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Chains · Operator

Better (GLL) London

The charitable social enterprise that runs most of London's council leisure centres — and, with 60 pools, most of its swimming water.

Find your gym. Sweat it.

Prices start around £32 a month in London.

See Better membership options →

We have no commercial arrangement with this operator. The buttons below go straight to their own site and earn us nothing.

74
London venues listed
16
boroughs
£32
cheapest we list
£42
median
59
with a pool
0
open 24 hours

6 of these 74 prices are published operator rates; 68 are our estimates and are marked Est throughout.

What it costs

Pricing breakdown

MembershipPriceWhat it gets you
Standard monthly£32–£64Varies by borough and by centre, not by a national price list.
Resident ratediscountedMost contracts give the borough's own residents a lower rate. Worth checking before you join.
Concessionarysubstantially lowerMeans-tested, over-60, student and junior rates exist at most centres.
Swim onlylower than gym membershipIf you only want the pool, you rarely need the full membership.
Pay as you goper visitAvailable almost everywhere, which no budget chain offers.

Because each borough negotiates its own contract, the same operator charges materially different prices two miles apart. The per-centre figures below are what we hold today, and most are estimates.

Across the 74 London Better (GLL) venues we hold a price for, the range is £32.00 to £64.20 a month, median £42.00.

What you get

Facilities

  • A swimming pool at 60 of the 75 centres we list
  • Sauna or steam room at 35 of them
  • Classes included in most memberships
  • Crèche, junior swimming lessons and family provision at many centres
  • Sports halls, courts and athletics facilities a private gym would not have
  • Staffed hours only — no 24-hour access

The honest view

Pros and cons

Pros

  • By far the cheapest realistic route to a swimming pool in London
  • Concessionary and resident rates that no private chain offers
  • Pay-as-you-go means you need not commit at all
  • Facilities — courts, halls, lanes — that exist nowhere in the budget chains

Cons

  • Prices and access rules vary borough to borough for the same brand
  • Equipment and building condition vary enormously between centres
  • Peak-time pool and class capacity is genuinely tight
  • No 24-hour access anywhere

Not for you if: Anyone who trains at 05:00 or midnight, and anyone who wants a consistent experience from one branch to the next.

Who it suits

Best for…

Swimmers

Sixty of the centres we list have a pool — more than every private chain in this directory combined.

Families

Junior lessons, crèche provision and family rates are standard rather than exceptional.

Anyone on a low income

Concessionary rates are built into most council contracts.

Occasional trainers

Pay-as-you-go removes the monthly commitment entirely.

Sounds like you?

Find your nearest centre →

We have no commercial arrangement with this operator. The buttons below go straight to their own site and earn us nothing.

Where

Every Better (GLL) location we list in London

Coverage. Better is run by GLL, a charitable social enterprise, under contract to individual London councils. There is no fixed club count to quote against: the estate changes as contracts are won and lost, and each borough sets its own prices and concessions. We list 74 of them.

Barnet4

Bexley3

Camden6

Croydon6

Enfield5

Greenwich7

Hackney7

Hammersmith and Fulham4

Hillingdon3

Islington8

Kensington and Chelsea3

Lewisham5

Merton3

Newham4

Richmond upon Thames2

Waltham Forest4

Compare these against everything else →

Questions

Better (GLL), answered

How much is a Better gym membership in London?

Between £32 and £64 a month across the centres we list, depending on the borough. Residents of the borough usually pay less, and concessionary rates are available at most centres.

Which Better centres have a swimming pool?

Sixty of the 75 London centres we list. Better operates more pool water in London than every private chain in this directory put together.

Is Better the same as GLL?

Yes. Better is the brand; GLL is the charitable social enterprise that runs it, under contract to individual councils.

Can I use a Better centre without a membership?

Usually, yes. Pay-as-you-go access is available at almost every centre, for the gym, the pool or a class.

Ready to join Better (GLL)?

See Better membership options →

We have no commercial arrangement with this operator. The buttons below go straight to their own site and earn us nothing.