Auto · Small-town market · Michigan
Auto repair and car care businesses in the Escanaba, MI area
How the Escanaba, MI 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 42 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #346 of 538 scored small-town markets
#14 of 18 scored small-town markets based in Michigan
- Listings
- 59
- 18 chain locations (31%)
- Official establishments
- 34
- 0.0% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $15.5M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $971 a household
- Spending per listing
- $263K
- 2% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 36.9
- 3% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 36,582
- −0.8% since 2020
See the auto repair and car care businesses around any address in the Escanaba 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 Escanaba 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
At $971 per household (in line with the U.S. average), households in the Escanaba area spend about $15.5M a year on vehicle maintenance and repairs. That is about $263K of household spending for each business on map listings, 2% below the U.S. figure of $269K.
There are 59 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings in the Escanaba area as of September 2026. 18 of them (31%) are chain locations, against 24% across the U.S. That comes to 36.9 for every 10,000 households, 3% above the U.S. rate of 35.7.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the Escanaba area was 34 in 2023, unchanged from 2019. That is one for every 470 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. Official counts also show 32 one-person businesses without payroll.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Escanaba area declined 0.8%, against +3.1% for the U.S. For auto repair and car care businesses, the Escanaba area has a Groundwork market score of 42 (lower middle): #346 of 538 scored small-town markets and #14 of 18 scored small-town markets based in Michigan.
How the Escanaba 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 | Escanaba area | Michigan | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 36.9 | 35.7 | 35.7 |
| Spending per listing | $263K | $286K | $269K |
| Households per official establishment | 470 | 643 | 681 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | 0.0% | +3.9% | +4.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −0.8% | +0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $971 | $1,022 | $958 |
| Median household income | $57,809 | $72,875 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 42 | 45 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 340.0% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 186
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $8.9M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 32Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 5918 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 58The 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 the Escanaba 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 Escanaba area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 36,582−0.8% since 2020
- Households
- 15,971
- Median age
- 48.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 82%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 1,171 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 31
- Median household income
- $57,809+21.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $81,442
- Median home value
- $157,100
- Jobs located here
- 12,720
- Daytime population
- 35,893Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Escanaba 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 Escanaba 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 small-town markets 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 Escanaba area marked.
Top small-town markets in Michigan
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Big Rapids, MI | 73 | 58 | 34.7 | $303K | +4.7% | #62 of 538 |
| 2Hillsdale, MI | 72 | 68 | 38.1 | $286K | 0.0% | #68 of 538 |
| 3Marquette, MI | 67 | 99 | 35.0 | $292K | +2.3% | #107 of 538 |
| 4Holland, MI | 65 | 189 | 41.5 | $288K | +2.1% | #121 of 538 |
| 5Owosso, MI | 64 | 105 | 37.3 | $295K | −0.4% | #133 of 538 |
| Marinette, WI-MI | 62 | 113 | 38.4 | $278K | +0.3% | #161 of 538 |
| 6Adrian, MI | 60 | 149 | 38.3 | $286K | −1.6% | #177 of 538 |
| 7Houghton, MI | 58 | 54 | 35.0 | $292K | +1.8% | #193 of 538 |
| 8Ludington, MI | 52 | 54 | 42.2 | $245K | 0.0% | #248 of 538 |
| 9Petoskey, MI | 50 | 59 | 38.8 | $285K | −1.0% | #268 of 538 |
| 14Escanaba, MI | 42 | 59 | 36.9 | $263K | −0.8% | #346 of 538 |
Other business types in the Escanaba 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 care42
- Auto repair shops41
- Collision repair and body shops32
- Car washes and detailing45
- Tire shops
- Oil change and quick lube
- Gas stations48
- Insurance agencies44
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 Escanaba, MI area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 59 auto repair and car care businesses in the Escanaba area. 18 of them (31%) are chain locations. The listings count repair shops, body shops, tire shops, car washes, oil change and parts stores. Official counts show 34 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in 2023, unchanged from 2019. Another 32 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Escanaba, MI area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $15.5M a year, or $971 per household. That is in line with the U.S. average (an index of 101, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 59 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings, it comes to $263K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 15,971 households in the Escanaba area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Escanaba, MI area compare with the U.S. for auto repair and car care businesses?
The Escanaba area has 36.9 auto repair and car care businesses per 10,000 households, 3% above the U.S. rate of 35.7. Spending per business is $263K, 2% below the U.S. figure of $269K. At the U.S. ratio of auto repair and car care businesses to household spending, the Escanaba area would have about 58, against 59 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 470 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. The official count held level from 2019 to 2023, against +4.1% for the U.S.
How fast is the Escanaba, MI area growing?
Population estimates put the Escanaba area at 36,582 people in 2025, down 0.8% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 15,971 households. The median household income in the Escanaba area is $57,809 a year, 28% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 21.9% 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. 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 Escanaba area scores 42 for auto repair and car care businesses (lower middle), #346 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 Escanaba 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 Escanaba area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Escanaba 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 Escanaba 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.