Auto · Small-town market · North Carolina
Auto repair and car care businesses in the Morehead City, NC area
How the Morehead City, NC 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 67 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #108 of 538 scored small-town markets
#3 of 23 scored small-town markets based in North Carolina
- Listings
- 104
- 30 chain locations (29%)
- Official establishments
- 47
- +6.8% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $29.9M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $935 a household
- Spending per listing
- $288K
- 7% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 32.5
- 9% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 70,469
- +4.1% since 2020
See the auto repair and car care businesses around any address in the Morehead City 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 Morehead City 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
Map listings as of September 2026 show 104 auto repair and car care businesses in the Morehead City area. 30 of them (29%) are chain locations, against 24% across the U.S. That comes to 32.5 for every 10,000 households, 9% below the U.S. rate of 35.7.
At $935 per household (2% below the U.S. average), households in the Morehead City area spend about $29.9M a year on vehicle maintenance and repairs. That works out to $288K per business, 7% above the U.S. figure of $269K.
Official counts show 47 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the Morehead City area in 2023, up 6.8% from 2019. That is one for every 680 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. Official counts list 71 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $1.4M have gone to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the Morehead City area.
Population estimates put the population change in the Morehead City area from 2020 to 2025 at +4.1%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Morehead City area scores 67 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for auto repair and car care businesses, ranking #108 of 538 scored small-town markets and #3 of 23 scored small-town markets based in North Carolina. That puts it in the top quarter of small-town markets.
How the Morehead City area compares
The same measures for North Carolina 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 | Morehead City area | North Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 32.5 | 36.7 | 35.7 |
| Spending per listing | $288K | $256K | $269K |
| Households per official establishment | 680 | 702 | 681 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +6.8% | +3.5% | +4.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +4.1% | +7.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $935 | $939 | $958 |
| Median household income | $72,322 | $72,388 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 67 | 53 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 47+6.8% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 200
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $7.5M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 71Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 10430 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 111The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 2
- Amount
- $1.4M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the Morehead City 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 Morehead City area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 70,469+4.1% since 2020
- Households
- 31,977
- Median age
- 49.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 75%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 508 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 136
- Median household income
- $72,322+26.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $99,351
- Median home value
- $333,300
- Jobs located here
- 23,748
- Daytime population
- 65,592Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Morehead City 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 Morehead City 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 North Carolina
Every North Carolina market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in North Carolina for auto repair and car care businesses, numbered among those based in North Carolina, with the Morehead City area marked.
Top small-town markets in North Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Brevard, NC | 79 | 39 | 26.7 | $350K | +2.9% | #26 of 538 |
| 2Anderson Creek, NC | 72 | 180 | 36.1 | $281K | +12.3% | #69 of 538 |
| 3Morehead City, NC | 67 | 104 | 32.5 | $288K | +4.1% | #108 of 538 |
| 4Kill Devil Hills, NC | 64 | 63 | 37.4 | $277K | +3.3% | #137 of 538 |
| 5Marion, NC | 62 | 72 | 38.6 | $246K | +1.5% | #165 of 538 |
| 6Lumberton, NC | 59 | 160 | 37.1 | $241K | +3.4% | #190 of 538 |
| 7Waynesville, NC | 57 | 99 | 36.5 | $262K | +1.9% | #205 of 538 |
| 8Boone, NC | 56 | 72 | 34.0 | $270K | +0.6% | #208 of 538 |
| 9Laurinburg, NC | 55 | 40 | 31.8 | $264K | −0.3% | #219 of 538 |
| 10New Bern, NC | 53 | 193 | 36.8 | $243K | +3.6% | #238 of 538 |
Other business types in the Morehead City 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 care67
- Auto repair shops72
- Collision repair and body shops78
- Car washes and detailing55
- Tire shops49
- Oil change and quick lube
- Gas stations68
- Insurance agencies89
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 Morehead City, NC area?
There are 104 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings in the Morehead City area as of September 2026. 30 of them (29%) are chain locations. The listings count repair shops, body shops, tire shops, car washes, oil change and parts stores. Official counts show 47 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in 2023, up 6.8% from 2019. Official counts also show 71 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Morehead City, NC area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $29.9M a year, or $935 per household. That is 2% below the U.S. average (an index of 98, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 104 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings, it comes to $288K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 31,977 households in the Morehead City area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Morehead City, NC area compare with the U.S. for auto repair and car care businesses?
The Morehead City area has 32.5 auto repair and car care businesses per 10,000 households, 9% below the U.S. rate of 35.7. Spending per business is $288K, 7% above the U.S. figure of $269K. At the national ratio of auto repair and car care businesses to household spending, the Morehead City area would have about 111, against 104 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 680 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. The official count rose 6.8% from 2019 to 2023, against +4.1% for the U.S.
How fast is the Morehead City, NC area growing?
Population estimates put the Morehead City area at 70,469 people in 2025, up 4.1% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 31,977 households. Median household income in the Morehead City area is $72,322, 10% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 26.5%, 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 Morehead City area scores 67 for auto repair and car care businesses (upper middle), #108 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 Morehead City 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 Morehead City area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Morehead City 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 Morehead City 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.