Rock Climbing Statistics in the U.S.

At a Glance

• About 7.1 million Americans climbed indoors in 2025, up 13.1% from 2024.¹
• 3.2 million went sport or boulder climbing in 2025 and 2.9 million went traditional, ice or mountaineering climbing; the groups overlap.¹
• U.S. climbing gyms grew 4.2% in 2025, adding 28 net new gyms.²
• A U.S. climbing gym membership costs $60 to $150 a month, depending on the city.³
• Women made up 43% of USA Climbing's 20,238 members in 2025.⁴
• 49 climbers died in U.S. climbing accidents in 2024 and 51 in 2023, the two deadliest years since the 1950s.⁵

About 7.1 million Americans climbed indoors in 2025, up 13.1% from 2024, while 3.2 million went sport or boulder climbing (up 20.1%) and 2.9 million went traditional, ice or mountaineering climbing (up 14.2%), according to Sports & Fitness Industry Association figures reported by WWD.¹ That compares with 6.4 million indoor climbers in 2023, up 10% from 2022, in the association's own report.⁶ In 2023, 2.5 million went sport or boulder climbing and 2.6 million went traditional, ice or mountaineering climbing. The categories overlap, so they can't be added into one national total.

• In 2014 there were 7.7 million climbing participants, up 6% from 7.26 million in 2013.⁷
• In 2021, an estimated 2.3 million people went sport or boulder climbing and 2.37 million went traditional, ice or mountaineering climbing⁸, while more than 5.6 million climbed indoors, up 7.1% from 2019.

Indoor vs. outdoor rock climbing participation

• In the Climbing Wall Association's 2026 climber survey, nearly one-third of climbers said they do not climb outdoors at all.⁹ One North Carolina gym, Triangle Rock Club, estimated that around 70% of its members have no desire to climb outdoors.¹⁰
• Sport and boulder climbing, often done indoors, grew 4.9% in 2020 from 2019, while traditional, ice and mountaineering climbing, mostly done outdoors, grew about 2.3%.⁸

• On average, climbers spend over $1,200 more a year on gear and clothing than the typical outdoor shopper, and those who climb outside spend more than indoor-only climbers.⁷

How much does rock climbing cost?

A U.S. climbing gym membership costs $60 to $150 a month depending on the city, and many gyms now charge more than $100 a month or $1,000 a year.³

Economic impact of the U.S. rock climbing industry

The combined "Climbing, hiking, and tent camping" category contributed $7.75 billion in value added to the U.S. economy in 2024, 1.1% of total outdoor recreation value added, up from $7.28 billion in 2023.¹³ These Bureau of Economic Analysis figures for 2024 are the latest available.

• The U.S. climbing gear market was estimated at $169 million in the 12 months ending June 2018 (NPD Group), up from $148 million a year earlier.⁷

Reported climbing deaths fell by about 30% across North America in 2025, even as accidents rose 23% and injury reports 28%, according to the American Alpine Club's 2026 Accidents in North American Climbing.¹⁵ No U.S.-only counts for 2025 are publicly available yet, so the latest U.S. figures are for 2024.

In the U.S., 49 climbers died in 2024 and 51 in 2023, the two deadliest years since the 1950s, according to the club's accident reports.⁵

• Before 2023, yearly deaths in the club's roughly 75 years of records ranged from 10 to 43.⁵
• The club also recorded 174 climber injuries and 190 accidents in the U.S. in 2024, both the second-highest counts on record. Lower-limb fractures were the most common injury.⁵
• Between 2010 and 2014, the average injured climber was 32 years old, and 62% of injured climbers were men.⁷

Is indoor climbing safer than outdoor climbing?

Indoor climbing is generally considered safer per hour, because a gym removes hazards such as rockfall and bad weather.

• In U.S. climbing gyms, the Climbing Wall Association recorded 0.0888 injury accidents per 1,000 visitor hours in 2017.⁷
• One study found over half of serious indoor injuries occurred during lead climbing, and nearly a quarter during top-roping, with belaying mistakes and lowering errors being significant causes.
• Outdoor climbing brings those hazards back, and help can be far away in remote areas, which can make accidents more serious.

Most popular outdoor climbing destinations

• Yosemite National Park, California: The historic heart of American climbing, with huge granite walls such as El Capitan and Half Dome and world-class big-wall, traditional and boulder climbing
• Red River Gorge, Kentucky: Widely seen as the best sport climbing in the eastern U.S., with thousands of routes on steep, featured sandstone cliffs
• Joshua Tree National Park, California: Known for its desert landscape and monzogranite domes, with a huge number of traditional face and crack climbs and boulder problems; a popular winter destination
• Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada: A huge variety of climbing near Las Vegas, from long multi-pitch trad routes to hard sport climbs and extensive bouldering on Aztec sandstone
• Indian Creek / Moab, Utah: The world capital of sandstone crack climbing, in the Colorado Plateau desert

Other major areas include Bishop and the Sierra Eastside (CA), Rumney (NH), the greater Boulder area (CO), Zion National Park (UT), City of Rocks (ID), Wild Iris (WY), Shelf Road (CO), and the Chattanooga area (TN/GA).

National parks and protected areas with climbing access

• 57% of American climbing areas are on federally managed public land, rising to almost 70% in the American West.⁷
• National Parks known for their climbing include Yosemite, Joshua Tree, Zion, Grand Teton, Rocky Mountain, Mount Rainier, Black Canyon of the Gunnison, and Devils Tower National Monument.
• Climbers also use other public lands: national forests (such as Seneca Rocks in Monongahela National Forest), Bureau of Land Management areas (such as Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area and Indian Creek) and state parks (such as Smith Rock, Eldorado Canyon and Pilot Mountain).
• Climbing access on public land, especially in designated Wilderness areas, is still debated, and advocacy groups such as the Access Fund work to keep it open and sustainable.
• Recent legislative efforts like the Protecting America's Rock Climbing Act (PARC Act) and America's Outdoor Recreation Act aim to direct federal agencies to issue climbing management guidance that protects sustainable access.