Whether you go to a gym or do at-home workouts, there's often some cost associated with getting fit, whether it's a gym membership, buying equipment or signing up for subscription to an online fitness program.
You can save money on these expenses by using the right credit card. There are cards that offer bonus rewards on gym memberships and at retailers that sell fitness equipment.
Let's say you spend the average $58 a month on a gym membership, for a total of $696 a year. If you charge it to a cash-back credit card offering up to 5% back, you can earn roughly $35 cash back annually. And if you live in major metro areas where the cost of a gym membership can be upwards of $100 a month, you'll see the savings add up.
Below, Select reviews the best credit cards for gym memberships and fitness.
Best credit cards for gym memberships and fitness
- U.S. Bank Cash+® Visa Signature® Card: Up to 5% cash back at gyms and fitness centers
- Prime Visa (See rates and fees): 5% cash back on Amazon purchases
- Target Circle™ Card: 5% discount on most Target purchases
- Chase Freedom Unlimited® (See rates and fees): 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Travel, 3% cash back on drugstore purchases and dining at restaurants (including takeout and eligible delivery service), and 1.5% on all other purchases.
- Rewarding and versatile quarterly bonus categories
- Generous intro-APR offer
- Quarterly limits on the card's top bonus spending categories
- No statement credit offers or other ongoing benefits outside of the cash rewards
Who's this for? If paying for a gym membership is what gets you motivated to work out, the U.S. Bank Cash+® Visa Signature® Card is the only card we could find that offers bonus rewards (more than 2%) on eligible gyms. Cardholders can benefit from 5% cash back on two bonus categories each quarter, on your first $2,000 in combined eligible net purchases, then 1%.
Gyms and fitness clubs are considered one category, and popular merchants include:
- SoulCycle
- LA Fitness
- Planet Fitness
- Weight Watchers
- Equinox
Check out the full list of eligible gyms and fitness centers.
There are some exclusions, which include: purchases at recreational facilities that do not require membership, such as golf driving ranges, baseball batting cages and ski slopes. In addition, purchases made at fitness centers outside of your membership fee, like personal training or fitness classes, may not qualify.
Other bonus categories include sporting good stores (which pairs nicely with gyms/fitness centers), home utilities, department stores and more.
You can also enjoy no interest on balance transfers for 15 billing cycles (after 18.99% - 29.24% variable APR), so if you need to pay off high interest debt, this may be the card for you.
The Prime Visa is only available to Amazon Prime members ($139 for an annual membership and $14.99 for a monthly membership) but is very rewarding for Amazon purchases.
- High rate of return at Amazon and Whole Foods
- Easy-to-earn welcome bonus
- Requires an Amazon Prime membership
- If you choose the promo APR you won't earn rewards on those purchases
Rewards
- Earn unlimited 5% back at Amazon.com, Amazon Fresh, Whole Foods Market and on Chase Travel purchases with an eligible Prime membership
- Unlimited 2% back at gas stations, restaurants, and on local transit and commuting (including rideshare)
- 10% back or more on a rotating selection of items and categories on Amazon.com with an eligible Prime membership
- Unlimited 1% back on all other purchases
Balance transfer fee
Either $5 or 4% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater
Who's this for? If you rather opt for an at-home workout than forking over a monthly membership fee, the Prime Visa can earn you 5% cash back on purchases from Amazon.com. You can purchase fitness equipment, such as weights, yoga mats, bikes and more to build your home gym.
To get you started, when you sign up for the card, you'll get a $150 Amazon Gift Card instantly upon approval exclusively for Prime members. This welcome bonus is a great way to help fund your future home gym.
And if you want to grab some healthy food after your workout, take advantage of 5% cash back with Amazon Fresh and Whole Foods Market.
While there is no annual fee, Prime membership is required, which currently costs $139 annually or $14.99 a month.
Target Circle™ Card
Rewards
5% discount at checkout on most purchases in-store and at Target.com
Welcome bonus
Save $50 on a future qualifying purchase of $50 or more when approved for a Target Circle™ Credit or Debit Card.
Annual fee
$0
Intro APR
None
Regular APR
28.95% variable
Balance transfer fee
N/A
Foreign transaction fee
N/A
See rates and fees, terms apply.
Pros
- No annual fee
- Instant 5% discount at checkout
- Free two-day shipping on most items
- Extra 30 days for returns
Cons
- High variable APR
- Small intro bonus offer
Who's this for? Another option for financing your home gym is the Target Circle™Card. This is a store card, which means it can only be used in-store at Target or online at Target.com. If you frequently do Target runs, this card is a great payment option.
Cardholders receive a 5% discount on most purchases, which includes various items for fitness activities, such as clothing, equipment or even a bigger ticket item, like a smart TV so you can stream your subscription-plan workouts.
This card has no annual fee and offers a bunch of additional perks, such as free two-day shipping on most items with no minimum purchase and an additional 30 days for returns.
Learn more: 5 things to know about the Target Circle Card
The Chase Freedom Unlimited® is a no-annual-fee card that earns generous cash-back on everyday purchases and a lucrative welcome bonus.
- Users get a high rewards rate and strong welcome bonus
- Purchases and balance transfers get long intro APR
- No annual fee
- Travelers face a foreign transaction fee
- Few rewarding ongoing benefits
Highlights
Highlights shown here are provided by the issuer and have not been reviewed by CNBC Select's editorial staff.
- Earn a $200 Bonus after you spend $500 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening
- Enjoy 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase TravelSM, our premier rewards program that lets you redeem rewards for cash back, travel, gift cards and more; 3% cash back on drugstore purchases and dining at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery service, and 1.5% on all other purchases.
- No minimum to redeem for cash back. You can use points to redeem for cash through an account statement credit or an electronic deposit into an eligible Chase account located in the United States!
- Enjoy 0% Intro APR for 15 months from account opening on purchases and balance transfers, then a variable APR of 18.24% - 27.74%.
- No annual fee – You won't have to pay an annual fee for all the great features that come with your Freedom Unlimited® card
- Keep tabs on your credit health, Chase Credit Journey helps you monitor your credit with free access to your latest score, alerts, and more.
- Member FDIC
Balance transfer fee
Intro fee of either $5 or 3% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater, in the first 60 days. After that, either $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater.
Foreign transaction fee
3% of each transaction in U.S. dollars
Who's this for? If you want to purchase a luxury fitness product, such as a Peloton bike or an interactive Mirror, it's a good idea to put it on a rewards card that also offers special financing, such as the Chase Freedom Unlimited®. Cardholders can benefit from a 0% intro APR for the first 15 months from account opening on new purchases and balance transfers (after, 18.24% - 27.74% variable APR). There's an intro balance transfer fee of either $5 or 3% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater, on transfers made within 60 days of account opening. After that it's either $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater. There's also a welcome bonus: Earn a $200 Bonus after you spend $500 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening.
Plus you earn 1.5% cash back on all other purchases. So if you purchase a Peloton for $2,245 (not including taxes and fees), you could earn a minimum of roughly $34 cash back. And if you want to pay for it over time, you have over a year to do so without incurring interest charges.
Apart from 1.5% cash back on most spending, you can earn 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Travel, and 3% cash back on drugstore purchases and dining at restaurants (including takeout and eligible delivery service).
Our methodology
To determine which cards will put the most money back in your pocket, Select evaluated over 234 credit cards offered by the biggest banks, financial companies and credit unions that allow anyone to join. We compared each card on a range of features, including cash-back rewards, annual fee, welcome bonus, introductory and standard APR, balance transfer fee and foreign transaction fees, as well as factors such as required credit and customer reviews when available.
Select teamed up with location intelligence firm Esri. The company's data development team provided the most up-to-date and comprehensive consumer spending data based on the 2019 Consumer Expenditure Surveys from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. You can read more about their methodology here.
Esri's data team created a sample annual budget of approximately $22,126 in retail spending. The budget includes six main categories: groceries ($5,174), gas ($2,218), dining out ($3,675), travel ($2,244), utilities ($4,862) and general purchases ($3,953). General purchases include items such as housekeeping supplies, clothing, personal care products, prescription drugs and vitamins, and other vehicle expenses.
Select used this budget to estimate how much the average consumer would save over the course of a year, two years and five years, assuming they would attempt to maximize their rewards potential by earning all welcome bonuses offered and using the card for all applicable purchases. All rewards total estimations are net the annual fee.
It's important to note the value of a point or mile varies from card to card and based on how you redeem them. When we calculated the estimated returns, we assumed that cardholders are redeeming cash back for a typical maximum value of 1 cent per point or mile. (Extreme optimizers might be able to achieve more value.)
Our final picks are weighted heavily toward the highest five-year returns, since it's generally wise to hold onto a credit card for years. This method also avoids giving an unfair advantage to cards with large welcome bonuses.
While the five-year estimates we've included are derived from a budget similar to the average American's spending, you may earn a higher or lower return depending on your shopping habits.
Information about the U.S. Bank Cash+® Visa Signature® Card has been collected independently by Select and has not been reviewed or provided by the issuer of the card prior to publication.
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