Auto · Small-town market · Michigan
Auto repair and car care businesses in the Hillsdale, MI area
How the Hillsdale, 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 72 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #68 of 538 scored small-town markets
#2 of 18 scored small-town markets based in Michigan
- Listings
- 68
- 10 chain locations (15%)
- Official establishments
- 17
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $19.4M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $1,087 a household
- Spending per listing
- $286K
- 6% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 38.1
- 7% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 45,738
- 0.0% since 2020
See the auto repair and car care businesses around any address in the Hillsdale 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 Hillsdale 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
As of September 2026, map listings count 68 auto repair and car care businesses in the Hillsdale area. Chain locations make up 15% of them, against 24% across the U.S. That is 38.1 per 10,000 households, 7% above the U.S. rate of 35.7.
At $1,087 per household (13% above the U.S. average), households in the Hillsdale area spend about $19.4M a year on vehicle maintenance and repairs. That works out to $286K per business, 6% above the U.S. figure of $269K.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the Hillsdale area was 17 in 2023. That is one for every 1,051 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. Another 59 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $140K have gone to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the Hillsdale area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Hillsdale area held about level, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Hillsdale area scores 72 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for auto repair and car care businesses, ranking #68 of 538 scored small-town markets and #2 of 18 scored small-town markets based in Michigan. That puts it in the top quarter of small-town markets.
How the Hillsdale 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 | Hillsdale area | Michigan | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 38.1 | 35.7 | 35.7 |
| Spending per listing | $286K | $286K | $269K |
| Households per official establishment | 1,051 | 643 | 681 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +3.9% | +4.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | 0.0% | +0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $1,087 | $1,022 | $958 |
| Median household income | $64,242 | $72,875 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 72 | 45 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 17
- Employees, 2023
- 70
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $3.2M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 59Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 6810 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 72The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 2
- Amount
- $140K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the Hillsdale 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 Hillsdale area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 45,7380.0% since 2020
- Households
- 17,860
- Median age
- 43.3
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 82%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 598 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 76
- Median household income
- $64,242+29.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $81,816
- Median home value
- $176,100
- Jobs located here
- 12,372
- Daytime population
- 39,069Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Hillsdale 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 Hillsdale 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 Hillsdale 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 |
Other business types in the Hillsdale 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 care72
- Auto repair shops65
- Collision repair and body shops
- Car washes and detailing73
- Tire shops64
- Oil change and quick lube
- Gas stations49
- Insurance agencies46
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 Hillsdale, MI area?
The Hillsdale area has 68 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings as of September 2026. 10 of them (15%) are chain locations. The listings count repair shops, body shops, tire shops, car washes, oil change and parts stores. Official counts show 17 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in 2023. Official counts list 59 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Hillsdale, MI area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $19.4M a year, or $1,087 per household. That is 13% above the U.S. average (an index of 113, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 68 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings, it comes to $286K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 17,860 households in the Hillsdale area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Hillsdale, MI area compare with the U.S. for auto repair and car care businesses?
The Hillsdale area has 38.1 auto repair and car care businesses per 10,000 households, 7% above the U.S. rate of 35.7. Spending per business is $286K, 6% above the U.S. figure of $269K. At the national ratio of auto repair and car care businesses to household spending, the Hillsdale area would have about 72, against 68 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,051 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S.
How fast is the Hillsdale, MI area growing?
Population estimates put the Hillsdale area at 45,738 people in 2025, unchanged since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 17,860 households. Median household income in the Hillsdale area is $64,242, 20% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 29.5%, 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 Hillsdale area scores 72 for auto repair and car care businesses (upper middle), #68 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 Hillsdale 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 Hillsdale area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Hillsdale 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 Hillsdale 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.