Groundwork

Auto · Small-town market · Maine

Auto repair shops in the Augusta-Waterville, ME area

How the Augusta-Waterville, ME area compares with other small-town markets and the U.S. for auto repair shops: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 25 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #488 of 538 scored small-town markets
The only scored small-town market based in Maine

Listings
168
23 chain locations (14%)
Official establishments
82
−9.9% since 2019
Household spending a year
$45.1M
On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $831 a household
Spending per listing
$269K
40% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
30.9
44% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
129,067
+3.5% since 2020

See the auto repair shops around any address in the Augusta-Waterville 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 Augusta-Waterville 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

The Augusta-Waterville area scores 25 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for auto repair shops, ranking #488 of 538 scored small-town markets and the only scored small-town market based in Maine. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.

As of September 2026, map listings count 168 auto repair shops in the Augusta-Waterville area. 23 of them (14%) are chain locations, against 16% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 30.9, 44% above the U.S. rate of 21.5.

At $831 per household (13% below the U.S. average), households in the Augusta-Waterville area spend about $45.1M a year on vehicle maintenance and repairs. That is about $269K of household spending for each shop on map listings, 40% below the U.S. figure of $445K. That spending covers all vehicle maintenance and repairs, which auto repair shops share with other businesses in the trade.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in the Augusta-Waterville area was 82 in 2023, down 9.9% from 2019. That is one for every 662 households, against one for every 955 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $70K have gone to businesses classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in the Augusta-Waterville area. Population estimates show the Augusta-Waterville area grew 3.5% from 2020 to 2025, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%).

How the Augusta-Waterville area compares

The same measures for Maine 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 Augusta-Waterville, ME area compared with Maine and the U.S.
MeasureAugusta-Waterville areaMaineU.S.
Listings per 10k households30.926.821.5
Spending per listing$269K$327K$445K
Households per official establishment662711955
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−9.9%−3.3%+2.1%
Population growth, 2020–2025+3.5%+3.7%+3.1%
Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs$831$876$958
Median household income$69,077$74,733$80,734
Groundwork market score2522

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
82−9.9% over the period
Employees, 2023
328
Annual payroll, 2023
$15.3M
One-person businesses, 2023
158Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
16823 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
102The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
2
Amount
$70K

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in the Augusta-Waterville 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 Augusta-Waterville area

Population, 2025 estimate
129,067+3.5% since 2020
Households
54,312
Median age
43.8
Homes lived in by their owners
74%
Vehicles per household
1.7
Land area
868 sq. mi.
People per square mile
146
Median household income
$69,077+24.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$88,742
Median home value
$238,200
Jobs located here
65,677
Daytime population
134,017Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Augusta-Waterville area?

These figures cover the whole small-town market. 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 Augusta-Waterville area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Other business types in the Augusta-Waterville area

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

Questions

How many auto repair shops are in the Augusta-Waterville, ME area?

The Augusta-Waterville area has 168 auto repair shops on map listings as of September 2026. 23 of them (14%) are chain locations. The listings count general, specialty, body and glass repair shops. Official counts show 82 businesses with payroll classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in 2023, down 9.9% from 2019. Official counts also show 158 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in the Augusta-Waterville, ME area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?

About $45.1M a year, or $831 per household. That is 13% below the U.S. average (an index of 87, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 168 auto repair shops on map listings, it comes to $269K per shop. The spending figure covers all vehicle maintenance and repairs, not only auto repair shops. It is estimated from the incomes of the 54,312 households in the Augusta-Waterville area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Augusta-Waterville, ME area compare with the U.S. for auto repair shops?

The Augusta-Waterville area has 30.9 auto repair shops per 10,000 households, 44% above the U.S. rate of 21.5. Spending per shop is $269K, 40% below the U.S. figure of $445K. At the national ratio of auto repair shops to household spending, the Augusta-Waterville area would have about 102, against 168 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 662 households, against one for every 955 across the U.S. The official count fell 9.9% from 2019 to 2023, against +2.1% for the U.S.

How fast is the Augusta-Waterville, ME area growing?

Population estimates put the Augusta-Waterville area at 129,067 people in 2025, up 3.5% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 54,312 households. The median household income in the Augusta-Waterville area is $69,077 a year, 14% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 24.8% 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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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 Augusta-Waterville area scores 25 for auto repair shops (lower middle), #488 of 538 scored small-town markets.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Augusta-Waterville 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 Augusta-Waterville area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Augusta-Waterville 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 Augusta-Waterville 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.