Pure Barre – Union Square

I signed up for the new client special and was worried I wasn’t going to like it after trying the first class… I couldn’t have been more wrong! It was very challenging, but I’m excited to keep going back & see results!

I am a big fan of Pure Barre — I first took the class in Pittsburgh with a friend and have been coming back ever since. The instructors as this studio are great, and all of the staff is always very friendly and helpful. They just opened a new location on the Upper East Side as a part of this same franchise, and I am really looking forward to being able to attend classes on a much more regular basis.

Pure Barre USQ has been such a positive experience for me. The workout is easy on your joints, but works your muscles very well. I always sweat a lot and leave feeling better than when I arrived. The teachers are wonderful– they encourage everyone regardless of ability, body type, age, etc. This is truly an accepting, body positive environment, and I cannot recommend it more!

April class was excellent! It was my first class and they made me feel completely welcomed. Looking forward to taking more classes.

These people are really bad neighbors. They are making my friend upstairs’ life miserable and they act like its her problem, after living there for years! Maybe the DC way, but not here.

Not only does Pure Barre ensure a challenging and rewarding workout that allows you to see results, the community and incorporation of mental wellness and self-​confidence makes each class thoroughly enjoyable. Everyone at Pure Barre Union Square/​Columbus Circle is welcoming and engaging and makes you feel at home, making an effort to remember faces and names. It’s my favorite class by far in all of NYC –the employees/​company exude great values and a mission to make men and women their best selves.

Amazing place. Been to pb studios all over the country and this one is definitely my favorite !

Have tried various barre classes in NYC and I prefer Pure Barre to them all. The classes have good energy and flow, and I love that interspersed stretching is incorporated. I have been doing PB consistently now for 2 years and I still feel mentally and physically challenged by the classes. It does take a bit of time to click with the method and I would encourage anyone ambivalent after a first class to take a few more. I actually hated my first PB class but stuck out a month of classes and by the end I was hooked.
The staff and instructors at this location are friendly and helpful and the location itself is super convenient. My only criticism is that the amenities are not as extensive as you might expect for a boutique fitness studio in NYC and the locker/​changing area is cramped. But they do take steps to improve the studio (adding a bathroom, adding a vanity, etc) so I give them credit for that. And I don’t mind that there are no showers here b/​c this is not a workout that leaves you sweat soaked ala spin class so a body wipe is all you need to go on your way. That’s not to say it’s not a good workout – PB has toned and slimmed my body in all the right ways and given me great core strength. Overall I love PB and I’m happy with this studio.

I have never been a huge fan of fitness classes — I’m much more of a run-​in-​Central-​Park kinda girl… until I came to Pure Barre Union Square. I’ve had absolutely INCREDIBLE classes with so many instructors (Jamie, Megan, Meaghan, Jessica, Abby — to name a few!) and am definitely going to keep coming. The workouts are extremely challenging (even though when you watch videos you think, «that doesn’t look very hard. I should be able to crush this.») and the instructors are all super peppy and outgoing. Having my form corrected and the hands-​on teaching definitely keeps me coming back daily!

Have been doing Pure Barre for almost two years now, in another state. Class times are great, instructors are helpful, the studio itself is a little awkward but it is New York! My only qualm is with the steep late cancellation Fees. Understand the logic, but, sometimes things come up! Overall I’m happy with the Union Square location.

This is one of my favorite workout classes in NYC. The instructors are the greatest and the workout is challenging. I always feel great at the end. Will continue to take barre classes here!

I love Pure Barre. I’ve tried many barre classes and styles and this one works the best for me. The teachers at this studio are top notch– Meaghan Cleary, Abby, Nicole D. are some of my favorites. Classes are always challenging, but instructors are helpful and get you through it. The class never gets easier which is a good thing, and routines are always varied.

I have tried a few different barre classes using Class Pass, and even a few different Pure Barre studios. To be honest, I was much more a fan of Exhale (omg, so hard) than Bar Method or Pure Barre UNTIL I came to this studio. Teresa is definitely my favorite instructor. She’s peppy (but not obnoxious), gives really clear demonstrations, and comes around and makes helpful (quiet) adjustments so that you really feel the burn.
In the other Pure Barre class that I went to, the instructor did not stop to talk to newbies about the different lingo. Teresa really made sure to ask if anyone was new before class, to introduce herself one on one and explain «tucking» and the different Pure Barre terminology. She also asked about injuries and made really helpful modifications for people throughout class. I also love that her routines are a little bit different each time I take her class, so it never gets boring or mundane.
If you are interested in barre class, definitely check out this studio, and make sure you take one of Teresa’s classes!

For someone who originally never worked out, period, pure barre has been amazing. It truly transformed by body while being low impact. I did do classPass for a few months, and tried Exhale, Chelsea Piers, Crunch, etc, and came back to Pure Barre because of the form it gave me, and the community. If you go enough, the instructors will get to know you and your limits (as in, if they know you can lift your foot higher, you’ll feel their fingertips under your heels!)
I’d recommend this for someone who would want to commit for a minimum of three months. it really works, your instructors will get to know you, and youll really see results if you commit to it. I wouldn’t consider it one of those workouts that you do once in a while, or something you do just with ClassPass.
I can agree with the things that most of the folks giving it fewer stars had said, however I can also say that after exploring dozens of gyms in the area i came beck because i liked the community, the smaller class sizes, the flexibility (barre any time of day!) and the instructors knowing me by name.
About the union square location, I’ve had nothing but glowing customer service here! They have added a second bathroom, and will be adding a more intense cardio work out soon.

I loved the concept but then I went to class and was bored.
Wish they had a more vairety of workouts, the class was good but I didnt feel like it was a wonderful workout as it didnt hurt my body the next day.
I might just need something more challenging, if you are wanting something different as far as workouts, go for it, if you are more advanced I would just do a series of it and then go find something else.

I’m an avid Pure Barre client and this studio was great. The front staff was very welcoming and sweet. Sheri, my instructor was phenomenal!
You must try this studio!

I’ve been wanting to try Pure Barre for a while now, and I finally worked up the nerve to try it. Was I any good? Probably mediocre at best, but the class was fantastic!
The studio is very clean and open and the receptionist was incredibly helpful and sweet. There is a giant selection of Pure Barre clothing, sticky socks (highly recommend), and work out gear that is used in class. I was very, very nervous to try this class. Thankfully, my instructor, Abby, was INCREDIBLE. So kind, understanding, patient, and helpful. She walks around asking everyone’s name, and made it a point to sit with me and familiarize me with the class upon learning it was my first class. Abby has incredibly high energy and shouts out the movements into the ear piece and over the energizing and motivating music in the room. My favorite part, is that when she comes over to help and correct your moves, she turns it off so the whole class isn’t hearing what she is saying. For me, the class was definitely far from easy. The warm up alone consisted of planks, push ups, and crunches, none of which I do regularly. The rest of the class focuses on abs, arms, thighs, and legs. I had to keep stopping briefly when no one else did, but Abby kept giving me positive praise and help when I did something right. Although it was challenging, the after work out burn was SOOOOO GOOD! I can seriously see why people become addicted to Pure Barre. Abby’s positive energy is really what hooked me in as well. I felt so energized and happy when leaving class, cannot wait to come back!
Things I will say, that are no fault of the studio, but merely observations. The women in the class can be kind of «cliquey» and not very friendly. In yoga, the fellow students are very pleasant and easy to talk to, so I guess I was expecting that. Many of the women in my class were super tiny and came in with full make-​up which I found to be odd and a bit intimidating. But, I just kept to myself and focused on my own personal journey. Loved it! Can’t wait to come back!

I feel like they say classes are ok for beginners, but I’m always clearly struggling (not just the shaking they want you to have) and I’m ignored by the instructors.
I also feel like this location has really bad facilities. No showers, only one bathroom and super narrow hallways where the lockers are. Out of purebarre, the bar method, exhale and physique this is by far my least favorite.

I am glad that other people here have commented on the smell! For the first few minutes I thought someone near me had passed some gas and then I thought it was me who smelled! So glad to find out it was neither, but the downside is that means it’s the studio…
I’ve taken barre at Chelsea Piers, Flybarre and Exhale. I’ve been dying to try Pure Barre for months and finally able to and it was a disappointment.
First of all the room was really warm and I started feeling a bit sweaty very quickly which I didn’t like. As a first time pure barrer I didn’t really know what was going on and I really needed to see what was going on. The instructor did come around a few times to help me but it happened so fast and was not particularly helpful. She kept saying tuck but I couldn’t get a sense of what she meant by that. The whole class also felt very hectic and the music was very loud! Like very loud! I did not like it.
As for other things: no showers in the studio, one bathroom, a few changing rooms, lockers with keys, fruit for grabs, and other usual stuff you expect — hair ties, bobby pins, etc…
I would give the Williamsburg location a shot, but probably wouldn’t return to this union square one.

My first impressions: The studio smelled gross. For an early morning class, there might have been 1 previous class — how does the carpet already smell like sweat and feet? We started off with core work, which quickly put me into a sweat and then moved through the exercises. Overall, I wasn’t as impressed as I have been with other classes. I love Exhale Core Fusion classes, and I also enjoy classes at Physique 57 and Flybarre. Pure Barre didn’t match up to the other barre classes — there was some but minimal correction, and there was even someone who was going to be a new instructor taking this class. Her form looked solid but she didn’t even look like she was moving. I know there is an emphasis on micro-​movements but she literally didn’t look like she was even pulsing.
The Union Square studio has small digital lockers, some changing rooms and a bathroom. All in all, I am not sure I would come back — would prefer the other barre classes. Also, note, they won’t let you in 5 minutes after class starts.