Auto · County · Kentucky
Auto repair and car care businesses in Bell County, KY
How Bell County, KY 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 21 out of 100: Low
Ranked #2,263 of 2,401 scored counties
#98 of 99 scored counties in Kentucky
- Listings
- 41
- 9 chain locations (22%)
- Official establishments
- 12
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $7.1M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $714 a household
- Spending per listing
- $173K
- 36% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 41.3
- 16% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 22,829
- −4.8% since 2020
See the auto repair and car care businesses around any address in Bell 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 Bell 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, Bell County has a Groundwork market score of 21 (low): #2,263 of 2,401 scored counties and #98 of 99 scored counties in Kentucky. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
Household spending on vehicle maintenance and repairs in Bell County comes to about $7.1M a year: $714 per household, 25% below the U.S. average. That works out to $173K per business, 36% below the U.S. figure of $269K.
There are 41 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings in Bell County as of September 2026. 9 of them (22%) are chain locations, against 24% across the U.S. That is 41.3 per 10,000 households, 16% above the U.S. rate of 35.7.
In 2023, official counts showed 12 businesses with payroll in Bell County classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers. That is one for every 828 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. Population estimates put the population change in Bell County from 2020 to 2025 at −4.8%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How Bell County compares
The same measures for Kentucky 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 | Bell County | Kentucky | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 41.3 | 36.5 | 35.7 |
| Spending per listing | $173K | $243K | $269K |
| Households per official establishment | 828 | 819 | 681 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +0.7% | +4.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −4.8% | +2.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $714 | $889 | $958 |
| Median household income | $31,354 | $63,726 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 21 | 45 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 14 → 12
- Employees, 2023
- 48
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $1.3M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 38Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 419 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 26The 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 Bell 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 Bell County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 22,829−4.8% since 2020
- Households
- 9,939
- Median age
- 40.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 59%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.6
- Land area
- 359 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 65
- Median household income
- $31,354+19.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $49,259
- Median home value
- $89,000
- Jobs located here
- 7,622
- Daytime population
- 23,467Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Bell 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 Bell 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 Kentucky
Every Kentucky market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Kentucky for auto repair and car care businesses, numbered among those based in Kentucky, with Bell County marked.
Top counties in Kentucky
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Spencer County, KY | 95 | 17 | 23.3 | $563K | +7.7% | #2 of 2,401 |
| 2Oldham County, KY | 85 | 69 | 30.0 | $396K | +4.9% | #53 of 2,401 |
| 3Allen County, KY | 84 | 18 | 22.4 | $437K | +9.5% | #63 of 2,401 |
| 4Garrard County, KY | 82 | 18 | 26.9 | $366K | +7.3% | #95 of 2,401 |
| 5Edmonson County, KY | 78 | 9 | 17.7 | $550K | +5.0% | #152 of 2,401 |
| 6Green County, KY | 78 | 15 | 33.9 | $312K | +4.6% | #172 of 2,401 |
| 7Owen County, KY | 77 | 8 | 18.8 | $517K | +2.6% | #174 of 2,401 |
| 8Pendleton County, KY | 77 | 14 | 25.7 | $410K | +1.1% | #180 of 2,401 |
| 9Trigg County, KY | 77 | 15 | 24.8 | $384K | +3.1% | #183 of 2,401 |
| 10Lincoln County, KY | 73 | 25 | 25.8 | $362K | +4.6% | #271 of 2,401 |
| 98Bell County, KY | 21 | 41 | 41.3 | $173K | −4.8% | #2,263 of 2,401 |
Other business types in Bell 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 care21
- Auto repair shops30
- Collision repair and body shops
- Car washes and detailing3
- Tire shops12
- Oil change and quick lube
- Gas stations30
- Insurance agencies64
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 Bell County, KY?
As of September 2026, map listings count 41 auto repair and car care businesses in Bell County. 9 of them (22%) are chain locations. The listings count repair shops, body shops, tire shops, car washes, oil change and parts stores. Official counts show 12 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in 2023. Official counts list 38 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Bell County, KY spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $7.1M a year, or $714 per household. That is 25% below the U.S. average (an index of 75, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 41 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings, it comes to $173K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 9,939 households in Bell County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Bell County, KY compare with the U.S. for auto repair and car care businesses?
Bell County has 41.3 auto repair and car care businesses per 10,000 households, 16% above the U.S. rate of 35.7. Spending per business is $173K, 36% below the U.S. figure of $269K. At the U.S. ratio of auto repair and car care businesses to household spending, Bell County would have about 26, against 41 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 828 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S.
How fast is Bell County, KY growing?
Population estimates put Bell County at 22,829 people in 2025, down 4.8% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 9,939 households. The median household income in Bell County is $31,354 a year, 61% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 19.3% 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. Bell County scores 21 for auto repair and car care businesses (low), #2,263 of 2,401 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Bell 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 Bell County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Bell 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 Bell 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.