Battle · 3 companies

Budget 24-hour gyms

No frills, no contracts, no mercy for the weakest

PureGym leads on 3 of the five measures that matter most: turnover, pre-tax profit, profit margin, growth and net assets. PureGym is the biggest by turnover at £464m, against £245m at The Gym Group. JD Gyms keeps the most of every £100 it takes, £31.09 as pre-tax profit.

The year ends are up to 11 months apart, so this compares each company's most recent filing rather than the same twelve months. The Gym Group files group accounts that include subsidiaries; PureGym and JD Gyms file for a single company, which flatters the group on size.

Spark Intel Research Desk·Last updated 28 September 2026·Source: Companies House filed accounts

Accounts compared: PureGym to Dec 2025 · The Gym Group to Dec 2025 · JD Gyms to Feb 2025

Biggest by turnover

PureGym

£464m

Highest profit margin

JD Gyms

31.1%

Fastest-growing turnover

JD Gyms

+21.1%

The Numbers

#	Company	Turnover	Change	Pre-tax profit	Margin	Employees	Pay per head	Turnover per head	Net assets	Bank and cash	Accounts to	Basis
1	PureGymPure Gym Limited	£464m	+11.4%	£87m	18.7%	4,067	£23,000	£114,000	£782m	£48m	Dec 2025	Single company
2	The Gym GroupThe Gym Group PLC	£245m	+8.2%	£7m	3.0%	1,924	£31,000	£127,000	£142m	£3m	Dec 2025	Group
3	JD GymsJD Sports Gyms Limited	£122m	+21.1%	£38m	31.1%	1,203	£18,000	£102,000	£38m	£3m	Feb 2025	Single company

Ranked by turnover. Click any column to sort. The leader on each measure is highlighted. Movements are against each company's own prior year. Pre-tax profit is filed except where marked (est.).

Category winners

Biggest by turnover

PureGym

£464m

Most pre-tax profit

PureGym

£87m

Highest profit margin

JD Gyms

31.1%

Fastest-growing turnover

JD Gyms

+21.1%

Biggest employer

PureGym

4,067 staff

Highest pay per head

The Gym Group

£31,000

Most turnover per head

The Gym Group

£127,000

Largest net assets

PureGym

£782m

Most cash

PureGym

£48m

The Takeaway

JD Gyms converts the most of its turnover. Of every £100, £31.09 reaches pre-tax profit, against £3.02 at The Gym Group.
PureGym is the largest on the top line, £464m of turnover, 1.9x The Gym Group's £245m.
JD Gyms is growing fastest, turnover +21.1% on its own prior year.
PureGym is the biggest employer with 4,067 people; The Gym Group pays the most per head, an average staff cost of about £31,000.
PureGym has the largest balance sheet, net assets of £782m.

Who keeps the most of every £100 of sales?

JD Gyms keeps the most: £31.09 of every £100 of turnover becomes pre-tax profit. The Gym Group keeps the least, £3.02.

Financing bites hardest at PureGym: £10.40 of every £100 goes on interest.

Every profit figure here is the one the company filed.

The chart splits each company's turnover into £100: what goes on people, on interest and on everything else, and what is left as profit.

Out of every £100 of turnover

Payroll (staff costs)Financing (interest paid)Other running costsPre-tax profitLoss: the costs beyond £100

Each column is £100 of that company's own turnover, so companies of any size compare on one scale; the figures are pounds out of each £100, not millions. Companies run from the best margin to the worst. Payroll is staff costs, financing is interest paid, other running costs are everything else, and profit is pre-tax profit, filed or estimated as marked in the table. A loss is not an extra cost: it is the part of the costs that runs past the £100 line, marked with a red bracket. Hover over any segment for its figure.

Who is the biggest, and does the comparison hold?

By turnover the order is PureGym (£464m), The Gym Group (£245m), JD Gyms (£122m).

By headcount, PureGym leads with 4,067 employees.

The comparison holds with the dates stated plainly: PureGym to Dec 2025, The Gym Group to Dec 2025, JD Gyms to Feb 2025. The bases differ: group accounts include the businesses a company owns, single-company accounts do not.

Turnover on the latest filing

Who is growing fastest?

JD Gyms grew fastest, turnover +21.1% on its own prior year, ahead of PureGym (+11.4%), The Gym Group (+8.2%).

Turnover change on each company's own prior year

Who employs the most, who pays the most, and who brings in the most per head?

PureGym employs the most, 4,067 people, against 1,924 at The Gym Group.

The Gym Group has the highest average staff cost, about £31,000 a head; JD Gyms the lowest, about £18,000.

The Gym Group brings in the most turnover per employee, about £127,000, against £102,000 at JD Gyms. It says as much about the business model as the workforce: a marketplace or a wholesaler needs far fewer people per pound than a restaurant or a gym.

PureGym

4,067

employees, about £23,000 pay a head, £114,000 turnover a head, +8.9% on the year

The Gym Group

1,924

employees, about £31,000 pay a head, £127,000 turnover a head, +4.7% on the year

JD Gyms

1,203

employees, about £18,000 pay a head, £102,000 turnover a head, +26.1% on the year

Who owns each one?

Ownership as recorded on the Companies House register of people with significant control, in the bands the register uses.

Pure Gym Limited · 06690189

Held by Gym Bidco Limited

A company recorded as a person with significant control in the 75% to 100% band. 3 outstanding charges on the register.

Who owns PureGym →

The Gym Group PLC · 08528493

Owned by its shareholders

Listed on the London Stock Exchange, so no single controller appears on the register.

Who owns The Gym Group →

JD Sports Gyms Limited · 08770057

Held by Jd Sports Fashion Plc

A company recorded as a person with significant control. 1 outstanding charge on the register.

Who owns JD Gyms →

What does the full ledger show?

Measure	PureGym	The Gym Group	JD Gyms
Registered name	PURE GYM LIMITED	THE GYM GROUP PLC	JD SPORTS GYMS LIMITED
Company number	06690189	08528493	08770057
Incorporated	2008	2013	2013
Accounts filed	6 June 2026	16 May 2026	30 October 2025
Turnover, prior year	£416m	£226m	£101m
Pre-tax profit, prior year	£79m	£3m	-£29k
Staff costs	£92m	£59m	£21m
Payroll share of turnover	19.9%	24.0%	17.3%
Employees, prior year	3,734	1,837	954
Dividends paid	n/d	n/d	n/d
Charges outstanding	3	0	1

A figure the filing does not disclose is shown as n/d; a zero in a filing is treated as not disclosed. Rounding: below £0.1m in thousands, £0.1m to £2m to one decimal place, above that to the nearest million.

Budget 24-hour gyms: common questions

Who is the biggest of PureGym, The Gym Group or JD Gyms?

PureGym, with turnover of £464m in the year to December 2025.

Which makes the most profit?

PureGym: £87m pre-tax in the year to December 2025.

Which employs the most people?

PureGym, with 4,067 employees in its latest accounts.

PureGym or The Gym Group: which is bigger?

PureGym, with turnover of £464m against £245m at The Gym Group on their latest filings. On margin, PureGym keeps more of each £100 as pre-tax profit. The full head to head is in the VS Series. Read the VS page →

PureGym or JD Gyms: which is bigger?

PureGym, with turnover of £464m against £122m at JD Gyms on their latest filings. On margin, JD Gyms keeps more of each £100 as pre-tax profit.

The Gym Group or JD Gyms: which is bigger?

The Gym Group, with turnover of £245m against £122m at JD Gyms on their latest filings. On margin, JD Gyms keeps more of each £100 as pre-tax profit.

Where do these figures come from?

Each company's latest accounts filed at Companies House. Each links to its full Spark Intel profile, which names the filing it comes from.