Auto · Small-town market · Arkansas
Auto repair and car care businesses in the Forrest City, AR area
How the Forrest City, AR area compares with other small-town markets and the U.S. for auto repair and car care businesses: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 30 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #453 of 538 scored small-town markets
#12 of 14 scored small-town markets based in Arkansas
- Listings
- 32
- 5 chain locations (16%)
- Official establishments
- 6
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $6M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $768 a household
- Spending per listing
- $187K
- 30% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 41.1
- 15% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 21,800
- −5.3% since 2020
See the auto repair and car care businesses around any address in the Forrest City area
The site report maps the auto repair and car care businesses on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of the Forrest City area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
The Groundwork market score for auto repair and car care businesses in the Forrest City area is 30 (lower middle), #453 of 538 scored small-town markets and #12 of 14 scored small-town markets based in Arkansas. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.
Households in the Forrest City area spend about $6M a year on vehicle maintenance and repairs, or $768 per household, 20% below the U.S. average. Spread across 32 auto repair and car care businesses, that is $187K per business, 30% below the U.S. figure of $269K.
There are 32 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings in the Forrest City area as of September 2026. Of those, 5 are chain locations, or 16%, against 24% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 41.1, 15% above the U.S. rate of 35.7.
Official counts show 6 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the Forrest City area in 2023. That is one for every 1,297 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. Population estimates show the Forrest City area declined 5.3% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How the Forrest City area compares
The same measures for Arkansas and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all vehicle maintenance and repairs by the auto repair and car care businesses counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.
| Measure | Forrest City area | Arkansas | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 41.1 | 39.4 | 35.7 |
| Spending per listing | $187K | $225K | $269K |
| Households per official establishment | 1,297 | 707 | 681 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +10.6% | +4.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −5.3% | +3.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $768 | $886 | $958 |
| Median household income | $42,574 | $60,773 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 30 | 38 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 6
- Employees, 2023
- 20
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $536K
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 80Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 325 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 22The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 0
- Amount
- $0
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the Forrest City area, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.
Population and households in the Forrest City area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 21,800−5.3% since 2020
- Households
- 7,783
- Median age
- 39.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 55%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 635 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 35
- Median household income
- $42,574+20.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $58,099
- Median home value
- $90,900
- Jobs located here
- 6,530
- Daytime population
- 21,343Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Forrest City area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the auto repair and car care businesses on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Forrest City area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardAuto repair and car care across Arkansas
Every Arkansas market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Arkansas for auto repair and car care businesses, numbered among those based in Arkansas, with the Forrest City area marked.
Top small-town markets in Arkansas
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Malvern, AR | 64 | 40 | 32.5 | $284K | +1.1% | #135 of 538 |
| 2Harrison, AR | 54 | 79 | 42.6 | $224K | +2.4% | #231 of 538 |
| 3Paragould, AR | 53 | 66 | 36.7 | $231K | +3.4% | #242 of 538 |
| 4Batesville, AR | 47 | 61 | 41.7 | $219K | +2.2% | #305 of 538 |
| 5Blytheville, AR | 42 | 54 | 34.9 | $231K | −6.7% | #349 of 538 |
| 6Magnolia, AR | 42 | 37 | 44.0 | $213K | −3.7% | #356 of 538 |
| 7Camden, AR | 40 | 40 | 38.8 | $223K | −3.6% | #376 of 538 |
| 8Mountain Home, AR | 40 | 87 | 45.0 | $188K | +3.1% | #383 of 538 |
| 9Pine Bluff, AR | 39 | 101 | 37.5 | $220K | −5.6% | #388 of 538 |
| 10Russellville, AR | 36 | 151 | 46.2 | $197K | +1.6% | #412 of 538 |
| 12Forrest City, AR | 30 | 32 | 41.1 | $187K | −5.3% | #453 of 538 |
Other business types in the Forrest City area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many auto repair and car care businesses are in the Forrest City, AR area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 32 auto repair and car care businesses in the Forrest City area. 5 of them (16%) are chain locations. The listings count repair shops, body shops, tire shops, car washes, oil change and parts stores. Official counts show 6 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in 2023. Official counts list 80 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Forrest City, AR area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $6M a year, or $768 per household. That is 20% below the U.S. average (an index of 80, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 32 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings, it comes to $187K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 7,783 households in the Forrest City area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Forrest City, AR area compare with the U.S. for auto repair and car care businesses?
The Forrest City area has 41.1 auto repair and car care businesses per 10,000 households, 15% above the U.S. rate of 35.7. Spending per business is $187K, 30% below the U.S. figure of $269K. At the U.S. ratio of auto repair and car care businesses to household spending, the Forrest City area would have about 22, against 32 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,297 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S.
How fast is the Forrest City, AR area growing?
Population estimates put the Forrest City area at 21,800 people in 2025, down 5.3% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 7,783 households. The median household income in the Forrest City area is $42,574 a year, 47% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 20.4% from the 2015–2019 survey, before inflation.
What is the Groundwork market score?
The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. The Forrest City area scores 30 for auto repair and car care businesses (lower middle), #453 of 538 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Forrest City area. It maps the auto repair and car care businesses on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.
How the score works · Top markets for auto repair and car care businesses · All 56 business types in the Forrest City area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Forrest City area?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
The button opens the report at the center of the Forrest City area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.