Auto · County · Montana
Auto repair and car care businesses in Sanders County, MT
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for auto repair and car care businesses in Sanders County, MT, set against other counties and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 85 out of 100: High
Ranked #55 of 2,401 scored counties
#2 of 21 scored counties in Montana
- Listings
- 17
- 7 chain locations (41%)
- Official establishments
- 7
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $6.5M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $1,192 a household
- Spending per listing
- $382K
- 42% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 31.2
- 13% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 14,062
- +12.9% since 2020
See the auto repair and car care businesses around any address in Sanders 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 Sanders 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
The Groundwork market score for auto repair and car care businesses in Sanders County is 85 (high), #55 of 2,401 scored counties and #2 of 21 scored counties in Montana. That puts it in the top 10% of counties for auto repair and car care businesses.
Map listings as of September 2026 show 17 auto repair and car care businesses in Sanders County. Chain locations make up 41% of them, against 24% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 31.2, 13% below the U.S. rate of 35.7.
At $1,192 per household (24% above the U.S. average), households in Sanders County spend about $6.5M a year on vehicle maintenance and repairs. That is about $382K of household spending for each business on map listings, 42% above the U.S. figure of $269K.
In 2023, official counts showed 7 businesses with payroll in Sanders County classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers. That is one for every 779 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. Population estimates show Sanders County grew 12.9% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How Sanders 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.
| Measure | Sanders County | Montana | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 31.2 | 43.7 | 35.7 |
| Spending per listing | $382K | $265K | $269K |
| Households per official establishment | 779 | 437 | 681 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +9.6% | +4.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +12.9% | +5.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $1,192 | $1,157 | $958 |
| Median household income | $57,476 | $72,509 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 85 | 47 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 6 → 7
- Employees, 2023
- 29
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $1.3M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 31Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 177 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 24The 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 Sanders 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 Sanders County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 14,062+12.9% since 2020
- Households
- 5,451
- Median age
- 54.7
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 81%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.3
- Land area
- 2,760 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 5
- Median household income
- $57,476+40.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $75,317
- Median home value
- $359,000
- Jobs located here
- 3,261
- Daytime population
- 12,845Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Sanders 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 Sanders 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 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 Sanders County marked.
Top counties in Montana
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Jefferson County, MT | 94 | 13 | 26.0 | $584K | +9.8% | #7 of 2,401 |
| 2Sanders County, MT | 85 | 17 | 31.2 | $382K | +12.9% | #55 of 2,401 |
| 3Carbon County, MT | 74 | 16 | 34.3 | $384K | +9.1% | #247 of 2,401 |
| 4Big Horn County, MT | 73 | 11 | 28.7 | $395K | −2.5% | #264 of 2,401 |
| 5Lake County, MT | 68 | 43 | 34.2 | $362K | +6.9% | #421 of 2,401 |
| 6Ravalli County, MT | 60 | 82 | 43.9 | $282K | +9.4% | #747 of 2,401 |
| 7Gallatin County, MT | 59 | 223 | 43.5 | $281K | +7.7% | #800 of 2,401 |
| 8Glacier County, MT | 56 | 15 | 35.0 | $292K | −2.0% | #929 of 2,401 |
| 9Missoula County, MT | 55 | 183 | 34.7 | $306K | +4.4% | #963 of 2,401 |
| 10Park County, MT | 54 | 35 | 41.8 | $278K | +5.7% | #1,034 of 2,401 |
Other business types in Sanders 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 Sanders County, MT?
There are 17 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings in Sanders County as of September 2026. 7 of them (41%) are chain locations. The listings count repair shops, body shops, tire shops, car washes, oil change and parts stores. Official counts show 7 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in 2023. Another 31 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in Sanders County, MT spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $6.5M a year, or $1,192 per household. That is 24% above the U.S. average (an index of 124, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 17 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings, it comes to $382K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 5,451 households in Sanders County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Sanders County, MT compare with the U.S. for auto repair and car care businesses?
Sanders County has 31.2 auto repair and car care businesses per 10,000 households, 13% below the U.S. rate of 35.7. Spending per business is $382K, 42% above the U.S. figure of $269K. At the national ratio of auto repair and car care businesses to household spending, Sanders County would have about 24, against 17 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 779 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S.
How fast is Sanders County, MT growing?
Population estimates put Sanders County at 14,062 people in 2025, up 12.9% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 5,451 households. Median household income in Sanders County is $57,476, 29% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 40.8%, 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. Sanders County scores 85 for auto repair and car care businesses (high), #55 of 2,401 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Sanders 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 Sanders County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Sanders 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 Sanders 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.