Market rankings · South Carolina
Auto repair and car care businesses in South Carolina
Every metro area, small-town market and county in South Carolina, ranked by the Groundwork market score for auto repair and car care businesses, with competitor counts and household spending for each.
- Listings
- 7,515
- 2,238 chain locations (30%)
- Official establishments
- 2,788
- +8.6% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $1.9B
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs
- Listings per 10k households
- 35.5
- In line with the U.S.
- Spending per listing
- $256K
- 5% below the U.S.
- Rank among states
- #20 of 51
- Market score 56 · Upper middle
A site report maps the auto repair and car care businesses on map listings around any address in South Carolina by name and distance, and the spending within reach.
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
South Carolina has 7,515 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings as of September 2026. 2,238 of them (30%) are chain locations, against 24% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 35.5, in line with the U.S. rate of 35.7.
At $907 per household (5% below the U.S. average), households in South Carolina spend about $1.9B a year on vehicle maintenance and repairs. Spread across 7,515 auto repair and car care businesses, that is $256K per business, 5% below the U.S. figure of $269K.
In 2023, official counts showed 2,788 businesses with payroll in South Carolina classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers, up 8.6% from 2019. That is one for every 760 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. Across the U.S., the count rose 4.1% over the same years. Since fiscal 2022, 89 SBA-backed loans worth $54.2M have gone to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in South Carolina.
Among the 50 states and DC, South Carolina ranks #20 for auto repair and car care businesses, with a Groundwork market score of 56 (upper middle). Of the 10 scored metro areas in or partly in South Carolina, the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal metro area scores highest (75). Of the 6 scored small-town markets in or partly in South Carolina, the Murrells Inlet area scores highest (74).
Every market in South Carolina for auto repair and car care businesses
Download the ranking (CSV)Numbered by Groundwork market score among the markets based in South Carolina, highest first; the U.S. rank compares each market with every other of its kind. A metro area that crosses a state line is listed in each state it reaches, and numbered only in the state its page is under. How the score works.
Metro areas
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC | 75 | 271 | 28.4 | $313K | +12.0% | #29 of 387 |
| 2Charleston-North Charleston, SC | 71 | 1,034 | 30.8 | $297K | +10.7% | #49 of 387 |
| Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC | 60 | 804 | 34.7 | $265K | +4.7% | #126 of 387 |
| 3Columbia, SC | 57 | 1,167 | 34.4 | $262K | +6.0% | #146 of 387 |
| 4Greenville-Anderson-Greer, SC | 54 | 1,467 | 38.2 | $244K | +9.0% | #174 of 387 |
| 5Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach, SC | 52 | 565 | 35.6 | $237K | +20.9% | #194 of 387 |
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC | 51 | 4,137 | 38.4 | $248K | +10.1% | #201 of 387 |
| 6Sumter, SC | 40 | 153 | 37.2 | $231K | −0.3% | #274 of 387 |
| 7Spartanburg, SC | 40 | 628 | 43.8 | $213K | +14.3% | #277 of 387 |
| 8Florence, SC | 23 | 354 | 45.1 | $188K | +0.9% | #357 of 387 |
Small-town markets
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Murrells Inlet, SC | 74 | 78 | 28.8 | $319K | +3.8% | #50 of 538 |
| 2Seneca, SC | 74 | 115 | 33.3 | $294K | +6.3% | #52 of 538 |
| 3Greenwood, SC | 55 | 135 | 35.9 | $239K | +1.7% | #222 of 538 |
| 4Newberry, SC | 49 | 66 | 43.1 | $219K | +4.8% | #284 of 538 |
| 5Gaffney, SC | 42 | 87 | 39.4 | $227K | +3.7% | #351 of 538 |
| 6Orangeburg, SC | 32 | 136 | 41.1 | $201K | −0.9% | #441 of 538 |
Counties
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Edgefield County, SC | 83 | 24 | 24.6 | $412K | +16.1% | #84 of 2,401 |
| 2Berkeley County, SC | 79 | 254 | 27.1 | $349K | +18.7% | #148 of 2,401 |
| 3Abbeville County, SC | 77 | 20 | 20.5 | $467K | +2.3% | #176 of 2,401 |
| 4Beaufort County, SC | 72 | 224 | 27.2 | $330K | +8.9% | #307 of 2,401 |
| 5Saluda County, SC | 71 | 24 | 31.3 | $324K | +4.1% | #342 of 2,401 |
| 6Aiken County, SC | 71 | 226 | 32.3 | $299K | +7.3% | #348 of 2,401 |
| 7Laurens County, SC | 70 | 84 | 31.2 | $299K | +6.2% | #369 of 2,401 |
| 8Calhoun County, SC | 68 | 16 | 25.9 | $400K | +0.6% | #417 of 2,401 |
| 9Fairfield County, SC | 65 | 22 | 24.6 | $374K | −2.6% | #522 of 2,401 |
| 10Oconee County, SC | 65 | 115 | 33.3 | $294K | +6.3% | #541 of 2,401 |
| 11Dorchester County, SC | 65 | 208 | 32.9 | $290K | +10.1% | #544 of 2,401 |
| 12York County, SC | 65 | 397 | 34.9 | $287K | +8.1% | #546 of 2,401 |
| 13Georgetown County, SC | 64 | 78 | 28.8 | $319K | +3.8% | #576 of 2,401 |
| 14Kershaw County, SC | 63 | 90 | 33.5 | $305K | +11.6% | #627 of 2,401 |
| 15Chesterfield County, SC | 59 | 57 | 32.5 | $266K | +3.4% | #808 of 2,401 |
| 16Colleton County, SC | 58 | 51 | 31.1 | $280K | +2.2% | #846 of 2,401 |
| 17Chester County, SC | 58 | 43 | 32.7 | $276K | +2.2% | #848 of 2,401 |
| 18Lancaster County, SC | 56 | 150 | 37.4 | $254K | +18.3% | #947 of 2,401 |
| 19Lee County, SC | 55 | 17 | 26.8 | $321K | −5.0% | #958 of 2,401 |
| 20Charleston County, SC | 55 | 572 | 32.0 | $276K | +6.4% | #984 of 2,401 |
| 21Richland County, SC | 55 | 517 | 30.8 | $267K | +4.6% | #993 of 2,401 |
| 22Pickens County, SC | 55 | 203 | 38.7 | $247K | +5.7% | #1,010 of 2,401 |
| 23Greenville County, SC | 54 | 810 | 36.7 | $251K | +10.6% | #1,050 of 2,401 |
| 24Horry County, SC | 51 | 565 | 35.6 | $237K | +20.9% | #1,201 of 2,401 |
| 25Lexington County, SC | 47 | 498 | 40.8 | $238K | +7.7% | #1,340 of 2,401 |
Show all 46 counties
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 26Hampton County, SC | 46 | 23 | 31.8 | $262K | −1.9% | #1,379 of 2,401 |
| 27Anderson County, SC | 45 | 370 | 44.1 | $214K | +7.7% | #1,441 of 2,401 |
| 28Spartanburg County, SC | 43 | 588 | 44.7 | $212K | +15.6% | #1,527 of 2,401 |
| 29Sumter County, SC | 41 | 153 | 37.2 | $231K | −0.3% | #1,615 of 2,401 |
| 30Newberry County, SC | 41 | 66 | 43.1 | $219K | +4.8% | #1,626 of 2,401 |
| 31Jasper County, SC | 40 | 47 | 35.8 | $234K | +32.2% | #1,669 of 2,401 |
| 32Clarendon County, SC | 40 | 50 | 40.5 | $209K | +0.7% | #1,685 of 2,401 |
| 33Darlington County, SC | 39 | 101 | 39.5 | $216K | +0.1% | #1,718 of 2,401 |
| 34Williamsburg County, SC | 37 | 44 | 35.8 | $239K | −4.0% | #1,775 of 2,401 |
| 35Marlboro County, SC | 36 | 31 | 31.7 | $223K | −3.8% | #1,807 of 2,401 |
| 36Cherokee County, SC | 35 | 87 | 39.4 | $227K | +3.7% | #1,841 of 2,401 |
| 37Dillon County, SC | 34 | 38 | 35.1 | $220K | −2.9% | #1,883 of 2,401 |
| 38Greenwood County, SC | 34 | 115 | 41.2 | $199K | +1.5% | #1,898 of 2,401 |
| 39Union County, SC | 32 | 40 | 34.5 | $233K | −1.4% | #1,946 of 2,401 |
| 40Marion County, SC | 31 | 41 | 33.7 | $207K | −2.9% | #2,001 of 2,401 |
| 41Barnwell County, SC | 30 | 34 | 41.9 | $198K | +0.4% | #2,034 of 2,401 |
| 42Bamberg County, SC | 30 | 20 | 43.1 | $183K | −3.5% | #2,040 of 2,401 |
| 43Orangeburg County, SC | 26 | 136 | 41.1 | $201K | −0.9% | #2,147 of 2,401 |
| 44Florence County, SC | 23 | 253 | 47.9 | $177K | +1.2% | #2,225 of 2,401 |
| McCormick County, SC | Not scored | 6 | 14.3 | $607K | +7.3% | |
| Allendale County, SC | Not scored | 7 | 21.6 | $322K | −7.4% |
Markets with fewer than 5 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings, and counties under 10,000 people, aren’t scored; they’re listed last in each table.
Questions
How many auto repair and car care businesses are in South Carolina?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 7,515 auto repair and car care businesses in South Carolina. 2,238 of them (30%) are chain locations. The listings count repair shops, body shops, tire shops, car washes, oil change and parts stores. Official counts show 2,788 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in 2023, up 8.6% from 2019. Official counts list 6,609 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in South Carolina spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $1.9B a year, or $907 per household. That is 5% below the U.S. average (an index of 95, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 7,515 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings, it comes to $256K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 2,117,989 households in South Carolina and national spending patterns by income.
How does South Carolina compare with the U.S. for auto repair and car care businesses?
South Carolina has 35.5 auto repair and car care businesses per 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 35.7. Spending per business is $256K, 5% below the U.S. figure of $269K. At the U.S. ratio of auto repair and car care businesses to household spending, South Carolina would have about 7,151, against 7,515 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 760 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. The official count rose 8.6% from 2019 to 2023, against +4.1% for the U.S.
Which market in South Carolina has the highest market score for auto repair and car care businesses?
Among 10 scored metro areas in or partly in South Carolina, the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal metro area scores highest, at 75 (high). Among 6 scored small-town markets in or partly in South Carolina, the Murrells Inlet area scores highest, at 74 (upper middle). Among 44 scored counties in South Carolina, Edgefield County scores highest, at 83 (high). Scores compare each market with others of its kind across the U.S.
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. South Carolina scores 56 for auto repair and car care businesses (upper middle), #20 of the 50 states and DC.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in South Carolina. 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.
Auto repair and car care in other states
All 51 states
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- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
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Top markets for auto repair and car care businesses across the U.S. · All business types in South Carolina
Related business types in South Carolina
- Auto repair shops4,411 listings
- Collision repair and body shops630 listings
- Car washes and detailing850 listings
- Tire shops1,006 listings
- Oil change and quick lube183 listings
- Gas stations2,924 listings
- Insurance agencies2,949 listings
Screening a site or an acquisition in South Carolina?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
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.