In a city full of people vying for influence and power, you’d think there’d be plenty of places to learn how to fight. Sadly not, quality boxing gyms in Washington DC are few and far between.
Don’t worry though, there are still a handful of decent places to train. Let’s have a look:
My preference is always for those rare, pure, old school boxing gyms, free of ego, and full of passion for the sport. But sometimes I include the odd boxercise place because I know that not everyone wants the nitty gritty of actual combat.
Why listen to me: I’ve been boxing as an amateur for 6 years and trained in countless boxing gyms around the world from Seattle to Spain. I’ve learnt that picking the right gym can literally change your life and want to help you do the same. Learn more about me here.
PLEASE leave your own opinions and experiences about Washington boxing gyms in the comments at the bottom and I’ll continuously update this page to make it as useful as possible!
The 8 Best Boxing Gyms in Washington DC🥊
1️⃣ Champion Boxing Gym
- Summary: A proper boxing gym. One of the best in town.
- Address: 11540 Rockville Pike (North Bethesda)
- Google rating: 4.8
- Opening hours: M-F: 6am-9pm, S-S: 9am-2pm
- Pricing: n.a
- Best for: anyone passionate about learning boxing
- Online: website, Facebook, Instagram
This a proper boxing gym. One of those old school places that lives and breathes the sport and where the experienced head trainer Bruce knows the name of every single one of the members.
There’s nothing fancy here, but that’s how a boxing gym should be. If you want to learn real technique and get fighting fit in the meantime, then Champion Boxing Gym is a great option.
It’s welcoming of boxers of all levels and they’ve created an awesome environment here where members quickly become friends. There are 3-5 classes every day for you to choose from, morning, afternoon, and evening, including on the weekends.
It’s hard to find a bad word said about this place. Undoubtedly one of the best boxing gyms in Washington DC. Only trouble is it’s not very central so, depending on where you live, getting here might be hard.
2️⃣ Bethesda Boxing & Kickboxing Academy
- Summary: Friendly, welcoming, community-focused boxing gym for all
- Address: 4940 St Elmo Ave (Bethesda)
- Google rating: 4.7
- Opening hours: M-F: 7am-9pm, S: 9-11am
- Pricing: $150 / month (unlimited classes)
- Best for: the laid back and fun loving
- Online: website, Facebook, Instagram
Nothing but praise for Bethesda Boxing & Kickboxing Academy from its members. Most rave about the quality of the workout and the friendliness of it’s staff, especially it’s popular owner Ken..
BBKA is welcoming for both beginners and experienced fighters although most of their classes are focused on fitness and technique and don’t involve much physical combat. If you wan’t some more proper fighting then make sure to turn up to the Advanced Combat classes that they run once a week where things get a little more real!
They operate 5 to 6 classes during weekdays and a couple on Saturday in boxing, kickboxing, fitness and strength.
And some massive extra kudos to them for running specialist classes for people on the Autistic spectrum. All the best boxing gyms have a heart and clearly there is a big one here at BBKA. Love the vibe of this place – definietly one of the best boxing gyms in Washington DC. Check it out!
3️⃣ Urban Boxing
- Summary: High end boxing / fitness studio
- Address: 1116 24th St NW (Foggy Bottom), 3701 Fairfax Dr (Arlington), 88 K St SE (Navy Yard), 4834 Cordell Ave (Bethesda)
- Google rating: 4.8
- Opening hours: varies by location by approx M-T: 7am-8pm, F: 11am-8pm, S-S: 10am-1:30pm
- Pricing: n.a.
- Best for: those looking for variety and fitness focus
- Online: website, Facebook, Instagram
Urban Boxing has been doing it’s thing since 2015 and has grown into a hugely popular boxing / fitness gym, now with 4 locations across the city: Foggy Bottom, Arlington, Navy Yard, Bethesda.
It offers both private lessons and ~60 group classes every week to choose from at each location (I’d always recommend group classes – more fun, and better sense of community).
I wouldn’t say it’s a classic, old school boxing gym though, as its focus seems to be more on “high energy fitness”. But it does have advanced boxing classes for those who are looking to train in proper technique. They also offer some kickboxing, Muay Thai, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and yoga classes.
Urban Boxing definitely sits at the higher end of the range in terms of price but the quality of the staff, great environment, top class workout, and huge quantity of classes to choose from, make it worth the investment.
4️⃣ Downtown Boxing Club
- Summary: Technical and scrappy. No-nonsense, old school boxing gym.
- Address: 969 Thayer Ave, Silver Spring
- Google rating: 4.6
- Opening hours: n.a.
- Pricing: $200/m
- Best for: real purists
- Online: website, Facebook, Instagram
Rumor has it that Smokin Joe Frazier once said Downtown Boxing Club was the only place in town to learn boxing…
Whether or not that’s actually true, one thing is certain: this is a proper old school boxing gym. No frills, no selfies, no super food smoothies – just real technique training, sweat, and passion.
Head Coach Dave gets mixed reviews. Some say he’s no-nonsense, disciplined, and runs a tight ship. Others say he’s getting on a bit, rude, and erratic. He has a weirdly strong vendetta against anyone doing weight training while also training in boxing. You’ll have to make your own mind up but I think all life-long boxing trainers have a little crazy in them somewhere.
Note: Downtown Boxing Club was closed for a short while but is now back up and running at its new location on Thayer Avenue.
5️⃣ Nuboxx
- Summary: High-end, modern boxing / fitness studio.
- Address: 1449 U St NW
- Google rating: 4.4
- Opening hours: M-F: 7am-7:30pm, S-S: 9:30am-1pm
- Pricing: +$30/class
- Best for: fancy fitness fanatics
- Online: website, Instagram
You can kinda tell by the name that Nuboxx is one of those modern breeds of boxing gyms.
It’s a place where everything is white, clean, and high tech. They have “gender neutral” locker rooms and a lobby that looks like a tech company’s office.
You won’t get any sparring here (they have a no-contact rule) but they do help to train proper boxing technique. It’s more than a boxercise studio (where people just wildly lash out at bags in dark rooms to Taylor Swift techno remixes) but not really a proper boxing gym either where members learn the art of the sport.
This is one of the more upmarket exercise / boxing gyms in Washington DC. Expect really friendly staff, high tech facilities, a fun atmosphere, and a great workout.
Good if you want to get fit in a nice location and take some selfies, not good if you want to really learn how to box.
6️⃣ Hard Training Club
- Summary: No frills, low-key boxing / fitness gym
- Address: 1726 Kalorama Rd NW
- Google rating: 4.7
- Opening hours: varies day by day, but classes mostly in afternoons and evenings
- Pricing: n.a.
- Best for: those after something simple
- Online: website, Facebook, Instagram
Hard Training Club is a humble gym in a basement-like facility but the sessions here are anything but low key.
Prepare to be put through your paces with serious workouts from coaches T and Thorpe in small classes (so more personal instruction) and friendly groups. You can also join online training classes too.
You won’t get any sparring or actual combat here but there is plenty of boxing technique training on offer including with partner mitt work.
One downside is that they only have 1-3 classes everyday and usually in the evenings, so the schedule might not work for you if you like to train in the mornings.
Frustratingly, this is another one of those gyms that keep their pricing hidden until you come and visit them in person…
7️⃣ Mayweather Boxing + Fitness
- Summary: Mayweather branded boxercise
- Address: 230 Water St SE (Navy Yard)
- Google rating: n.a.
- Opening hours: 3 classes per day, varies by day
- Pricing: $220 / month (unlimited classes)
- Best for: fancy fitness fanatics
- Online: website, Facebook, Instagram
The Mayweather Boxing and Fitness gyms are part of nationwide franchise of over 50 locations.
The classes were supposedly developed by Mayweather himself and aim to provide the a combination of boxing, strength and cardio and they are clearly very popular among members.
This location in Navy Yard offers 3 classes per day, Monday to Thursday, and then 2 classes per day for the rest of the week.
But, if you want a traditional boxing gym then these places aren’t for you.
The focus at these gyms in on the workout (which is no doubt killer) rather than combat so bear that in mind if you want to train for actual fight.
8️⃣ Headbangers
- Summary: Low key place that trains serious fighters. Not ideal for beginners.
- Address: n.a. – they don’t even disclose their address.
- Google rating: n.a.
- Opening hours: n.a.
- Pricing: n.a.
- Best for: very serious competitive boxers
- Online: Instagram
Headbangers flies below the radar a bit. Actually, a lot. No website, no Google reviews, no real Facebook presence.
The only information I could find about them is on Reddit and from their Instagram page which is is full of photos and vids of boxers working hard, training for competitive fights, in a warehouse like facility.
It looks like a proper place to train, a community-focused type place, where you need to turn up and chat to see if you can join. From what I can tell they take training very seriously so it might not be the best place for beginners.
I wish I could say more. If you train here or have checked it out then please let me know! They don’t even share their address online so not sure how anyone is supposed to find it. Maybe that’s the intention…
Related articles:
- The Best Boxing Gyms in Philadelphia
- The Best Boxing Gyms in Baltimore
- The Best Boxing Gyms in Pittsburgh
How to choose a Washington boxing gym❓
- Coaches – an experienced, motivating coach makes all the difference. Not just when it comes to improving your technique but also in encouraging you to keep coming back time and time again. Becoming a good boxer takes a long time and so it’s important you find a coach that you click with if this is something you want to do for many years. Reviews will often focus on coaches so try looking for those for some insights.
- Convenience of location and class timings – for me this is so important. My boxing gym is on the same block as my home so I have no excuse not to go almost everyday, even if I’m not feeling up to it. Finding a gym that’s close to home or work will make your life much easier and help to make going to boxing training a habit. The same applies to class timings, if you have to massively disrupt your day to get to a class because it doesn’t fit your schedule then you’re going to be less likely to go.
- Gym focus – I don’t have a problem with boxercise classes, but make sure you know what you’re signing up for if you join one of these. Boxercise is very different than actually learning how to fight and getting sparring experience. If you truly want to learn how to box then you need to box. That involves punching other people and getting punched yourself.
- Trial class – most boxing gyms will allow you to have a free trial class so you can get a feel for the place before you sign up. This is a great way of evaluating whether you like the coach, the energy, and the focus of the gym. Always worth asking for a free trial class if you’re not sure whether it’s offered.
How much do boxing gyms in Washington DC cost? 💰
- Monthly memberships: ~$150-250 per month. Most places offer unlimited classes to their members. Be sure to check for this. And also check for contracts – some places can trick you into signing up for longer than you want.
- One-on-one personal training: This can vary a lot but expect to pay around $100 per hour as a minimum.
- Drop-in boxing classes for non-members: ~$15-$30 per class
- Initiation fee: not all places make you pay one of these (and I’m not a fan of it) but those that do usually charge a one-off fee of $50-$100
12th Round 🔔
It’s a shame that a once great boxing city has lost many of its authentic gyms. But boxing is making a comeback across the country and around the world so hopefully it won’t be too long before more class boxing gyms appear in Washington DC. In the meantime, there are still some great places to train so get at it.
Happy fighting!🥊🥊
“If you screw things up in tennis, it’s 15-love. If you screw up in boxing, it’s your ass.”
-Randall “Tex” Cobb
