Auto · County · Missouri
Auto repair and car care businesses in Howard County, MO
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for auto repair and car care businesses in Howard County, MO, set against other counties and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 67 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #456 of 2,401 scored counties
#16 of 85 scored counties in Missouri
- Listings
- 12
- 1 chain location (8%)
- Official establishments
- 5
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $4.1M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $1,156 a household
- Spending per listing
- $345K
- 29% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 33.5
- 6% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 10,180
- +0.3% since 2020
See the auto repair and car care businesses around any address in Howard 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 Howard 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
As of September 2026, map listings count 12 auto repair and car care businesses in Howard County. One of them (8%) is a chain location, against 24% across the U.S. That comes to 33.5 for every 10,000 households, 6% below the U.S. rate of 35.7.
Household spending on vehicle maintenance and repairs in Howard County comes to about $4.1M a year: $1,156 per household, 21% above the U.S. average. Spread across 12 auto repair and car care businesses, that is $345K per business, 29% above the U.S. figure of $269K.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in Howard County was 5 in 2023. That is one for every 717 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. Another 29 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
Population estimates show Howard County grew 0.3% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). Howard County scores 67 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for auto repair and car care businesses, ranking #456 of 2,401 scored counties and #16 of 85 scored counties in Missouri. That puts it in the top quarter of counties.
How Howard County compares
The same measures for Missouri 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 | Howard County | Missouri | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 33.5 | 37.9 | 35.7 |
| Spending per listing | $345K | $279K | $269K |
| Households per official establishment | 717 | 613 | 681 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +2.8% | +4.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +0.3% | +1.9% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $1,156 | $1,058 | $958 |
| Median household income | $65,938 | $70,702 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 67 | 42 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 5 → 5
- Employees, 2023
- 13
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $796K
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 29Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 121 chain location
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 15The 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 Howard 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 Howard County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 10,180+0.3% since 2020
- Households
- 3,585
- Median age
- 39.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 79%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 464 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 22
- Median household income
- $65,938+25.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $83,071
- Median home value
- $159,400
- Jobs located here
- 2,720
- Daytime population
- 8,278Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Howard 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 Howard 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 Missouri
Every Missouri market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Missouri for auto repair and car care businesses, numbered among those based in Missouri, with Howard County marked.
Top counties in Missouri
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Platte County, MO | 88 | 111 | 25.3 | $465K | +6.7% | #29 of 2,401 |
| 2Warren County, MO | 84 | 52 | 37.6 | $343K | +9.2% | #67 of 2,401 |
| 3Johnson County, MO | 80 | 71 | 33.7 | $340K | +4.9% | #129 of 2,401 |
| 4Stone County, MO | 76 | 42 | 31.0 | $357K | +4.1% | #203 of 2,401 |
| 5Osage County, MO | 74 | 15 | 28.4 | $477K | +2.7% | #241 of 2,401 |
| 6Cass County, MO | 74 | 163 | 37.7 | $331K | +7.1% | #256 of 2,401 |
| 7Andrew County, MO | 73 | 24 | 34.3 | $359K | +0.7% | #272 of 2,401 |
| 8Boone County, MO | 73 | 244 | 31.9 | $334K | +4.2% | #279 of 2,401 |
| 9St. Charles County, MO | 72 | 564 | 35.0 | $343K | +4.9% | #302 of 2,401 |
| 10Clay County, MO | 69 | 321 | 31.4 | $353K | +4.3% | #382 of 2,401 |
| 16Howard County, MO | 67 | 12 | 33.5 | $345K | +0.3% | #456 of 2,401 |
Other business types in Howard County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
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 Howard County, MO?
Howard County has 12 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings as of September 2026. One of them (8%) is a chain location. The listings count repair shops, body shops, tire shops, car washes, oil change and parts stores. Official counts show 5 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in 2023. Official counts list 29 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Howard County, MO spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $4.1M a year, or $1,156 per household. That is 21% above the U.S. average (an index of 121, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 12 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings, it comes to $345K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 3,585 households in Howard County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Howard County, MO compare with the U.S. for auto repair and car care businesses?
Howard County has 33.5 auto repair and car care businesses per 10,000 households, 6% below the U.S. rate of 35.7. Spending per business is $345K, 29% above the U.S. figure of $269K. At the national ratio of auto repair and car care businesses to household spending, Howard County would have about 15, against 12 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 717 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S.
How fast is Howard County, MO growing?
Population estimates put Howard County at 10,180 people in 2025, up 0.3% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 3,585 households. Median household income in Howard County is $65,938, 18% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 25.1%, 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. Howard County scores 67 for auto repair and car care businesses (upper middle), #456 of 2,401 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Howard 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 Howard County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Howard 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 Howard 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.