Auto · Small-town market · Minnesota
Auto repair and car care businesses in the Brainerd, MN area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for auto repair and car care businesses in the Brainerd, MN area, set against other small-town markets and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 72 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #71 of 538 scored small-town markets
#1 of 18 scored small-town markets based in Minnesota
- Listings
- 187
- 50 chain locations (27%)
- Official establishments
- 61
- +5.3% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $48.8M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $1,154 a household
- Spending per listing
- $261K
- 3% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 44.2
- 24% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 100,562
- +4.3% since 2020
See the auto repair and car care businesses around any address in the Brainerd 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 Brainerd 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 187 auto repair and car care businesses in the Brainerd area. Chain locations make up 27% of them, against 24% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 44.2, 24% above the U.S. rate of 35.7.
Household spending on vehicle maintenance and repairs in the Brainerd area comes to about $48.8M a year: $1,154 per household, 21% above the U.S. average. Spread across 187 auto repair and car care businesses, that is $261K per business, 3% below the U.S. figure of $269K.
Official counts show 61 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the Brainerd area in 2023, up 5.3% from 2019. That is one for every 693 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. Official counts also show 139 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 9 SBA-backed loans worth $7.5M have gone to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the Brainerd area.
Population estimates put the population change in the Brainerd area from 2020 to 2025 at +4.3%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for auto repair and car care businesses in the Brainerd area is 72 (upper middle), #71 of 538 scored small-town markets and #1 of 18 scored small-town markets based in Minnesota. That puts it in the top quarter of small-town markets.
How the Brainerd area compares
The same measures for Minnesota 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 | Brainerd area | Minnesota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 44.2 | 33.5 | 35.7 |
| Spending per listing | $261K | $330K | $269K |
| Households per official establishment | 693 | 665 | 681 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +5.3% | +3.1% | +4.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +4.3% | +2.1% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $1,154 | $1,108 | $958 |
| Median household income | $71,384 | $89,062 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 72 | 67 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 61+5.3% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 318
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $16M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 139Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 18750 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 182The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 9
- Amount
- $7.5M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the Brainerd 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 Brainerd area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 100,562+4.3% since 2020
- Households
- 42,276
- Median age
- 46.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 80%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 3,020 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 33
- Median household income
- $71,384+29.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $93,780
- Median home value
- $301,000
- Jobs located here
- 39,612
- Daytime population
- 95,720Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Brainerd 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 Brainerd 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 Minnesota
Every Minnesota market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Minnesota for auto repair and car care businesses, numbered among those based in Minnesota, with the Brainerd area marked.
Top small-town markets in Minnesota
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Brainerd, MN | 72 | 187 | 44.2 | $261K | +4.3% | #71 of 538 |
| 2Winona, MN | 69 | 77 | 38.0 | $287K | +1.8% | #88 of 538 |
| 3Alexandria, MN | 68 | 68 | 38.8 | $299K | +2.6% | #98 of 538 |
| 4Austin, MN | 67 | 62 | 39.4 | $287K | +2.3% | #109 of 538 |
| 5Detroit Lakes, MN | 66 | 62 | 43.0 | $286K | +0.9% | #116 of 538 |
| 6Grand Rapids, MN | 66 | 83 | 44.8 | $259K | +0.9% | #118 of 538 |
| 7Faribault-Northfield, MN | 64 | 96 | 40.9 | $281K | +4.2% | #136 of 538 |
| 8Bemidji, MN | 63 | 74 | 40.7 | $278K | +1.8% | #154 of 538 |
| 9Fergus Falls, MN | 61 | 118 | 46.9 | $254K | +1.6% | #173 of 538 |
| 10Albert Lea, MN | 60 | 51 | 39.7 | $277K | −1.5% | #180 of 538 |
Other business types in the Brainerd 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 shops67
- Car washes and detailing87
- Tire shops86
- Oil change and quick lube
- Gas stations69
- Insurance agencies45
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 Brainerd, MN area?
The Brainerd area has 187 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings as of September 2026. 50 of them (27%) are chain locations. The listings count repair shops, body shops, tire shops, car washes, oil change and parts stores. Official counts show 61 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in 2023, up 5.3% from 2019. Another 139 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Brainerd, MN area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $48.8M a year, or $1,154 per household. That is 21% above the U.S. average (an index of 121, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 187 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings, it comes to $261K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 42,276 households in the Brainerd area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Brainerd, MN area compare with the U.S. for auto repair and car care businesses?
The Brainerd area has 44.2 auto repair and car care businesses per 10,000 households, 24% above the U.S. rate of 35.7. Spending per business is $261K, 3% below the U.S. figure of $269K. At the national ratio of auto repair and car care businesses to household spending, the Brainerd area would have about 182, against 187 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 693 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. The official count rose 5.3% from 2019 to 2023, against +4.1% for the U.S.
How fast is the Brainerd, MN area growing?
Population estimates put the Brainerd area at 100,562 people in 2025, up 4.3% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 42,276 households. Median household income in the Brainerd area is $71,384, 12% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 29.4%, 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 Brainerd area scores 72 for auto repair and car care businesses (upper middle), #71 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 Brainerd 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 Brainerd area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Brainerd 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 Brainerd 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.