Auto · Small-town market · Missouri
Auto repair and car care businesses in the West Plains, MO area
How the West Plains, MO 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 33 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #433 of 538 scored small-town markets
#14 of 17 scored small-town markets based in Missouri
- Listings
- 94
- 21 chain locations (22%)
- Official establishments
- 56
- +24.4% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $17.6M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $1,101 a household
- Spending per listing
- $187K
- 30% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 58.9
- 65% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 40,798
- +2.5% since 2020
See the auto repair and car care businesses around any address in the West Plains 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 West Plains 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
The West Plains area scores 33 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for auto repair and car care businesses, ranking #433 of 538 scored small-town markets and #14 of 17 scored small-town markets based in Missouri. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.
Household spending on vehicle maintenance and repairs in the West Plains area comes to about $17.6M a year: $1,101 per household, 15% above the U.S. average. That works out to $187K per business, 30% below the U.S. figure of $269K.
The West Plains area has 94 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 22% of them, against 24% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 58.9, 65% above the U.S. rate of 35.7.
Official counts show 56 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the West Plains area in 2023, up 24.4% from 2019. That is one for every 285 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the West Plains area grew 2.5%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the West Plains area 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 | West Plains area | Missouri | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 58.9 | 37.9 | 35.7 |
| Spending per listing | $187K | $279K | $269K |
| Households per official establishment | 285 | 613 | 681 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +24.4% | +2.8% | +4.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +2.5% | +1.9% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $1,101 | $1,058 | $958 |
| Median household income | $50,993 | $70,702 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 33 | 42 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 56+24.4% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 257
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $10.1M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 103Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 9421 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 65The 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 West Plains 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 West Plains area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 40,798+2.5% since 2020
- Households
- 15,965
- Median age
- 41.7
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 70%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 927 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 44
- Median household income
- $50,993+32.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $66,539
- Median home value
- $173,000
- Jobs located here
- 15,317
- Daytime population
- 40,659Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the West Plains 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 West Plains 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 Missouri
Every Missouri market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Missouri for auto repair and car care businesses, numbered among those based in Missouri, with the West Plains area marked.
Top small-town markets in Missouri
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Warrensburg, MO | 89 | 71 | 33.7 | $340K | +4.9% | #4 of 538 |
| 2Fort Leonard Wood, MO | 69 | 67 | 39.8 | $267K | +0.8% | #93 of 538 |
| 3Mexico, MO | 63 | 36 | 39.0 | $272K | −1.0% | #155 of 538 |
| 4Branson, MO | 59 | 93 | 40.8 | $257K | +1.7% | #189 of 538 |
| 5Farmington, MO | 48 | 123 | 49.6 | $213K | +2.1% | #295 of 538 |
| 6Maryville, MO | 45 | 37 | 43.7 | $260K | −4.0% | #317 of 538 |
| 7Hannibal, MO | 44 | 66 | 43.2 | $251K | +0.4% | #331 of 538 |
| 8Sikeston, MO | 41 | 102 | 51.5 | $203K | −0.3% | #369 of 538 |
| 9Kirksville, MO | 37 | 54 | 51.8 | $209K | +1.9% | #402 of 538 |
| 10Lebanon, MO | 37 | 84 | 57.7 | $183K | +2.5% | #405 of 538 |
| 14West Plains, MO | 33 | 94 | 58.9 | $187K | +2.5% | #433 of 538 |
Other business types in the West Plains 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 care33
- Auto repair shops32
- Collision repair and body shops39
- Car washes and detailing44
- Tire shops32
- Oil change and quick lube
- Gas stations54
- Insurance agencies25
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 West Plains, MO area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 94 auto repair and car care businesses in the West Plains area. 21 of them (22%) are chain locations. The listings count repair shops, body shops, tire shops, car washes, oil change and parts stores. Official counts show 56 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in 2023, up 24.4% from 2019. Official counts list 103 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the West Plains, MO area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $17.6M a year, or $1,101 per household. That is 15% above the U.S. average (an index of 115, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 94 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings, it comes to $187K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 15,965 households in the West Plains area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the West Plains, MO area compare with the U.S. for auto repair and car care businesses?
The West Plains area has 58.9 auto repair and car care businesses per 10,000 households, 65% above the U.S. rate of 35.7. Spending per business is $187K, 30% below the U.S. figure of $269K. At the U.S. ratio of auto repair and car care businesses to household spending, the West Plains area would have about 65, against 94 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 285 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. The official count rose 24.4% from 2019 to 2023, against +4.1% for the U.S.
How fast is the West Plains, MO area growing?
Population estimates put the West Plains area at 40,798 people in 2025, up 2.5% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 15,965 households. The median household income in the West Plains area is $50,993 a year, 37% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 32.9% 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 West Plains area scores 33 for auto repair and car care businesses (lower middle), #433 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 West Plains 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 West Plains area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the West Plains 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 West Plains 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.