Auto · Small-town market · Oklahoma
Auto repair and car care businesses in the Tahlequah, OK area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for auto repair and car care businesses in the Tahlequah, OK area, set against other small-town markets and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 74 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #51 of 538 scored small-town markets
#1 of 17 scored small-town markets based in Oklahoma
- Listings
- 56
- 8 chain locations (14%)
- Official establishments
- 18
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $16.5M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $884 a household
- Spending per listing
- $295K
- 10% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 29.9
- 16% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 49,196
- +4.5% since 2020
See the auto repair and car care businesses around any address in the Tahlequah 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 Tahlequah 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 Tahlequah area scores 74 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for auto repair and car care businesses, ranking #51 of 538 scored small-town markets and #1 of 17 scored small-town markets based in Oklahoma. That puts it in the top 10% of small-town markets for auto repair and car care businesses.
At $884 per household (8% below the U.S. average), households in the Tahlequah area spend about $16.5M a year on vehicle maintenance and repairs. Spread across 56 auto repair and car care businesses, that is $295K per business, 10% above the U.S. figure of $269K.
The Tahlequah area has 56 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 14% of them, against 24% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 29.9, 16% below the U.S. rate of 35.7.
In 2023, official counts showed 18 businesses with payroll in the Tahlequah area classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers. That is one for every 1,039 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $1.5M has gone to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the Tahlequah area. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Tahlequah area grew 4.5%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Tahlequah area compares
The same measures for Oklahoma 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 | Tahlequah area | Oklahoma | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 29.9 | 42.0 | 35.7 |
| Spending per listing | $295K | $217K | $269K |
| Households per official establishment | 1,039 | 696 | 681 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +7.1% | +4.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +4.5% | +4.0% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $884 | $911 | $958 |
| Median household income | $53,218 | $65,039 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 74 | 39 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 18
- Employees, 2023
- 77
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $2.7M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 73Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 568 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 62The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $1.5M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the Tahlequah 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 Tahlequah area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 49,196+4.5% since 2020
- Households
- 18,698
- Median age
- 38.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 66%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 749 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 64
- Median household income
- $53,218+24.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $72,290
- Median home value
- $168,500
- Jobs located here
- 13,276
- Daytime population
- 42,397Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Tahlequah 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 Tahlequah 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 Oklahoma
Every Oklahoma market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Oklahoma for auto repair and car care businesses, numbered among those based in Oklahoma, with the Tahlequah area marked.
Top small-town markets in Oklahoma
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Tahlequah, OK | 74 | 56 | 29.9 | $295K | +4.5% | #51 of 538 |
| 2Shawnee, OK | 63 | 103 | 38.3 | $242K | +3.5% | #158 of 538 |
| 3Durant, OK | 53 | 85 | 46.2 | $191K | +10.9% | #244 of 538 |
| 4Stillwater, OK | 49 | 117 | 35.9 | $235K | +2.8% | #283 of 538 |
| 5Duncan, OK | 47 | 84 | 47.8 | $195K | +3.4% | #309 of 538 |
| 6Bartlesville, OK | 43 | 99 | 47.2 | $193K | +2.7% | #345 of 538 |
| 7Ada, OK | 42 | 68 | 44.9 | $196K | +1.2% | #359 of 538 |
| 8Altus, OK | 40 | 37 | 37.9 | $231K | +0.1% | #374 of 538 |
| 9Muskogee, OK | 34 | 102 | 39.6 | $213K | +0.7% | #421 of 538 |
| 10McAlester, OK | 29 | 89 | 49.9 | $175K | −1.1% | #460 of 538 |
Other business types in the Tahlequah 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 care74
- Auto repair shops70
- Collision repair and body shops
- Car washes and detailing41
- Tire shops52
- Oil change and quick lube
- Gas stations62
- Insurance agencies85
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 Tahlequah, OK area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 56 auto repair and car care businesses in the Tahlequah area. 8 of them (14%) are chain locations. The listings count repair shops, body shops, tire shops, car washes, oil change and parts stores. Official counts show 18 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in 2023. Another 73 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Tahlequah, OK area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $16.5M a year, or $884 per household. That is 8% below the U.S. average (an index of 92, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 56 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings, it comes to $295K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 18,698 households in the Tahlequah area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Tahlequah, OK area compare with the U.S. for auto repair and car care businesses?
The Tahlequah area has 29.9 auto repair and car care businesses per 10,000 households, 16% below the U.S. rate of 35.7. Spending per business is $295K, 10% above the U.S. figure of $269K. At the U.S. ratio of auto repair and car care businesses to household spending, the Tahlequah area would have about 62, against 56 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,039 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S.
How fast is the Tahlequah, OK area growing?
Population estimates put the Tahlequah area at 49,196 people in 2025, up 4.5% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 18,698 households. The median household income in the Tahlequah area is $53,218 a year, 34% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 24.4% 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 Tahlequah area scores 74 for auto repair and car care businesses (upper middle), #51 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 Tahlequah 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 Tahlequah area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Tahlequah 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 Tahlequah 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.