Auto · Metro area · Michigan
Auto repair and car care businesses in the Bay City, MI metro area
The auto repair and car care businesses in the Bay City, MI metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 44 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #246 of 387 scored metro areas
#10 of 15 scored metro areas based in Michigan
- Listings
- 167
- 46 chain locations (28%)
- Official establishments
- 65
- −12.2% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $45M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $998 a household
- Spending per listing
- $270K
- In line with the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 37.0
- 4% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 102,123
- −1.6% since 2020
See the auto repair and car care businesses around any address in the Bay City metro 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 Bay City metro 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
Household spending on vehicle maintenance and repairs in the Bay City metro area comes to about $45M a year: $998 per household, 4% above the U.S. average. That works out to $270K per business, in line with the U.S. figure of $269K.
The Bay City metro area has 167 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 28% of them, against 24% across the U.S. That comes to 37.0 for every 10,000 households, 4% above the U.S. rate of 35.7.
Official counts show 65 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the Bay City metro area in 2023, down 12.2% from 2019. That is one for every 694 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. Official counts also show 86 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 4 SBA-backed loans worth $812K have gone to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the Bay City metro area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Bay City metro area declined 1.6%, against +3.1% for the U.S. For auto repair and car care businesses, the Bay City metro area has a Groundwork market score of 44 (lower middle): #246 of 387 scored metro areas and #10 of 15 scored metro areas based in Michigan.
How the Bay City metro area compares
The same measures for Michigan 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 | Bay City metro area | Michigan | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 37.0 | 35.7 | 35.7 |
| Spending per listing | $270K | $286K | $269K |
| Households per official establishment | 694 | 643 | 681 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −12.2% | +3.9% | +4.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −1.6% | +0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $998 | $1,022 | $958 |
| Median household income | $61,763 | $72,875 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 44 | 45 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 65−12.2% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 327
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $14.4M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 86Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 16746 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 168The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 4
- Amount
- $812K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the Bay City metro 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 Bay City metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 102,123−1.6% since 2020
- Households
- 45,103
- Median age
- 45.0
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 77%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 442 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 233
- Median household income
- $61,763+26.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $79,153
- Median home value
- $152,200
- Jobs located here
- 31,089
- Daytime population
- 93,442Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Bay City metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. 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 Bay City metro 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 Michigan
Every Michigan market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Michigan for auto repair and car care businesses, numbered among those based in Michigan (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Bay City metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Michigan
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Monroe, MI | 78 | 192 | 30.5 | $368K | +0.7% | #19 of 387 |
| 2Ann Arbor, MI | 75 | 342 | 22.7 | $450K | −0.4% | #24 of 387 |
| 3Lansing-East Lansing, MI | 68 | 607 | 31.3 | $321K | +1.4% | #68 of 387 |
| South Bend-Mishawaka, IN-MI | 64 | 409 | 31.8 | $316K | +0.1% | #90 of 387 |
| 4Jackson, MI | 62 | 220 | 35.2 | $290K | −0.4% | #105 of 387 |
| 5Midland, MI | 59 | 123 | 35.1 | $313K | +0.3% | #129 of 387 |
| 6Kalamazoo-Portage, MI | 56 | 355 | 33.1 | $307K | +0.8% | #151 of 387 |
| 7Muskegon-Norton Shores, MI | 54 | 264 | 39.0 | $259K | +1.8% | #172 of 387 |
| 8Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI | 53 | 1,716 | 39.0 | $282K | +2.8% | #180 of 387 |
| 9Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI | 49 | 5,999 | 33.9 | $293K | +0.1% | #207 of 387 |
| 10Bay City, MI | 44 | 167 | 37.0 | $270K | −1.6% | #246 of 387 |
Other business types in the Bay City metro 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 care44
- Auto repair shops44
- Collision repair and body shops46
- Car washes and detailing55
- Tire shops47
- Oil change and quick lube22
- Gas stations34
- Insurance agencies33
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 Bay City, MI metro area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 167 auto repair and car care businesses in the Bay City metro area. 46 of them (28%) are chain locations. The listings count repair shops, body shops, tire shops, car washes, oil change and parts stores. Official counts show 65 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in 2023, down 12.2% from 2019. Another 86 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Bay City, MI metro area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $45M a year, or $998 per household. That is 4% above the U.S. average (an index of 104, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 167 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings, it comes to $270K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 45,103 households in the Bay City metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Bay City, MI metro area compare with the U.S. for auto repair and car care businesses?
The Bay City metro area has 37.0 auto repair and car care businesses per 10,000 households, 4% above the U.S. rate of 35.7. Spending per business is $270K, in line with the U.S. figure of $269K. At the U.S. ratio of auto repair and car care businesses to household spending, the Bay City metro area would have about 168, against 167 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 694 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. The official count fell 12.2% from 2019 to 2023, against +4.1% for the U.S.
How fast is the Bay City, MI metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Bay City metro area at 102,123 people in 2025, down 1.6% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 45,103 households. The median household income in the Bay City metro area is $61,763 a year, 23% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 26.5% 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. The Bay City metro area scores 44 for auto repair and car care businesses (lower middle), #246 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Bay City metro 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 Bay City metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Bay City metro 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 Bay City metro 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.