Auto · County · Kentucky
Auto repair and car care businesses in Whitley County, KY
How Whitley 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 30 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #2,028 of 2,401 scored counties
#82 of 99 scored counties in Kentucky
- Listings
- 55
- 12 chain locations (22%)
- Official establishments
- 21
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $11.4M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $838 a household
- Spending per listing
- $206K
- 23% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 40.6
- 14% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 37,297
- +1.6% since 2020
See the auto repair and car care businesses around any address in Whitley 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 Whitley 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
Whitley County scores 30 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for auto repair and car care businesses, ranking #2,028 of 2,401 scored counties and #82 of 99 scored counties in Kentucky. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
Households in Whitley County spend about $11.4M a year on vehicle maintenance and repairs, or $838 per household, 12% below the U.S. average. Spread across 55 auto repair and car care businesses, that is $206K per business, 23% below the U.S. figure of $269K.
Whitley County has 55 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings as of September 2026. 12 of them (22%) are chain locations, against 24% across the U.S. That comes to 40.6 for every 10,000 households, 14% above the U.S. rate of 35.7.
In 2023, official counts showed 21 businesses with payroll in Whitley County classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers. That is one for every 645 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $438K has gone to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in Whitley County. Population estimates put the population change in Whitley County from 2020 to 2025 at +1.6%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How Whitley 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 | Whitley County | Kentucky | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 40.6 | 36.5 | 35.7 |
| Spending per listing | $206K | $243K | $269K |
| Households per official establishment | 645 | 819 | 681 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +0.7% | +4.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +1.6% | +2.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $838 | $889 | $958 |
| Median household income | $44,615 | $63,726 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 30 | 45 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 18 → 21
- Employees, 2023
- 57
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $2.6M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 68Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 5512 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 42The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $438K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in Whitley 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 Whitley County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 37,297+1.6% since 2020
- Households
- 13,541
- Median age
- 35.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 67%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 438 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 84
- Median household income
- $44,615+14.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $63,305
- Median home value
- $131,800
- Jobs located here
- 13,221
- Daytime population
- 37,057Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Whitley 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 Whitley 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 Whitley 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 |
| 82Whitley County, KY | 30 | 55 | 40.6 | $206K | +1.6% | #2,028 of 2,401 |
Other business types in Whitley 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 care30
- Auto repair shops24
- Collision repair and body shops26
- Car washes and detailing
- Tire shops34
- Oil change and quick lube
- Gas stations35
- Insurance agencies65
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 Whitley County, KY?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 55 auto repair and car care businesses in Whitley County. 12 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 21 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in 2023. Another 68 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in Whitley County, KY spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $11.4M a year, or $838 per household. That is 12% below the U.S. average (an index of 88, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 55 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings, it comes to $206K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 13,541 households in Whitley County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Whitley County, KY compare with the U.S. for auto repair and car care businesses?
Whitley County has 40.6 auto repair and car care businesses per 10,000 households, 14% above the U.S. rate of 35.7. Spending per business is $206K, 23% below the U.S. figure of $269K. At the U.S. ratio of auto repair and car care businesses to household spending, Whitley County would have about 42, against 55 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 645 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S.
How fast is Whitley County, KY growing?
Population estimates put Whitley County at 37,297 people in 2025, up 1.6% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 13,541 households. The median household income in Whitley County is $44,615 a year, 45% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 14.4% 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. Whitley County scores 30 for auto repair and car care businesses (lower middle), #2,028 of 2,401 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Whitley 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 Whitley County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Whitley 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 Whitley 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.