Boca Raton is home to some of the most complete private clubs in the country, and for many buyers the club is the reason for the move. But the clubs are not interchangeable, and the biggest difference between them is not the golf. It is whether the club comes with the house. At most of Boca's country club communities, membership is a condition of ownership; at one on this list, it is a separate, optional decision. This guide walks through five of the best-known clubs, what each offers, and how membership works at each, drawn from the clubs' own published materials and local coverage as of August 2026.
Royal Palm Yacht & Country Club
Royal Palm Yacht & Country Club is the private club at the center of the East Boca community of the same name, on the Intracoastal minutes from the beach, with a history that goes back to 1959. Its centerpiece is the marina, which the club describes as more than 60 slips accommodating yachts up to 130 feet, with a floating dock system and a full-time dockmaster. Golf is a Jack Nicklaus Signature course of more than 7,000 yards, most recently renovated in 2024 by the Nicklaus Design team, per the club. Two clubhouses carry five dining venues, and the campus includes a wellness center with spa services, tennis and pickleball, croquet, bocce, and a pool.
Membership works differently here than at the other clubs on this list. Royal Palm is a private, member-governed club that is separate from the residential community. Membership is by invitation through a member-sponsored process, has no residency requirement, and is neither included with nor guaranteed by buying a home inside the gates. You can own in Royal Palm without joining, and you can join without owning.
The Boca Raton
The Boca Raton, formerly the Boca Raton Resort & Club, dates to Addison Mizner's Cloister Inn of 1926 and today spans five distinct hotels — the Cloister, the Yacht Club, the Beach Club, the Bungalows, and the Tower — across what the resort describes as 200 coastal acres, with a half mile of private beach. The Forbes Five-Star Spa Palmera runs to 50,000 square feet. The Racquet Club lists 14 Hydro-Grid tennis courts and 12 pickleball courts, and the property counts more than 18 restaurants and bars. The resort has one 18-hole golf course, and as of this writing it is closed for enhancements with a reopening projected for fall 2026, per the resort.
The Boca Raton Club is a resort membership rather than a residential one. It is not tied to owning a home anywhere; members apply through the club and receive access to the property's private facilities and calendar.
Boca West Country Club
Boca West is the largest club community in the city: about 1,400 acres in central Boca, member-owned since 1991, with four 18-hole championship courses designed by Arnold Palmer, Jim Fazio, and Pete Dye. The club is in the middle of a golf transformation led by Fry/Straka, including a complete redesign of Course 1 plus a new par-3 short course and a putting course expected to debut beginning in late 2026, per the club. Racquets are a headline here: a USTA-recognized tennis center and a new pickleball complex with 25 courts that opened in 2026. The campus runs to roughly 450,000 square feet across three clubhouses, with multiple dining venues, a large aquatics center, and a spa and fitness center. The club cites a Forbes recognition as the nation's number one private residential country club lifestyle.
Membership is resident-only and mandatory: every homeowner joins at a base level, with golf categories above it.
Broken Sound Club
Broken Sound is 27 residential villages and roughly 1,600 homes around two 18-hole championship courses, both GEO Certified and Audubon Sanctuary Certified. The Old Course, originally a Joe Lee design from 1978, reopened in 2023 after a Rees Jones redesign and is the home of the PGA Tour Champions' TimberTech Championship; the Club Course is a 1985 Joe Lee layout. The main clubhouse, about 130,000 square feet, was renovated in 2023, and the campus includes a 23-court Har-Tru tennis center, a spa and fitness center of roughly 38,000 square feet, and a two-acre resort-style pool complex.
Membership is required for residents, offered in sports and golf tiers with different course access.
St. Andrews Country Club
St. Andrews is the smaller, estate-scale alternative in west Boca: about 730 custom homes on more than 700 acres, resident-only, with two 18-hole championship courses including an Arnold Palmer Signature design. Fifteen Har-Tru tennis courts, a 125,000-square-foot clubhouse, a spa and fitness center, an aquatics center, and multiple dining venues round it out, and the club completed a $27.5 million enhancement program announced in 2022.
Membership is mandatory: buying a home means joining the club through an equity membership.
How to read this list
If you are choosing among these communities, ask two questions rather than one. What does the home cost, and what does club access cost, and is it optional? At Boca West, Broken Sound, and St. Andrews, the answer to the second question is set by the deed; the club is part of the purchase. The Boca Raton is a resort membership that has nothing to do with where you live. Royal Palm is the exception among Boca's marquee clubs: the home and the membership are two separate decisions.
Initiation fees, dues, and membership categories change, sometimes annually. Confirm current figures and requirements directly with each club before you underwrite a purchase.
Finding the Right Fit
Royal Palm Estates Realty works the club communities of Boca Raton and Delray Beach, including Royal Palm Yacht & Country Club and Addison Reserve, and can walk you through how the fee structure and membership process at each one actually affect your budget and your resale plans. If you are weighing a country club move, reach out and we will help you narrow the list.
Club amenities and membership details above are drawn from each club's published materials and local coverage as of August 2026 and may change; verify directly with the club.
Royal Palm Estates Realty is an independent real estate brokerage and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Royal Palm Yacht & Country Club or any other club named in this post. This is not an official advertisement or publication of any club. Club names and marks are the property of their respective owners.
*Header image courtesy of Boca West Country Club
