What does a year of sport cost in Utrecht?
A gym quotes a price per four weeks, a club per year, and a padel hall per court. That makes them impossible to compare. So we have converted everything to a full year.
Sportspots editorial team, updated on
Photo: boostclubs.nl
A year of sport, in euros
If you pay per session, we calculate with 40 sessions a year: every week, minus holidays and the weeks when it doesn't happen. A membership fee and a subscription you pay regardless.
The amounts come from the websites of the clubs, halls and gyms themselves. Prices change every season, so check their site before you choose.
And then there are sports that cost almost nothing
Running and walking only cost a pair of shoes. On a football pitch or basketball court nearby you pay nothing, and at an outdoor bootcamp or running group usually very little. Look at free or cheap exercise in Utrecht. If you want to start running, there is a nine-week schedule.
Where it gets more expensive than you think
- Four-weekly is not monthly. You then pay thirteen times a year. A subscription of €29,99 every four weeks therefore costs over €390, not €360.
- Registration fees and a contract term. You often pay a one-off fee to get started, and a low monthly amount usually goes with a contract of a year or longer. If you stop earlier, it keeps running.
- The club doesn't include everything in the membership fee. Think of clothing, sometimes a kit you have to rent, a contribution to the federation or, for tennis, a membership plus lessons on top. And sometimes you work a bar shift or referee a match. That costs no money, but it does cost a Saturday.
- A card that expires. A multi-ride card looks good value per session, but check how long it is valid for. Work out how often you actually go.
So what is the best choice?
Work back to the price per session. A gym at €400 per year is cheap if you go twice a week, and expensive if you stop going after February. At a club you are tied to a year, but you train at fixed times with people who count on you, and many people find that easier to keep up. Paying per session is the most expensive per session, but it costs you nothing in the weeks you don't go.
If it is too much
For children in families with little money, the Jeugdfonds Sport & Cultuur pays the membership fee in many municipalities. Parents do not have to apply themselves; this runs via, for example, school or the neighbourhood team. How much it is differs per municipality.