Groundwork

Auto · Metro area · Indiana

Auto repair shops in the Fort Wayne, IN metro area

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for auto repair shops in the Fort Wayne, IN metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 58 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #127 of 387 scored metro areas
#8 of 12 scored metro areas based in Indiana

Listings
375
83 chain locations (22%)
Official establishments
219
0.0% since 2019
Household spending a year
$190.3M
On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $1,045 a household
Spending per listing
$507K
14% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
20.6
4% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
466,258
+3.9% since 2020

See the auto repair shops around any address in the Fort Wayne metro area

The site report maps the auto repair shops 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 Fort Wayne metro area. 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

Households in the Fort Wayne metro area spend about $190.3M a year on vehicle maintenance and repairs, or $1,045 per household, 9% above the U.S. average. That is about $507K of household spending for each shop on map listings, 14% above the U.S. figure of $445K. The spending figure covers all vehicle maintenance and repairs, not only auto repair shops.

The Fort Wayne metro area has 375 auto repair shops on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 83 are chain locations, or 22%, against 16% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 20.6, 4% below the U.S. rate of 21.5.

Official counts show 219 businesses with payroll classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in the Fort Wayne metro area in 2023, unchanged from 2019. That is one for every 832 households, against one for every 955 across the U.S. Official counts also show 243 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 8 SBA-backed loans worth $2.2M have gone to businesses classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in the Fort Wayne metro area.

Population estimates show the Fort Wayne metro area grew 3.9% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). For auto repair shops, the Fort Wayne metro area has a Groundwork market score of 58 (upper middle): #127 of 387 scored metro areas and #8 of 12 scored metro areas based in Indiana.

How the Fort Wayne metro area compares

The same measures for Indiana and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all vehicle maintenance and repairs by the auto repair shops 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 shops in Fort Wayne, IN metro area compared with Indiana and the U.S.
MeasureFort Wayne metro areaIndianaU.S.
Listings per 10k households20.621.321.5
Spending per listing$507K$504K$445K
Households per official establishment832928955
Official establishment growth, 2019–20230.0%+0.4%+2.1%
Population growth, 2020–2025+3.9%+2.7%+3.1%
Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs$1,045$1,072$958
Median household income$71,213$71,957$80,734
Groundwork market score5864

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
2190.0% over the period
Employees, 2023
1,606
Annual payroll, 2023
$89.4M
One-person businesses, 2023
243Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
37583 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
428The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
8
Amount
$2.2M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in the Fort Wayne metro 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 Fort Wayne metro area

Population, 2025 estimate
466,258+3.9% since 2020
Households
182,145
Median age
37.6
Homes lived in by their owners
70%
Vehicles per household
1.8
Land area
1,361 sq. mi.
People per square mile
335
Median household income
$71,213
Average household income
$93,321
Median home value
$214,100
Jobs located here
229,223
Daytime population
467,926Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Fort Wayne metro area?

These figures cover the whole metro area. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the auto repair shops on map listings by name and distance.

Or open the report at the center of the Fort Wayne metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Auto repair shops across Indiana

Every Indiana market ranked →

The highest-scoring metro areas in Indiana for auto repair shops, numbered among those based in Indiana (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Fort Wayne metro area marked.

Top metro areas in Indiana

Metro areas in Indiana ranked for auto repair shops by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Columbus, IN797422.2$524K+4.3%#16 of 387
2Indianapolis-Carmel-Greenwood, IN771,66719.8$540K+5.4%#24 of 387
Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN741,67618.5$569K+2.7%#35 of 387
3Bloomington, IN7210515.5$636K+2.0%#47 of 387
4Lafayette-West Lafayette, IN6717719.5$524K+2.1%#73 of 387
5Evansville, IN6123820.9$498K+1.6%#105 of 387
6South Bend-Mishawaka, IN-MI5925319.7$511K+0.1%#115 of 387
7Muncie, IN5910021.6$457K+1.2%#119 of 387
8Fort Wayne, IN5837520.6$507K+3.9%#127 of 387
Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN561,10419.8$466K+2.9%#150 of 387

Other business types in the Fort Wayne metro area

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

Questions

How many auto repair shops are in the Fort Wayne, IN metro area?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 375 auto repair shops in the Fort Wayne metro area. 83 of them (22%) are chain locations. The listings count general, specialty, body and glass repair shops. Official counts show 219 businesses with payroll classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in 2023, unchanged from 2019. Another 243 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

How much do households in the Fort Wayne, IN metro area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?

About $190.3M a year, or $1,045 per household. That is 9% above the U.S. average (an index of 109, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 375 auto repair shops on map listings, it comes to $507K per shop. That spending covers all vehicle maintenance and repairs, which auto repair shops share with other businesses in the trade. It is estimated from the incomes of the 182,145 households in the Fort Wayne metro area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Fort Wayne, IN metro area compare with the U.S. for auto repair shops?

The Fort Wayne metro area has 20.6 auto repair shops per 10,000 households, 4% below the U.S. rate of 21.5. Spending per shop is $507K, 14% above the U.S. figure of $445K. At the U.S. ratio of auto repair shops to household spending, the Fort Wayne metro area would have about 428, against 375 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 832 households, against one for every 955 across the U.S. The official count held level from 2019 to 2023, against +2.1% for the U.S.

How fast is the Fort Wayne, IN metro area growing?

Population estimates put the Fort Wayne metro area at 466,258 people in 2025, up 3.9% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 182,145 households. Median household income in the Fort Wayne metro area is $71,213, 12% below the U.S. median of $80,734.

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. The Fort Wayne metro area scores 58 for auto repair shops (upper middle), #127 of 387 scored metro areas.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Fort Wayne metro area. It maps the auto repair shops 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 shops · All 56 business types in the Fort Wayne metro area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Fort Wayne metro 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 Fort Wayne metro 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.