Groundwork

Auto · County · Virginia

Auto repair and car care businesses in Charlottesville city, VA

How Charlottesville city, VA 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 26 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #2,140 of 2,401 scored counties
#94 of 115 scored counties in Virginia

Listings
71
19 chain locations (27%)
Official establishments
26
−21.2% since 2019
Household spending a year
$15.2M
On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $768 a household
Spending per listing
$214K
20% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
35.8
In line with the U.S.
Population, 2025
44,388
−4.4% since 2020

See the auto repair and car care businesses around any address in Charlottesville city

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 Charlottesville city. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

For auto repair and car care businesses, Charlottesville city has a Groundwork market score of 26 (lower middle): #2,140 of 2,401 scored counties and #94 of 115 scored counties in Virginia. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.

At $768 per household (20% below the U.S. average), households in Charlottesville city spend about $15.2M a year on vehicle maintenance and repairs. That is about $214K of household spending for each business on map listings, 20% below the U.S. figure of $269K.

Charlottesville city has 71 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 27% of them, against 24% across the U.S. That comes to 35.8 for every 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 35.7.

Official counts show 26 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in Charlottesville city in 2023, down 21.2% from 2019. That is one for every 762 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Charlottesville city declined 4.4%, against +3.1% for the U.S.

How Charlottesville city compares

The same measures for Virginia 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.

Auto repair and car care in Charlottesville city, VA compared with Virginia and the U.S.
MeasureCharlottesville cityVirginiaU.S.
Listings per 10k households35.831.535.7
Spending per listing$214K$307K$269K
Households per official establishment762685681
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−21.2%+4.4%+4.1%
Population growth, 2020–2025−4.4%+2.8%+3.1%
Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs$768$968$958
Median household income$74,824$93,170$80,734
Groundwork market score2664

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
33 → 26−21.2% over the period
Employees, 2023
228
Annual payroll, 2023
$12.3M
One-person businesses, 2023
12Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
7119 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
57The 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 Charlottesville city, 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 Charlottesville city

Population, 2025 estimate
44,388−4.4% since 2020
Households
19,815
Median age
35.1
Homes lived in by their owners
44%
Vehicles per household
1.5
Land area
10 sq. mi.
People per square mile
4,435
Median household income
$74,824+25.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$115,430
Median home value
$486,700
Jobs located here
37,763
Daytime population
63,939Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Charlottesville city?

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 Charlottesville city. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Auto repair and car care across Virginia

Every Virginia market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Virginia for auto repair and car care businesses, numbered among those based in Virginia, with Charlottesville city marked.

Top counties in Virginia

Counties in Virginia ranked for auto repair and car care businesses by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Fluvanna County, VA941312.6$999K+6.2%#4 of 2,401
2Caroline County, VA902924.2$476K+11.3%#21 of 2,401
3Goochland County, VA873029.0$413K+17.4%#39 of 2,401
4Louisa County, VA874528.9$411K+13.6%#40 of 2,401
5James City County, VA864915.3$661K+6.2%#41 of 2,401
6Prince George County, VA852418.6$632K+2.0%#48 of 2,401
7Clarke County, VA851830.6$386K+5.4%#54 of 2,401
8New Kent County, VA832021.6$592K+21.2%#74 of 2,401
9Poquoson city, VA801021.2$547K+6.6%#113 of 2,401
10Nelson County, VA801320.4$518K+1.2%#114 of 2,401
94Charlottesville city, VA267135.8$214K−4.4%#2,140 of 2,401

Other business types in Charlottesville city

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many auto repair and car care businesses are in Charlottesville city, VA?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 71 auto repair and car care businesses in Charlottesville city. 19 of them (27%) are chain locations. The listings count repair shops, body shops, tire shops, car washes, oil change and parts stores. Official counts show 26 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in 2023, down 21.2% from 2019. Official counts also show 12 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Charlottesville city, VA spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?

About $15.2M a year, or $768 per household. That is 20% below the U.S. average (an index of 80, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 71 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings, it comes to $214K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 19,815 households in Charlottesville city and national spending patterns by income.

How does Charlottesville city, VA compare with the U.S. for auto repair and car care businesses?

Charlottesville city has 35.8 auto repair and car care businesses per 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 35.7. Spending per business is $214K, 20% below the U.S. figure of $269K. At the U.S. ratio of auto repair and car care businesses to household spending, Charlottesville city would have about 57, against 71 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 762 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. The official count fell 21.2% from 2019 to 2023, against +4.1% for the U.S.

How fast is Charlottesville city, VA growing?

Population estimates put Charlottesville city at 44,388 people in 2025, down 4.4% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 19,815 households. The median household income in Charlottesville city is $74,824 a year, 7% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 25.8% 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. Charlottesville city scores 26 for auto repair and car care businesses (lower middle), #2,140 of 2,401 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Charlottesville city. 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 Charlottesville city

Screening a site or an acquisition in Charlottesville city?

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 Charlottesville city. 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.