Auto · Small-town market · Illinois
Auto repair and car care businesses in the Dixon, IL area
How the Dixon, IL 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 52 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #245 of 538 scored small-town markets
#6 of 20 scored small-town markets based in Illinois
- Listings
- 53
- 17 chain locations (32%)
- Official establishments
- 21
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $14.3M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $1,076 a household
- Spending per listing
- $271K
- In line with the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 39.7
- 11% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 32,914
- −3.4% since 2020
See the auto repair and car care businesses around any address in the Dixon 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 Dixon 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
Map listings as of September 2026 show 53 auto repair and car care businesses in the Dixon area. Of those, 17 are chain locations, or 32%, against 24% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 39.7, 11% above the U.S. rate of 35.7.
Household spending on vehicle maintenance and repairs in the Dixon area comes to about $14.3M a year: $1,076 per household, 12% above the U.S. average. Spread across 53 auto repair and car care businesses, that is $271K per business, in line with the U.S. figure of $269K.
In 2023, official counts showed 21 businesses with payroll in the Dixon area classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers. That is one for every 635 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. Official counts also show 36 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $603K have gone to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the Dixon area.
Population estimates put the population change in the Dixon area from 2020 to 2025 at −3.4%, against +3.1% for the U.S. For auto repair and car care businesses, the Dixon area has a Groundwork market score of 52 (upper middle): #245 of 538 scored small-town markets and #6 of 20 scored small-town markets based in Illinois.
How the Dixon 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 | Dixon area | Illinois | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 39.7 | 33.1 | 35.7 |
| Spending per listing | $271K | $294K | $269K |
| Households per official establishment | 635 | 626 | 681 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +2.0% | +4.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −3.4% | −0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $1,076 | $975 | $958 |
| Median household income | $70,292 | $83,390 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 52 | 44 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 21
- Employees, 2023
- 118
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $4.6M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 36Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 5317 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 53The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 2
- Amount
- $603K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the Dixon 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 Dixon area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 32,914−3.4% since 2020
- Households
- 13,337
- Median age
- 43.7
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 74%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 725 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 47
- Median household income
- $70,292+20.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $90,634
- Median home value
- $154,600
- Jobs located here
- 12,678
- Daytime population
- 30,631Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Dixon 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 Dixon 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 small-town markets 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 Dixon area marked.
Top small-town markets in Illinois
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Lincoln, IL | 67 | 34 | 30.2 | $336K | −2.5% | #102 of 538 |
| 2Canton, IL | 67 | 44 | 31.9 | $333K | −2.0% | #103 of 538 |
| 3Galesburg, IL | 63 | 58 | 27.7 | $345K | −4.1% | #147 of 538 |
| 4Marion-Herrin, IL | 60 | 120 | 41.4 | $246K | +0.2% | #184 of 538 |
| 5Jacksonville, IL | 58 | 58 | 38.4 | $278K | −3.1% | #194 of 538 |
| 6Dixon, IL | 52 | 53 | 39.7 | $271K | −3.4% | #245 of 538 |
| 7Ottawa, IL | 51 | 242 | 39.1 | $274K | −1.6% | #255 of 538 |
| 8Taylorville, IL | 51 | 54 | 39.7 | $262K | −1.5% | #256 of 538 |
| Burlington, IA-IL | 50 | 80 | 40.2 | $267K | −2.5% | #269 of 538 |
| 9Carbondale, IL | 50 | 79 | 34.4 | $261K | −1.5% | #271 of 538 |
Other business types in the Dixon 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 care52
- Auto repair shops44
- Collision repair and body shops48
- Car washes and detailing57
- Tire shops
- Oil change and quick lube
- Gas stations42
- Insurance agencies9
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 Dixon, IL area?
There are 53 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings in the Dixon area as of September 2026. 17 of them (32%) are chain locations. The listings count repair shops, body shops, tire shops, car washes, oil change and parts stores. Official counts show 21 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in 2023. Another 36 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Dixon, IL area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $14.3M a year, or $1,076 per household. That is 12% above the U.S. average (an index of 112, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 53 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings, it comes to $271K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 13,337 households in the Dixon area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Dixon, IL area compare with the U.S. for auto repair and car care businesses?
The Dixon area has 39.7 auto repair and car care businesses per 10,000 households, 11% above the U.S. rate of 35.7. Spending per business is $271K, in line with the U.S. figure of $269K. The count on map listings matches the U.S. ratio of auto repair and car care businesses to household spending. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 635 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S.
How fast is the Dixon, IL area growing?
Population estimates put the Dixon area at 32,914 people in 2025, down 3.4% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 13,337 households. Median household income in the Dixon area is $70,292, 13% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 20.8%, 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 Dixon area scores 52 for auto repair and car care businesses (upper middle), #245 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 Dixon 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 Dixon area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Dixon 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 Dixon 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.