Rep the rewards’).
- SEO 3: 0 of 10 UK web searches returned virginactive.co.uk in the top ten, plus credit for a blog.
- Paid 10: Google Ads Transparency Centre, UK, last 30 days, by domain virginactive.co.uk: about 2,000 ads. Meta Ad Library, UK, active ads from the Virgin Active UK and Virgin Active pages, read 23 October 2026: 19.
- Reviews 3: Trustpilot 2.6 from 6,080 reviews, with no company reply on the latest 20.
- Brand 6: Same name everywhere, a clear positioning line (‘Social Wellness Clubs’) and a distinctive asset used for years, the Virgin signature logo; no named people confirmed, and three recent news mentions not checked.
The Gym Group
Read 22 October 2026 (Meta read 23 October 2026).
- Social 4: Links to TikTok, Instagram and YouTube, three platforms in all.
- Website 10: Online joining (‘Join now’) with membership options on the homepage.
- Email 0: No newsletter form, login or app link seen on the homepage.
- SEO 9: 5 of 10 UK web searches returned thegymgroup.com in the top ten (its own pages for London, Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds and Bristol), plus credit for a blog and guides.
- Paid 10: Google Ads Transparency Centre, UK, last 30 days, by domain thegymgroup.com: about 5,000 ads. Meta Ad Library, UK, active ads from the The Gym Group page, read 23 October 2026: 152.
- Reviews 4: Trustpilot 3.1 from 31,258 reviews, with no company reply on the latest 20.
- Brand 2: Same name everywhere; no positioning line beyond ’24 Hour Gyms | No Contract Gyms’, long-running asset or named people confirmed, and three recent news mentions not checked.
Anytime Fitness
Read 22 October 2026 (Meta read 23 October 2026).
- Social 6: Links to Facebook, Instagram, X, LinkedIn and TikTok, five platforms in all.
- Website 6: anytimefitness.co.uk redirects to a UK section of anytimefitness.com, with a gym finder and a free trial offer; no prices, and online joining not confirmed from the homepage.
- Email 4: A member login and a subscribe link; no app seen.
- SEO 3: 0 of 10 UK web searches returned anytimefitness.com or anytimefitness.co.uk in the top ten, plus credit for a blog.
- Paid 10: Google Ads Transparency Centre, UK, last 30 days, by domain anytimefitness.com: about 2,000 ads. Meta Ad Library, UK, active ads from Anytime Fitness club pages, read 23 October 2026: 139 (no central UK page seen).
- Reviews 5: Trustpilot 4.2 from 2,479 reviews (anytimefitness.co.uk), with no company reply on the latest 20.
- Brand 4: Same name everywhere and a clear positioning line (‘Here for you, anytime.’); no long-running asset or named people confirmed, and three recent news mentions not checked.
Barry’s
Read 22 October 2026 (Meta read 23 October 2026).
- Social 4: Links to LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram, three platforms in all.
- Website 10: Book a first class online.
- Email 7: A newsletter sign-up, a customer account and a loyalty scheme.
- SEO 3: 0 of 10 UK web searches returned barrys.com in the top ten, plus credit for a blog.
- Paid 8: Google Ads Transparency Centre, UK, last 30 days, by domain barrys.com: 43 ads. Meta Ad Library, UK, active ads from the Barry’s Bootcamp UK page, read 23 October 2026: 44.
- Reviews 0: The Trustpilot profile for barrys.com has no reviews (an older barrysbootcamp.com profile holds 48 reviews rated 1.9, with no replies), so reviews score 0.
- Brand 6: Same name everywhere, a clear positioning line (‘The Best Workout in the World’) and a distinctive asset used for years, the Red Room studio; no named people confirmed, and three recent news mentions not checked.
Nuffield Health
Read 22 October 2026 (Meta read 23 October 2026).
- Social 0: No social platforms linked from the gyms homepage.
- Website 10: Online joining with memberships and pricing on the page (a £19 to £39 joining fee shown).
- Email 4: A member login; no newsletter or app seen.
- SEO 5: 1 of 10 UK web searches returned nuffieldhealth.com in the top ten (‘best gym for beginners UK’, through an advice article), plus credit for an advice library.
- Paid 10: Google Ads Transparency Centre, UK, last 30 days, by domain nuffieldhealth.com: about 500 ads. Meta Ad Library, UK, active ads from the Nuffield Health page, read 23 October 2026: 19.
- Reviews 7: Trustpilot 4.6 from 8,928 reviews, with a company reply on 1 of the latest 20.
- Brand 2: Same name everywhere; no positioning line, long-running asset or named people confirmed on the gyms page, and three recent news mentions not checked.
David Lloyd
Read 22 October 2026 (Meta read 23 October 2026).
- Social 4: Links to Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn, three platforms in all.
- Website 10: Online joining and tour booking, with a three-month membership offer on the homepage; no prices shown on the homepage.
- Email 0: No newsletter form, login or app link seen on the homepage.
- SEO 3: 0 of 10 UK web searches returned davidlloyd.co.uk in the top ten, plus credit for a gym advice section.
- Paid 8: Google Ads Transparency Centre, UK, last 30 days, by domain davidlloyd.co.uk: about 500 ads. Meta Ad Library, UK, read 23 October 2026: no active ads from the main David Lloyd Clubs page; 1 from the David Lloyd Clubs East Molesey club page.
- Reviews 8: Trustpilot 4.4 from 42,667 reviews, with a company reply on 16 of the latest 20.
- Brand 4: Same name everywhere and a clear positioning line (‘Europe’s leading health and wellness group’); no long-running asset or named people confirmed, and three recent news mentions not checked.
Third Space
Read 22 October 2026 (Meta read 23 October 2026).
- Social 6: Links to Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Pinterest, LinkedIn and TikTok, six platforms in all; recent posting and video not checked.
- Website 6: A page per club, a join form and a book-a-tour page; no prices or online checkout shown.
- Email 2: A single email sign-up field; no account or app seen.
- SEO 2: 0 of 10 UK web searches returned thirdspace.london in the top ten; its Journal is editorial, not counted as an advice library.
- Paid 10: Google Ads Transparency Centre, UK, last 30 days, by domain thirdspace.london: about 200 ads. Meta Ad Library, UK, active ads from the Third Space London page, read 23 October 2026: 118.
- Reviews 5: Trustpilot 4.4 from 1,376 reviews, with no company reply on the latest 20.
- Brand 4: Same name everywhere and a clear positioning line (‘London Health Clubs and Luxury Gyms’); no long-running asset or named people confirmed, and three recent news mentions not checked.
F45 Training
Read 22 October 2026 (Meta read 23 October 2026).
- Social 6: Links to Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, X, LinkedIn, Threads and TikTok, seven platforms in all; recent posting and video not checked.
- Website 6: f45training.co.uk redirects to a UK section of f45training.com, with studio pages and a free trial offer; no prices, and online booking not confirmed from the homepage.
- Email 7: An email sign-up plus the F45 app.
- SEO 3: 0 of 10 UK web searches returned f45training.com in the top ten, plus credit for a blog.
- Paid 8: Google Ads Transparency Centre, UK, last 30 days, by domain f45training.com: 13 ads. Meta Ad Library, UK, active ads from the F45 Training page, read 23 October 2026: 17.
- Reviews 0: Trustpilot 2.8 from 9 reviews (f45training.com), with no company reply on the latest 9.
- Brand 4: Same name everywhere and a clear positioning line (‘Global gym. Local community.’); no long-running asset or named people confirmed, and three recent news mentions not checked.
How we scored
Who is on the board. Ten UK gym and fitness brands a customer is likely to meet when choosing a gym or class: PureGym (the largest UK budget gym chain), The Gym Group (national budget gym chain), David Lloyd (premium family health clubs), Virgin Active (premium health clubs), Nuffield Health (charity running gyms and health services), Better (charitable social enterprise running leisure centres), Anytime Fitness (24-hour franchise gym network), Barry’s (boutique HIIT studios), F45 Training (franchise functional training studios) and Third Space (luxury London health clubs). Chosen for relevance and size, not marketing strength.
When we looked. All ten brands were read on 22 October 2026, against the fixed anchors below, with the ten searches run on the same day. This board was first published with scores relative to the other brands on it. On 22 October 2026 it was rescored on Whito’s fixed anchors and expanded to ten brands, so scores are not comparable with the earlier edition. Meta Ad Library counts were read on 23 October 2026, after the library was unavailable on 22 October. Where a brand’s UK address redirects to a section of its global site (F45 Training, Anytime Fitness), we read that section.
- Social: which platforms the brand links to from its own site, and whether we could see recent posting and video.
- Website: 2 for a brochure page, 4 with a contact route on mobile, 6 with a page per service and a one-step enquiry, 8 with prices or ranges and registration numbers shown, 10 with online booking, an online checkout or an instant priced quote.
- Email: visible capture only, as we did not subscribe test inboxes for this edition. 2 for a bare newsletter form, 4 for a customer account, 6 for an app, 7 for a newsletter plus an app, up to 10 for a loyalty or app ecosystem with personal offers.
- SEO: ten UK searches for this sector, run through a standard web search API (22 October 2026; not personalised, no location set beyond the town in the query); we counted how many returned the brand’s own site in the top ten results. 0 of 10 scores 2, 1 to 2 scores 4, 3 to 4 scores 6, 5 to 6 scores 8, 7 or more scores 10, plus 1 for a substantial advice library. The searches: gym near me UK; gym membership cost UK; personal trainer cost UK; personal trainer UK; best gym for beginners UK; gym London; gym Manchester; gym Birmingham; gym Leeds; gym Bristol.
- Paid: the Google Ads Transparency Centre (UK, last 30 days, by domain) and the Meta Ad Library (UK, active ads, counted by the advertiser page). 2 for nothing found in either, 4 for active in one with fewer than 10 ads, 6 for active in both or 10+ in one, 8 for active in both with 10+ in at least one, 10 for 50+ Google ads and 10+ Meta ads. Meta Ad Library counts were read on 23 October 2026, after the library was unavailable on 22 October. Paid describes visible activity, not quality. A low paid score is not a fault.
- Reviews: a fixed formula. Rating (4.7+ scores 4, 4.5 to 4.69 scores 3, 4.0 to 4.49 scores 2, 3.5 to 3.99 scores 1) plus volume (10,000+ scores 4, 1,000+ scores 3, 100+ scores 2, 20+ scores 1) plus replies to the latest 20 reviews (half or more scores 2, some scores 1). Where Trustpilot sends a brand’s address to a parent company profile, we used that profile and say so.
- Brand: five checks worth 2 each: the same name and logo everywhere, one clear positioning line, a distinctive asset used for years, three or more independent press mentions in 90 days, and named people or expertise on the site. We award only what we could verify on the day.
These anchors are fixed for this edition, so the ten scores can be read against each other. Boards published before October 2026 used scores relative to the other brands on the board, so compare across boards with care.
Common questions
Which UK fitness brand has the best marketing in 2026?
PureGym, on this board, at 7.6 out of 10, ahead of Better on 7.0 and Virgin Active on 6.4. It shows prices from £18.99 a month, lets you join online, replies to all of its latest 20 Trustpilot reviews and appeared in 6 of 10 UK searches.
Which fitness brand scores lowest, and why?
F45 Training scores 4.9. Its UK address redirects to a section of the global site with no prices, its f45training.com Trustpilot profile holds 9 reviews at 2.8, so reviews score 0, and it appeared in none of 10 UK searches. Its social score of 6, for seven platforms, is the most on the board.
How many Trustpilot reviews do the big gym chains have?
PureGym has 67,819 at 4.0, David Lloyd 42,667 at 4.4, The Gym Group 31,258 at 3.1 and Better 17,096 at 4.1. Barry’s has none on its barrys.com profile and F45 Training has 9. PureGym and Better reply to all of their latest 20.
What can an independent gym or personal trainer copy from these brands?
A page for your town with prices and a booking link, since the chains won search that way. Replies to every review, as PureGym and Better do. A plain page on what membership or a PT session costs, since no gym appeared for those searches. And an email sign-up at the first visit.
Do boutique studios market differently from the chains?
Yes, on this evidence. Barry’s and F45 Training lean on brand and email, with lines such as ‘The Best Workout in the World’, but hold almost no Trustpilot reviews on their own domains and appeared in none of 10 UK searches. The budget chains win on town pages and review volume.
Corrections and right of reply
If your business is scored here and you think we have a fact wrong, email hello@whito.co.uk. We check it against the source, correct it within five working days if we are wrong, and publish your statement alongside if you want us to. Scores are never changed for payment or because a business has claimed a Whito listing. Full route: corrections, right of reply and removals.
Related: all UK marketing leaderboards · Local SEO guide · Best booking systems · Best email platforms
If your business is named here and you think we have a fact wrong, email hello@whito.co.uk and we will check it and correct it. If you want to respond, send us a statement and we will publish it alongside. Full detail: Corrections, right of reply and removals.
