Auto · Metro area · North Carolina
Auto repair and car care businesses in the Winston-Salem, NC metro area
How the Winston-Salem, NC metro area compares with other metro areas 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 53 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #184 of 387 scored metro areas
#8 of 15 scored metro areas based in North Carolina
- Listings
- 1,032
- 230 chain locations (22%)
- Official establishments
- 422
- +9.7% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $270.6M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $961 a household
- Spending per listing
- $262K
- 2% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 36.6
- 3% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 712,206
- +5.3% since 2020
See the auto repair and car care businesses around any address in the Winston-Salem metro 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 Winston-Salem metro 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
Households in the Winston-Salem metro area spend about $270.6M a year on vehicle maintenance and repairs, or $961 per household, in line with the U.S. average. That is about $262K of household spending for each business on map listings, 2% below the U.S. figure of $269K.
The Winston-Salem metro area has 1,032 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 36.6, 3% above the U.S. rate of 35.7.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the Winston-Salem metro area was 422 in 2023, up 9.7% from 2019. That is one for every 667 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. Official counts also show 936 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 9 SBA-backed loans worth $3.4M have gone to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the Winston-Salem metro area.
Population estimates show the Winston-Salem metro area grew 5.3% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Winston-Salem metro area scores 53 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for auto repair and car care businesses, ranking #184 of 387 scored metro areas and #8 of 15 scored metro areas based in North Carolina.
How the Winston-Salem metro 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 | Winston-Salem metro area | North Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 36.6 | 36.7 | 35.7 |
| Spending per listing | $262K | $256K | $269K |
| Households per official establishment | 667 | 702 | 681 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +9.7% | +3.5% | +4.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +5.3% | +7.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $961 | $939 | $958 |
| Median household income | $65,975 | $72,388 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 53 | 53 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 422+9.7% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 2,363
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $101.1M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 936Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 1,032230 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 1,007The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 9
- Amount
- $3.4M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the Winston-Salem metro 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 Winston-Salem metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 712,206+5.3% since 2020
- Households
- 281,596
- Median age
- 41.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 69%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 2,009 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 343
- Median household income
- $65,975+29.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $90,215
- Median home value
- $233,300
- Jobs located here
- 278,334
- Daytime population
- 663,457Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Winston-Salem metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. 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 Winston-Salem metro 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 metro areas in North Carolina for auto repair and car care businesses, numbered among those based in North Carolina (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Winston-Salem metro area marked.
Top metro areas in North Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Pinehurst-Southern Pines, NC | 81 | 121 | 27.5 | $351K | +10.3% | #8 of 387 |
| 2Durham-Chapel Hill, NC | 80 | 619 | 24.9 | $359K | +7.5% | #12 of 387 |
| 3Raleigh-Cary, NC | 70 | 1,809 | 31.5 | $308K | +12.6% | #54 of 387 |
| 4Rocky Mount, NC | 66 | 183 | 31.3 | $299K | +2.8% | #80 of 387 |
| 5Wilmington, NC | 60 | 692 | 34.7 | $265K | +15.9% | #125 of 387 |
| 6Jacksonville, NC | 55 | 287 | 38.1 | $238K | +6.0% | #168 of 387 |
| 7Greenville, NC | 54 | 243 | 32.6 | $252K | +5.4% | #173 of 387 |
| Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC | 53 | 2,182 | 30.8 | $296K | +0.9% | #178 of 387 |
| 8Winston-Salem, NC | 53 | 1,032 | 36.6 | $262K | +5.3% | #184 of 387 |
| 9Burlington, NC | 53 | 284 | 40.5 | $232K | +8.5% | #187 of 387 |
Other business types in the Winston-Salem metro 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 care53
- Auto repair shops53
- Collision repair and body shops74
- Car washes and detailing66
- Tire shops49
- Oil change and quick lube35
- Gas stations62
- Insurance agencies80
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 Winston-Salem, NC metro area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 1,032 auto repair and car care businesses in the Winston-Salem metro area. 230 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 422 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in 2023, up 9.7% from 2019. Another 936 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Winston-Salem, NC metro area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $270.6M a year, or $961 per household. That is in line with the U.S. average (an index of 100, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 1,032 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings, it comes to $262K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 281,596 households in the Winston-Salem metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Winston-Salem, NC metro area compare with the U.S. for auto repair and car care businesses?
The Winston-Salem metro area has 36.6 auto repair and car care businesses per 10,000 households, 3% above the U.S. rate of 35.7. Spending per business is $262K, 2% below the U.S. figure of $269K. At the U.S. ratio of auto repair and car care businesses to household spending, the Winston-Salem metro area would have about 1,007, against 1,032 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 667 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. The official count rose 9.7% from 2019 to 2023, against +4.1% for the U.S.
How fast is the Winston-Salem, NC metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Winston-Salem metro area at 712,206 people in 2025, up 5.3% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 281,596 households. The median household income in the Winston-Salem metro area is $65,975 a year, 18% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 29.9% 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. 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 Winston-Salem metro area scores 53 for auto repair and car care businesses (upper middle), #184 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Winston-Salem metro 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 Winston-Salem metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Winston-Salem metro 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 Winston-Salem metro 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.