Auto · County · Illinois
Auto repair and car care businesses in Clay County, IL
The auto repair and car care businesses in Clay County, IL, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 30 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #2,022 of 2,401 scored counties
#72 of 87 scored counties in Illinois
- Listings
- 24
- 5 chain locations (21%)
- Official establishments
- 14
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $5.9M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $1,103 a household
- Spending per listing
- $244K
- 9% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 45.2
- 27% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 12,793
- −3.6% since 2020
See the auto repair and car care businesses around any address in Clay County
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 Clay County. 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
For auto repair and car care businesses, Clay County has a Groundwork market score of 30 (lower middle): #2,022 of 2,401 scored counties and #72 of 87 scored counties in Illinois. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
Household spending on vehicle maintenance and repairs in Clay County comes to about $5.9M a year: $1,103 per household, 15% above the U.S. average. That works out to $244K per business, 9% below the U.S. figure of $269K.
Clay County has 24 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings as of September 2026. 5 of them (21%) are chain locations, against 24% across the U.S. That comes to 45.2 for every 10,000 households, 27% above the U.S. rate of 35.7.
Official counts show 14 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in Clay County in 2023. That is one for every 379 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. Population estimates put the population change in Clay County from 2020 to 2025 at −3.6%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How Clay County 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 | Clay County | Illinois | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 45.2 | 33.1 | 35.7 |
| Spending per listing | $244K | $294K | $269K |
| Households per official establishment | 379 | 626 | 681 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +2.0% | +4.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −3.6% | −0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $1,103 | $975 | $958 |
| Median household income | $60,417 | $83,390 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 30 | 44 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 15 → 14
- Employees, 2023
- 48
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $1.4M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 27Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 245 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 Clay County, 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 Clay County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 12,793−3.6% since 2020
- Households
- 5,311
- Median age
- 41.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 79%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 468 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 28
- Median household income
- $60,417+24.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $78,530
- Median home value
- $97,400
- Jobs located here
- 4,511
- Daytime population
- 12,012Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Clay County?
These figures cover the whole county. 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 Clay County. 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 counties in Illinois for auto repair and car care businesses, numbered among those based in Illinois, with Clay County marked.
Top counties in Illinois
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Piatt County, IL | 83 | 15 | 21.7 | $597K | +0.6% | #73 of 2,401 |
| 2Kendall County, IL | 82 | 133 | 29.3 | $441K | +9.9% | #91 of 2,401 |
| 3Greene County, IL | 74 | 12 | 27.0 | $432K | −5.1% | #243 of 2,401 |
| 4Marshall County, IL | 73 | 17 | 33.4 | $349K | −2.0% | #273 of 2,401 |
| 5Woodford County, IL | 72 | 47 | 32.0 | $383K | −0.8% | #294 of 2,401 |
| 6Boone County, IL | 72 | 69 | 35.5 | $338K | +0.4% | #303 of 2,401 |
| 7Crawford County, IL | 71 | 28 | 37.4 | $306K | +0.1% | #346 of 2,401 |
| 8Lawrence County, IL | 66 | 14 | 25.6 | $403K | −9.7% | #487 of 2,401 |
| 9Menard County, IL | 65 | 14 | 26.8 | $414K | −3.3% | #519 of 2,401 |
| 10Lake County, IL | 65 | 862 | 33.4 | $356K | +0.8% | #524 of 2,401 |
| 72Clay County, IL | 30 | 24 | 45.2 | $244K | −3.6% | #2,022 of 2,401 |
Other business types in Clay County
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 Clay County, IL?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 24 auto repair and car care businesses in Clay County. 5 of them (21%) are chain locations. The listings count repair shops, body shops, tire shops, car washes, oil change and parts stores. Official counts show 14 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in 2023. Another 27 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in Clay County, IL spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $5.9M a year, or $1,103 per household. That is 15% above the U.S. average (an index of 115, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 24 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings, it comes to $244K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 5,311 households in Clay County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Clay County, IL compare with the U.S. for auto repair and car care businesses?
Clay County has 45.2 auto repair and car care businesses per 10,000 households, 27% above the U.S. rate of 35.7. Spending per business is $244K, 9% below the U.S. figure of $269K. At the U.S. ratio of auto repair and car care businesses to household spending, Clay County would have about 22, against 24 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 379 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S.
How fast is Clay County, IL growing?
Population estimates put Clay County at 12,793 people in 2025, down 3.6% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 5,311 households. The median household income in Clay County is $60,417 a year, 25% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 24.6% 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. 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. Clay County scores 30 for auto repair and car care businesses (lower middle), #2,022 of 2,401 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Clay County. 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 Clay County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Clay County?
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 Clay County. 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.