Subscriptions

How to cancel a gym membership (Planet Fitness and the rest) without paying another month

Gyms are the subscription people pay longest after they stop using it, because cancelling was designed to be awkward. It is still doable in one visit or one letter, if you know the deadlines. Here is how, with the rules that protect you.

Updated October 29, 20266 min readData as of October 2026

The short version

  • The average US gym membership was $50 a month in a March 2026 survey, $600 a year.1
  • Cancel in writing, keep proof, and watch two dates: the monthly billing date and the annual fee date.
  • Planet Fitness: home club in person or by certified mail, and online for many memberships since 2025. Not by app, phone or email.2
  • Ontario: 10 days to cancel for any reason, contracts capped at one year. Several US states require online cancellation.34

What an unused membership costs

A year at the average US gym price against a budget gym's basic tier, and what each visit costs if you go twice a month. Average from a March 2026 survey of 18 US gym chains.1

A $50 membership used twice a month is $25 a visit, more than a drop-in class. Budget chains at $15 change the math, but only if you go. If the last visit was more than a month ago, this is the charge to cancel first.

Step 1: read the contract for three things

Step 2: cancel in writing, and keep proof

Whatever the contract says, put it in writing. A letter or email with your name, member number, the date, and "I am cancelling my membership effective [date]" is enough. If the gym requires mail, send it certified with a return receipt. If it requires an in-person visit, bring the letter, have them sign and date a copy, and ask for a cancellation confirmation number. Photograph everything.

Planet Fitness

Planet Fitness accepts cancellation at your home club in person or by letter to the club; the company completed a national rollout of online cancellation in May 2025, available to many memberships through the member portal on the website, though not through the app, by phone or by email.2 Timing: the club generally needs your request by the 10th of the month to stop the monthly charge on the 17th, and by the 25th of the month before your annual-fee date to avoid the annual fee.5 Freezing is offered as the alternative; decline it unless you will return.

Other chains

Most big chains (24 Hour Fitness, LA Fitness, Anytime Fitness, GoodLife in Canada) take written notice with 30 days, some in person only. Chains that bill through a third party such as ABC Fitness have their own cancellation page; find the name on your bank statement and search it with "cancel".

Step 3: know your rights

United States

There is no federal click-to-cancel rule in force; the FTC's 2024 rule was vacated by a court in July 2025 and the agency is rebuilding it.4 State law fills the gap. California, New York, Colorado and Massachusetts, among others, require that anyone who signed up online can cancel online; New York City enforces its own version from October 2026. Most states also give a cooling-off period of three to seven days after signing, and let you cancel without penalty if you move more than about 25 miles from the gym, become disabled, or are deployed.4

Canada

Ontario's Consumer Protection Act treats gyms as "personal development services". You can cancel for any reason within 10 days of receiving your written contract, every contract must end after one year, renewals require a notice 30 to 90 days before expiry, and a contract missing the required information can be cancelled within a year.3 Other provinces have similar rules; British Columbia and Alberta both regulate "continuing services" contracts with cooling-off periods.

Step 4: stop the charges if they keep coming

  1. Send one more written notice referring to the first, with the proof attached.
  2. Dispute the charge with your card issuer as "cancelled recurring billing", with your proof. In the US the CFPB explains how to stop automatic payments from a bank account; a card dispute is the equivalent for cards.6
  3. Complain to your state attorney general or provincial consumer protection office. Gyms settle quickly once a regulator is copied.
  4. Do not close the card or account as a first move; unpaid dues can be sent to collections even when the gym is in the wrong.

After you cancel

Redirect the $50 a month into something you will use: a $15 budget gym you can reach in ten minutes, a run club, or the free fitness classes most parks departments run, listed in our guide on free things to do in any city. And check the statement for the other subscriptions that survived you: the statement reader finds every recurring charge, and the Adobe and Netflix guides cover the two that come up most.

Sources

  1. Strong Home Gym. Average gym membership costs $50.03 per month (March 2026 survey of 18 US gyms)
  2. MarketBeat. Planet Fitness Q2 2025 earnings call transcript (national rollout of online cancellation completed in May 2025)
  3. Government of Ontario. Joining a gym or fitness club: your rights under the Consumer Protection Act
  4. Jones Day. FTC revives click-to-cancel rule: new risks for subscription businesses (May 2026); state online-cancellation laws
  5. PocketGuard. How to cancel Planet Fitness membership (billing dates and annual fee timing)
  6. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. How do I stop automatic payments from my bank account?

This guide is general information, not financial, tax, or investment advice. Rules and limits change; check the sources for the current figures before acting.

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