Groundwork

Auto · County · Montana

Auto repair and car care businesses in Missoula County, MT

How Missoula County, MT compares with other counties 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 55 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #963 of 2,401 scored counties
#9 of 21 scored counties in Montana

Listings
183
45 chain locations (25%)
Official establishments
117
+7.3% since 2019
Household spending a year
$55.9M
On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $1,062 a household
Spending per listing
$306K
14% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
34.7
3% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
123,513
+4.4% since 2020

See the auto repair and car care businesses around any address in Missoula 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 Missoula County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

Map listings as of September 2026 show 183 auto repair and car care businesses in Missoula County. 45 of them (25%) are chain locations, against 24% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 34.7, 3% below the U.S. rate of 35.7.

Households in Missoula County spend about $55.9M a year on vehicle maintenance and repairs, or $1,062 per household, 11% above the U.S. average. Spread across 183 auto repair and car care businesses, that is $306K per business, 14% above the U.S. figure of $269K.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in Missoula County was 117 in 2023, up 7.3% from 2019. That is one for every 450 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. Another 86 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 5 SBA-backed loans worth $3.6M have gone to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in Missoula County.

Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Missoula County grew 4.4%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for auto repair and car care businesses in Missoula County is 55 (upper middle), #963 of 2,401 scored counties and #9 of 21 scored counties in Montana.

How Missoula County compares

The same measures for Montana 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.

Auto repair and car care in Missoula County, MT compared with Montana and the U.S.
MeasureMissoula CountyMontanaU.S.
Listings per 10k households34.743.735.7
Spending per listing$306K$265K$269K
Households per official establishment450437681
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+7.3%+9.6%+4.1%
Population growth, 2020–2025+4.4%+5.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs$1,062$1,157$958
Median household income$75,598$72,509$80,734
Groundwork market score5547

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
109 → 117+7.3% over the period
Employees, 2023
703
Annual payroll, 2023
$33M
One-person businesses, 2023
86Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
18345 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
208The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
5
Amount
$3.6M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in Missoula 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 Missoula County

Population, 2025 estimate
123,513+4.4% since 2020
Households
52,679
Median age
38.7
Homes lived in by their owners
59%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
2,593 sq. mi.
People per square mile
47
Median household income
$75,598+39.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$103,306
Median home value
$472,100
Jobs located here
66,258
Daytime population
128,477Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Missoula 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 Missoula County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Auto repair and car care across Montana

Every Montana market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Montana for auto repair and car care businesses, numbered among those based in Montana, with Missoula County marked.

Top counties in Montana

Counties in Montana ranked for auto repair and car care businesses by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Jefferson County, MT941326.0$584K+9.8%#7 of 2,401
2Sanders County, MT851731.2$382K+12.9%#55 of 2,401
3Carbon County, MT741634.3$384K+9.1%#247 of 2,401
4Big Horn County, MT731128.7$395K−2.5%#264 of 2,401
5Lake County, MT684334.2$362K+6.9%#421 of 2,401
6Ravalli County, MT608243.9$282K+9.4%#747 of 2,401
7Gallatin County, MT5922343.5$281K+7.7%#800 of 2,401
8Glacier County, MT561535.0$292K−2.0%#929 of 2,401
9Missoula County, MT5518334.7$306K+4.4%#963 of 2,401
10Park County, MT543541.8$278K+5.7%#1,034 of 2,401

Other business types in Missoula County

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many auto repair and car care businesses are in Missoula County, MT?

There are 183 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings in Missoula County as of September 2026. 45 of them (25%) are chain locations. The listings count repair shops, body shops, tire shops, car washes, oil change and parts stores. Official counts show 117 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in 2023, up 7.3% from 2019. Official counts list 86 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Missoula County, MT spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?

About $55.9M a year, or $1,062 per household. That is 11% above the U.S. average (an index of 111, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 183 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings, it comes to $306K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 52,679 households in Missoula County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Missoula County, MT compare with the U.S. for auto repair and car care businesses?

Missoula County has 34.7 auto repair and car care businesses per 10,000 households, 3% below the U.S. rate of 35.7. Spending per business is $306K, 14% above the U.S. figure of $269K. At the national ratio of auto repair and car care businesses to household spending, Missoula County would have about 208, against 183 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 450 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. The official count rose 7.3% from 2019 to 2023, against +4.1% for the U.S.

How fast is Missoula County, MT growing?

Population estimates put Missoula County at 123,513 people in 2025, up 4.4% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 52,679 households. Median household income in Missoula County is $75,598, 6% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 39.8%, 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. Missoula County scores 55 for auto repair and car care businesses (upper middle), #963 of 2,401 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Missoula 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 Missoula County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Missoula 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 Missoula 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.