Anytime Fitness Franchise Review: Red Flags From the FDD

Anytime Fitness is attractive for a reason. It gives you a recognisable brand, a recurring revenue model, and a smaller box than a big-box gym. But if you read enough FDDs, you stop asking whether a concept sounds good and start asking where the contract can hurt you. The Anytime Fitness FDD has several provisions that deserve careful attention before you sign anything.

This is not a condemnation of the brand. It is a prompt to read past the investment range and spend real time on the contract structure, the outlet trends, and what the earnings data actually measures.

The royalty conversion clause

Anytime Fitness has historically charged a fixed monthly royalty rather than a percentage of revenue. That structure can be attractive because your royalty does not automatically grow as your revenue grows. But the FDD includes provisions that allow the franchisor to convert the royalty structure under certain conditions. If the fixed royalty converts to a percentage-based structure, your economics can shift materially depending on your club's revenue.

Read the royalty clause carefully. Understand exactly what triggers a conversion, whether there is a cap, and how much notice you receive before any change takes effect. This is the kind of clause that feels abstract during negotiation and very concrete in year four of an agreement.

Outlet trends: what Item 20 shows

The Anytime Fitness system has been one of the largest gym franchise networks globally, but outlet trends in recent years show meaningful unit counts in flux. Item 20 shows closures, transfers, and terminations alongside openings. Reading the pattern of net growth — whether the system is genuinely expanding or whether openings are offsetting closures without real net growth — tells you something important about system health that the sales deck will not.

Former franchisee contact information in Item 20 is especially valuable here. If former franchisees left the system at a higher-than-expected rate in specific markets or time periods, understanding why they left tells you more than the brand's own characterisation of unit performance.

The non-compete clause

Anytime Fitness includes a post-term non-compete that can restrict your ability to operate a competing fitness business for a meaningful period after you leave. Given that fitness is a specialised operating skill set, this clause can have real career implications if the franchise relationship ends — whether by your choice or the franchisor's.

Read the exact scope: what business types are covered, what geography, how long the restriction runs, and whether it extends to your personal guarantors. A broad non-compete in a fitness concept can effectively prevent you from using your experience in the same industry for years after exit.

Item 19: what the earnings data says

Anytime Fitness provides an Item 19 disclosure. Average total revenue for disclosed clubs was $384,958, with a median of $347,576 across 1,103 franchised clubs using the Training Suite. Those figures give you a useful benchmark, but they represent top-line revenue, not club-level profit. Membership revenue minus royalties, lease costs, staffing, equipment, marketing, and debt service is the number that actually matters.

Cross-check the Item 19 data with what you learn from franchisee validation calls. Ask specifically whether their club-level economics have improved, declined, or stayed stable over the last three years. That real-world context is what converts an average revenue figure into something you can actually act on.

The honest assessment

Anytime Fitness can work for the right buyer. Recurring membership revenue, broad brand recognition, and a relatively straightforward operating model are real advantages. The risks are the royalty conversion exposure, the post-term non-compete, and the fact that lease and equipment costs keep running regardless of membership trends.

Go into any Anytime Fitness diligence process with Item 17 open, not just Item 19. The contract structure decides what happens when things get hard. If you want to understand what the Anytime Fitness FDD actually says about your rights, fees, and exit conditions, fddinsight.com can help you see those provisions in plain English before you commit.