Auto · County · South Dakota
Auto repair and car care businesses in Clay County, SD
How Clay County, SD compares with other counties 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 64 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #586 of 2,401 scored counties
#7 of 17 scored counties in South Dakota
- Listings
- 20
- 4 chain locations (20%)
- Official establishments
- 6
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $5.9M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $1,066 a household
- Spending per listing
- $296K
- 10% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 36.1
- In line with the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 15,031
- +0.2% since 2020
See the auto repair and car care businesses around any address in Clay 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 Clay 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
Household spending on vehicle maintenance and repairs in Clay County comes to about $5.9M a year: $1,066 per household, 11% above the U.S. average. That works out to $296K per business, 10% above the U.S. figure of $269K.
Clay County has 20 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 20% of them, against 24% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 36.1, in line with the U.S. rate of 35.7.
Official counts show 6 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in Clay County in 2023. That is one for every 925 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. Another 17 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Clay County grew 0.2%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). Clay County scores 64 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for auto repair and car care businesses, ranking #586 of 2,401 scored counties and #7 of 17 scored counties in South Dakota. That puts it in the top quarter of counties.
How Clay County compares
The same measures for South Dakota 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 | Clay County | South Dakota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 36.1 | 42.6 | 35.7 |
| Spending per listing | $296K | $279K | $269K |
| Households per official establishment | 925 | 436 | 681 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +9.0% | +4.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +0.2% | +5.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $1,066 | $1,189 | $958 |
| Median household income | $56,850 | $75,081 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 64 | 52 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 8 → 6
- Employees, 2023
- 18
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $792K
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 17Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 204 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 22The 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 Clay 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 Clay County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 15,031+0.2% since 2020
- Households
- 5,547
- Median age
- 31.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 51%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 412 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 37
- Median household income
- $56,850+12.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $78,631
- Median home value
- $232,300
- Jobs located here
- 5,728
- Daytime population
- 14,972Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Clay 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 Clay 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 South Dakota
Every South Dakota market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in South Dakota for auto repair and car care businesses, numbered among those based in South Dakota, with Clay County marked.
Top counties in South Dakota
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Union County, SD | 79 | 18 | 24.6 | $537K | +3.3% | #137 of 2,401 |
| 2Lincoln County, SD | 78 | 105 | 37.7 | $332K | +17.5% | #169 of 2,401 |
| 3Lake County, SD | 73 | 20 | 42.4 | $304K | −0.2% | #284 of 2,401 |
| 4Brookings County, SD | 72 | 49 | 35.5 | $330K | +9.6% | #306 of 2,401 |
| 5Roberts County, SD | 70 | 15 | 41.4 | $301K | −0.1% | #368 of 2,401 |
| 6Minnehaha County, SD | 67 | 287 | 33.8 | $322K | +7.6% | #464 of 2,401 |
| 7Clay County, SD | 64 | 20 | 36.1 | $296K | +0.2% | #586 of 2,401 |
| 8Meade County, SD | 59 | 52 | 43.4 | $304K | +2.7% | #785 of 2,401 |
| 9Lawrence County, SD | 50 | 57 | 47.3 | $246K | +14.0% | #1,248 of 2,401 |
| 10Butte County, SD | 45 | 26 | 60.4 | $222K | +5.5% | #1,439 of 2,401 |
Other business types in Clay 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 Clay County, SD?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 20 auto repair and car care businesses in Clay County. 4 of them (20%) are chain locations. The listings count repair shops, body shops, tire shops, car washes, oil change and parts stores. Official counts show 6 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in 2023. Official counts list 17 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Clay County, SD spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $5.9M a year, or $1,066 per household. That is 11% above the U.S. average (an index of 111, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 20 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings, it comes to $296K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 5,547 households in Clay County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Clay County, SD compare with the U.S. for auto repair and car care businesses?
Clay County has 36.1 auto repair and car care businesses per 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 35.7. Spending per business is $296K, 10% above the U.S. figure of $269K. At the U.S. ratio of auto repair and car care businesses to household spending, Clay County would have about 22, against 20 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 925 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S.
How fast is Clay County, SD growing?
Population estimates put Clay County at 15,031 people in 2025, up 0.2% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 5,547 households. The median household income in Clay County is $56,850 a year, 30% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 12.1% 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. Clay County scores 64 for auto repair and car care businesses (upper middle), #586 of 2,401 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Clay 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 Clay County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Clay 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 Clay 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.