Auto · Metro area · Illinois
Auto repair and car care businesses in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for auto repair and car care businesses in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 48 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #217 of 387 scored metro areas
#5 of 8 scored metro areas based in Illinois
- Listings
- 11,419
- 2,859 chain locations (25%)
- Official establishments
- 5,815
- +3.7% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $3.5B
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $956 a household
- Spending per listing
- $305K
- 14% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 31.3
- 12% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 9,434,123
- 0.0% since 2020
See the auto repair and car care businesses around any address in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro 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
At $956 per household (in line with the U.S. average), households in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area spend about $3.5B a year on vehicle maintenance and repairs. Spread across 11,419 auto repair and car care businesses, that is $305K per business, 14% above the U.S. figure of $269K.
The Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area has 11,419 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 25% of them, against 24% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 31.3, 12% below the U.S. rate of 35.7.
In 2023, official counts showed 5,815 businesses with payroll in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers, up 3.7% from 2019. That is one for every 627 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. Official counts list 9,177 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 299 SBA-backed loans worth $198M have gone to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area held about level, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area scores 48 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for auto repair and car care businesses, ranking #217 of 387 scored metro areas and #5 of 8 scored metro areas based in Illinois.
How the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area compares
The same measures for Illinois 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 | Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area | Illinois | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 31.3 | 33.1 | 35.7 |
| Spending per listing | $305K | $294K | $269K |
| Households per official establishment | 627 | 626 | 681 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +3.7% | +2.0% | +4.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | 0.0% | −0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $956 | $975 | $958 |
| Median household income | $90,887 | $83,390 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 48 | 44 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 5,815+3.7% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 34,193
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $1.8B
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 9,177Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 11,4192,859 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 12,974The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 299
- Amount
- $198M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 9,434,1230.0% since 2020
- Households
- 3,643,783
- Median age
- 39.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 66%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.6
- Land area
- 6,923 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 1,354
- Median household income
- $90,887
- Average household income
- $125,950
- Median home value
- $323,000
- Jobs located here
- 4,599,202
- Daytime population
- 9,509,530Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro 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 Illinois
Every Illinois market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Illinois for auto repair and car care businesses, numbered among those based in Illinois (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Illinois
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Bloomington, IL | 66 | 213 | 30.3 | $337K | +0.1% | #76 of 387 |
| 2Champaign-Urbana, IL | 62 | 309 | 31.5 | $292K | +1.5% | #103 of 387 |
| 3Springfield, IL | 60 | 282 | 31.3 | $317K | −1.2% | #121 of 387 |
| St. Louis, MO-IL | 58 | 3,808 | 32.8 | $318K | −0.2% | #133 of 387 |
| 4Peoria, IL | 53 | 511 | 33.2 | $310K | −1.3% | #177 of 387 |
| Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL | 49 | 580 | 35.9 | $289K | −0.9% | #208 of 387 |
| 5Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN | 48 | 11,419 | 31.3 | $305K | 0.0% | #217 of 387 |
| 6Decatur, IL | 36 | 153 | 35.2 | $264K | −4.3% | #295 of 387 |
| Cape Girardeau, MO-IL | 36 | 170 | 44.4 | $243K | +1.7% | #299 of 387 |
| 7Rockford, IL | 34 | 546 | 40.3 | $247K | −0.3% | #308 of 387 |
Other business types in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
- Auto repair and car care48
- Auto repair shops42
- Collision repair and body shops37
- Car washes and detailing56
- Tire shops62
- Oil change and quick lube49
- Gas stations52
- Insurance agencies14
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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 11,419 auto repair and car care businesses in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area. 2,859 of them (25%) are chain locations. The listings count repair shops, body shops, tire shops, car washes, oil change and parts stores. Official counts show 5,815 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in 2023, up 3.7% from 2019. Official counts also show 9,177 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $3.5B a year, or $956 per household. That is in line with the U.S. average (an index of 100, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 11,419 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings, it comes to $305K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 3,643,783 households in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area compare with the U.S. for auto repair and car care businesses?
The Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area has 31.3 auto repair and car care businesses per 10,000 households, 12% below the U.S. rate of 35.7. Spending per business is $305K, 14% above the U.S. figure of $269K. At the U.S. ratio of auto repair and car care businesses to household spending, the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area would have about 12,974, against 11,419 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 627 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. The official count rose 3.7% from 2019 to 2023, against +4.1% for the U.S.
How fast is the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area at 9,434,123 people in 2025, unchanged since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 3,643,783 households. The median household income in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area is $90,887 a year, 13% above the U.S. median of $80,734.
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. 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area scores 48 for auto repair and car care businesses (lower middle), #217 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro 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.