Groundwork

Auto · Metro area · Michigan

Auto repair shops in the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI metro area

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for auto repair shops in the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 57 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #137 of 387 scored metro areas
#7 of 15 scored metro areas based in Michigan

Listings
3,387
511 chain locations (15%)
Official establishments
1,759
+2.9% since 2019
Household spending a year
$1.8B
On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $994 a household
Spending per listing
$519K
17% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
19.1
11% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
4,390,913
+0.1% since 2020

See the auto repair shops around any address in the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn 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 Detroit-Warren-Dearborn 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

As of September 2026, map listings count 3,387 auto repair shops in the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn metro area. Of those, 511 are chain locations, or 15%, against 16% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 19.1, 11% below the U.S. rate of 21.5.

Households in the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn metro area spend about $1.8B a year on vehicle maintenance and repairs, or $994 per household, 4% above the U.S. average. That works out to $519K per shop, 17% above 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 Detroit-Warren-Dearborn metro area was 1,759 in 2023, up 2.9% from 2019. That is one for every 1,006 households, against one for every 955 across the U.S. Official counts list 3,023 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 107 SBA-backed loans worth $47.6M have gone to businesses classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn metro area.

Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn metro area grew 0.1%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Detroit-Warren-Dearborn metro area scores 57 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for auto repair shops, ranking #137 of 387 scored metro areas and #7 of 15 scored metro areas based in Michigan.

How the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn metro area compares

The same measures for Michigan 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 Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI metro area compared with Michigan and the U.S.
MeasureDetroit-Warren-Dearborn metro areaMichiganU.S.
Listings per 10k households19.119.921.5
Spending per listing$519K$512K$445K
Households per official establishment1,006960955
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+2.9%+1.2%+2.1%
Population growth, 2020–2025+0.1%+0.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs$994$1,022$958
Median household income$76,664$72,875$80,734
Groundwork market score5756

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
1,759+2.9% over the period
Employees, 2023
8,744
Annual payroll, 2023
$462.1M
One-person businesses, 2023
3,023Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
3,387511 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
3,954The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
107
Amount
$47.6M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn 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 Detroit-Warren-Dearborn metro area

Population, 2025 estimate
4,390,913+0.1% since 2020
Households
1,768,816
Median age
41.1
Homes lived in by their owners
71%
Vehicles per household
1.7
Land area
3,893 sq. mi.
People per square mile
1,124
Median household income
$76,664+25.7% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$105,167
Median home value
$249,700
Jobs located here
1,848,019
Daytime population
4,411,570Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn 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 Detroit-Warren-Dearborn 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 Michigan

Every Michigan market ranked →

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

Top metro areas in Michigan

Metro areas in Michigan ranked for auto repair shops by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Monroe, MI789715.4$729K+0.7%#17 of 387
2Ann Arbor, MI7518612.4$828K−0.4%#30 of 387
3Midland, MI735916.9$652K+0.3%#40 of 387
4Lansing-East Lansing, MI7333917.5$575K+1.4%#42 of 387
5Jackson, MI6911818.9$541K−0.4%#59 of 387
6Kalamazoo-Portage, MI6719017.7$573K+0.8%#69 of 387
South Bend-Mishawaka, IN-MI5925319.7$511K+0.1%#115 of 387
7Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI573,38719.1$519K+0.1%#137 of 387
8Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI5794821.5$510K+2.8%#140 of 387
9Muskegon-Norton Shores, MI5514421.3$475K+1.8%#157 of 387

Other business types in the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn 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 Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI metro area?

The Detroit-Warren-Dearborn metro area has 3,387 auto repair shops on map listings as of September 2026. 511 of them (15%) are chain locations. The listings count general, specialty, body and glass repair shops. Official counts show 1,759 businesses with payroll classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in 2023, up 2.9% from 2019. Official counts also show 3,023 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI metro area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?

About $1.8B a year, or $994 per household. That is 4% above the U.S. average (an index of 104, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 3,387 auto repair shops on map listings, it comes to $519K per shop. The spending figure covers all vehicle maintenance and repairs, not only auto repair shops. It is estimated from the incomes of the 1,768,816 households in the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn metro area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI metro area compare with the U.S. for auto repair shops?

The Detroit-Warren-Dearborn metro area has 19.1 auto repair shops per 10,000 households, 11% below the U.S. rate of 21.5. Spending per shop is $519K, 17% above the U.S. figure of $445K. At the national ratio of auto repair shops to household spending, the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn metro area would have about 3,954, against 3,387 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,006 households, against one for every 955 across the U.S. The official count rose 2.9% from 2019 to 2023, against +2.1% for the U.S.

How fast is the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI metro area growing?

Population estimates put the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn metro area at 4,390,913 people in 2025, up 0.1% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 1,768,816 households. The median household income in the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn metro area is $76,664 a year, 5% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 25.7% 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. The Detroit-Warren-Dearborn metro area scores 57 for auto repair shops (upper middle), #137 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 Detroit-Warren-Dearborn 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 Detroit-Warren-Dearborn metro area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn 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 Detroit-Warren-Dearborn 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.