Auto · County · Tennessee
Auto repair and car care businesses in Carter County, TN
How Carter County, TN 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 66 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #507 of 2,401 scored counties
#36 of 87 scored counties in Tennessee
- Listings
- 73
- 19 chain locations (26%)
- Official establishments
- 17
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $22.7M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $928 a household
- Spending per listing
- $310K
- 16% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 29.9
- 16% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 57,361
- +1.7% since 2020
See the auto repair and car care businesses around any address in Carter 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 Carter 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
Households in Carter County spend about $22.7M a year on vehicle maintenance and repairs, or $928 per household, 3% below the U.S. average. Spread across 73 auto repair and car care businesses, that is $310K per business, 16% above the U.S. figure of $269K.
Carter County has 73 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 19 are chain locations, or 26%, against 24% across the U.S. That is 29.9 per 10,000 households, 16% below the U.S. rate of 35.7.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in Carter County was 17 in 2023. That is one for every 1,437 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. Another 73 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 3 SBA-backed loans worth $896K have gone to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in Carter County.
Population estimates put the population change in Carter County from 2020 to 2025 at +1.7%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). Carter County scores 66 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for auto repair and car care businesses, ranking #507 of 2,401 scored counties and #36 of 87 scored counties in Tennessee. That puts it in the top quarter of counties.
How Carter County compares
The same measures for Tennessee 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 | Carter County | Tennessee | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 29.9 | 34.7 | 35.7 |
| Spending per listing | $310K | $272K | $269K |
| Households per official establishment | 1,437 | 829 | 681 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +6.9% | +4.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +1.7% | +5.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $928 | $944 | $958 |
| Median household income | $50,135 | $69,595 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 66 | 64 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 16 → 17
- Employees, 2023
- 53
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $2.2M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 73Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 7319 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 84The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 3
- Amount
- $896K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in Carter 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 Carter County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 57,361+1.7% since 2020
- Households
- 24,425
- Median age
- 45.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 75%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 341 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 166
- Median household income
- $50,135+31.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $66,526
- Median home value
- $168,200
- Jobs located here
- 12,579
- Daytime population
- 45,703Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Carter 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 Carter 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 Tennessee
Every Tennessee market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Tennessee for auto repair and car care businesses, numbered among those based in Tennessee, with Carter County marked.
Top counties in Tennessee
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Williamson County, TN | 88 | 227 | 24.6 | $464K | +9.0% | #30 of 2,401 |
| 2Fayette County, TN | 85 | 51 | 29.6 | $370K | +7.7% | #56 of 2,401 |
| 3Morgan County, TN | 84 | 11 | 15.3 | $696K | +5.3% | #60 of 2,401 |
| 4Loudon County, TN | 84 | 78 | 32.4 | $341K | +15.6% | #68 of 2,401 |
| 5Polk County, TN | 84 | 25 | 33.7 | $332K | +5.9% | #70 of 2,401 |
| 6Jackson County, TN | 83 | 6 | 12.5 | $802K | +7.1% | #72 of 2,401 |
| 7Bledsoe County, TN | 83 | 11 | 22.6 | $466K | +6.5% | #77 of 2,401 |
| 8Grainger County, TN | 82 | 19 | 19.7 | $516K | +9.2% | #90 of 2,401 |
| 9Union County, TN | 82 | 26 | 32.8 | $333K | +8.1% | #97 of 2,401 |
| 10Cheatham County, TN | 80 | 53 | 32.6 | $348K | +4.1% | #128 of 2,401 |
| 36Carter County, TN | 66 | 73 | 29.9 | $310K | +1.7% | #507 of 2,401 |
Other business types in Carter 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 Carter County, TN?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 73 auto repair and car care businesses in Carter County. 19 of them (26%) are chain locations. The listings count repair shops, body shops, tire shops, car washes, oil change and parts stores. Official counts show 17 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in 2023. Official counts list 73 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Carter County, TN spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $22.7M a year, or $928 per household. That is 3% below the U.S. average (an index of 97, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 73 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings, it comes to $310K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 24,425 households in Carter County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Carter County, TN compare with the U.S. for auto repair and car care businesses?
Carter County 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 $310K, 16% above the U.S. figure of $269K. At the U.S. ratio of auto repair and car care businesses to household spending, Carter County would have about 84, against 73 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,437 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S.
How fast is Carter County, TN growing?
Population estimates put Carter County at 57,361 people in 2025, up 1.7% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 24,425 households. The median household income in Carter County is $50,135 a year, 38% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 31.6% 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. Carter County scores 66 for auto repair and car care businesses (upper middle), #507 of 2,401 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Carter 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 Carter County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Carter 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 Carter 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.