The Metropolitan Club of Washington: Membership, Tradition and Cost

That is the first thing a serious reader needs to know about this institution. The Washington club does not publish its dues or initiation fee, and no credible public source we could open gives either figure. What can be said honestly is when it was founded, how it has changed, what it appears to be worth as an organization, and how its neighbors in the capital price themselves.

Which Metropolitan Club Do You Mean

There are two prominent clubs with this name, one in Washington and one on East 60th Street in New York. Some published fee figures attach to the New York club. A 2014 list from Complex, for example, says a Metropolitan Club membership costs $5,000 a year, per Complex, but it places that club in New York, gives no initiation fee and cites no source. None of it describes the club at 1700 H Street.

The Washington club’s own website lists its address, phone number and a member login. We found no fee schedule or membership policy on it. If you are budgeting for a membership, ask the club directly.

A Club Founded by Treasury Officials

Six Treasury Department officials met on October 1, 1863, to organize the capital’s first literary and social club, per the DC Preservation League. It was formally established twelve days later with 43 members, and its constitution capped membership at 250, per the DC Preservation League. First-year dues were $50, per the Washington Diplomat’s July 2024 feature on the city’s clubs.

The club began accepting out-of-town members in its second year, which helped it become a national institution, per the DC Preservation League. Its first clubhouse was destroyed by fire in 1904, per the DC Preservation League. The current building, designed by Heins & LaFarge and finished in 1908, was added to the D.C. inventory of historic sites in 1964 and to the National Register of Historic Places on April 28, 1995, per the DC Preservation League.

What It Looks Like Today

The Metropolitan has about 1,300 members, six American presidents among its past members, a speaker series, and a push to recruit younger members, per the Boston Globe’s May 2025 look at Washington’s club scene. No dues figures or waitlist information for the club appear there, per the Boston Globe.

The clubhouse has kept investing. The club added an $11 million rooftop that opened in April 2021 atop its 1908 building, as reported by Club + Resort Business in December 2021. The project took seven new steel columns through the whole structure and foundation, per Club + Resort Business. Members have used the space for cigars, live music and private events, and the report says dining was not yet offered there.

What the Club’s Books Suggest, and What They Do Not

Because the club is a tax-exempt social organization, its annual returns are public through ProPublica’s Nonprofit Explorer. For the fiscal year ending August 2025 the club reported total revenue of $15,735,739, per ProPublica. Its total assets that year were $35,096,998, per ProPublica. A line combining initiation fees and contributions came to $733,365 that year, per ProPublica. The same line was $874,475 in fiscal 2024, per ProPublica.

That line is the closest thing to a public clue about entry costs, and it is not one. It bundles two kinds of income and says nothing about how many people joined or what each paid. Dividing it by anything would be guesswork, so we have not tried.

How Washington’s Other Clubs Price Themselves

Context helps, if only to show how wide the range is in one city. The Cosmos Club, founded in 1878, has about 2,500 members, again with no fee figures, per the Boston Globe. Newer players sit at the other end of the spectrum. Ned’s Club costs $5,000 to join plus $5,000 in annual dues, with a $1,000 joining rate for government workers and a waiting list, per the Boston Globe. Executive Branch has fewer than 200 members and a cost of as much as $500,000 to join, per the Boston Globe.

The comparison also shows why a single number for a Washington club is rarely meaningful. A club that is one of the capital’s oldest and a club that opened in early 2025, per Axios, are selling different things. Our overview of private clubs in Washington, D.C. covers how the old guard and the newcomers fit together.

The Part of the Record That Is Not Comfortable

A fair profile has to include that the club once excluded people by race. A Harvard Crimson report from October 1961 described the club as refusing to admit Black people and as banning African diplomats. It reported that Attorney General Robert Kennedy resigned over the first policy, and that the chief of protocol and an assistant attorney general resigned over the second. The Harvard Crimson says an administration official was admitted under a provision for government officials that waives the usual lengthy waiting period.

The club ended its ban on women members in June 1988, per the Washington Post. We could not find a source we could open for when the club began admitting Black members. We found no description of the club’s present-day membership policies on its public website.

What This Means for Your Club

Expect the wrong number to circulate. If a better-known club shares your name, prospects will quote its fees. Put a clear line on your site saying how to ask about yours.

Say what you will not publish. “We do not post fees; here is who to call” reads as confident. Silence reads as evasive.

Be ready for the family and sponsor questions. Our guide to joining a private club when you do not know any members shows what applicants look for.

Use history carefully. A founding story sells, but a complete one includes the chapters you would rather skip. Handle those with dates and sources.

Metropolitan Club FAQ

How much does it cost to join the Metropolitan Club in Washington, D.C.?

The club does not publish its initiation fee or dues, and we found no credible public figure. Numbers you see online sometimes describe the New York club of the same name. Ask the club’s membership office.

Is the Metropolitan Club in D.C. the same as the one in New York?

No. They are separate clubs in different cities with separate membership and fees. The Washington club is at 1700 H Street NW and dates to 1863, per the DC Preservation League.

How many members does the Metropolitan Club have?

About 1,300, per the Boston Globe’s May 2025 report. We found no member count on the club’s public website.

Is there a waiting list?

The 1961 report above mentions a lengthy waiting period at that time. We found no current waitlist information for the club.

How We Did This

We opened and read the external pages linked above, including the Axios report on Ned’s Club, and confirmed each figure against its page. The one exception is the Washington Post article on women members, where only the headline and opening lines were available to us. Fee figures are absent for the Metropolitan Club because none are public, and we did not estimate any. Membership counts for the three charted clubs come from one newspaper report and are approximate. The Ned’s Club and Executive Branch figures are as reported by that newspaper, not confirmed by the clubs. The date for women members rests on that one article. For wider context, see our guides to reciprocal privileges and to what membership really costs.

If your club wants to explain who it is and how to join without publishing a price list, Private Club Marketing has served private clubs since 2009, per its country club marketing page published by Private Club Marketing, and offers country club marketing. Talk with us.