Auto · County · Illinois
Auto repair and car care businesses in Cook County, IL
How Cook County, IL compares with other counties 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 45 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,407 of 2,401 scored counties
#48 of 87 scored counties in Illinois
- Listings
- 5,571
- 1,267 chain locations (23%)
- Official establishments
- 2,889
- +2.2% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $1.7B
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $800 a household
- Spending per listing
- $302K
- 12% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 26.5
- 26% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 5,194,625
- −1.3% since 2020
See the auto repair and car care businesses around any address in Cook 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 Cook 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
As of September 2026, map listings count 5,571 auto repair and car care businesses in Cook County. 1,267 of them (23%) are chain locations, against 24% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 26.5, 26% below the U.S. rate of 35.7.
Household spending on vehicle maintenance and repairs in Cook County comes to about $1.7B a year: $800 per household, 17% below the U.S. average. That works out to $302K per business, 12% above the U.S. figure of $269K.
Official counts show 2,889 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in Cook County in 2023, up 2.2% from 2019. That is one for every 727 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. Another 5,184 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 153 SBA-backed loans worth $97.8M have gone to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in Cook County.
Population estimates put the population change in Cook County from 2020 to 2025 at −1.3%, against +3.1% for the U.S. For auto repair and car care businesses, Cook County has a Groundwork market score of 45 (lower middle): #1,407 of 2,401 scored counties and #48 of 87 scored counties in Illinois.
How Cook 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 | Cook County | Illinois | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 26.5 | 33.1 | 35.7 |
| Spending per listing | $302K | $294K | $269K |
| Households per official establishment | 727 | 626 | 681 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +2.2% | +2.0% | +4.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −1.3% | −0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $800 | $975 | $958 |
| Median household income | $83,498 | $83,390 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 45 | 44 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 2,826 → 2,889+2.2% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 16,594
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $881.9M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 5,184Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 5,5711,267 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 6,254The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 153
- Amount
- $97.8M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in Cook 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 Cook County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 5,194,625−1.3% since 2020
- Households
- 2,100,230
- Median age
- 39.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 58%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.4
- Land area
- 945 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 5,484
- Median household income
- $83,498+29.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $120,729
- Median home value
- $324,500
- Jobs located here
- 2,683,238
- Daytime population
- 5,468,881Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Cook 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 Cook 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 Cook 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 |
| 48Cook County, IL | 45 | 5,571 | 26.5 | $302K | −1.3% | #1,407 of 2,401 |
Other business types in Cook County
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 care45
- Auto repair shops38
- Collision repair and body shops38
- Car washes and detailing52
- Tire shops56
- Oil change and quick lube43
- Gas stations57
- Insurance agencies17
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 Cook County, IL?
Cook County has 5,571 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings as of September 2026. 1,267 of them (23%) are chain locations. The listings count repair shops, body shops, tire shops, car washes, oil change and parts stores. Official counts show 2,889 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in 2023, up 2.2% from 2019. Official counts list 5,184 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Cook County, IL spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $1.7B a year, or $800 per household. That is 17% below the U.S. average (an index of 83, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 5,571 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings, it comes to $302K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 2,100,230 households in Cook County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Cook County, IL compare with the U.S. for auto repair and car care businesses?
Cook County has 26.5 auto repair and car care businesses per 10,000 households, 26% below the U.S. rate of 35.7. Spending per business is $302K, 12% above the U.S. figure of $269K. At the national ratio of auto repair and car care businesses to household spending, Cook County would have about 6,254, against 5,571 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 727 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. The official count rose 2.2% from 2019 to 2023, against +4.1% for the U.S.
How fast is Cook County, IL growing?
Population estimates put Cook County at 5,194,625 people in 2025, down 1.3% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 2,100,230 households. Median household income in Cook County is $83,498, 3% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 29.1%, 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. Cook County scores 45 for auto repair and car care businesses (lower middle), #1,407 of 2,401 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Cook 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 Cook County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Cook 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 Cook 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.