Auto · County · Montana
Auto repair shops in Lake County, MT
How Lake County, MT compares with other counties and the U.S. for auto repair shops: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 72 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #282 of 2,378 scored counties
#3 of 21 scored counties in Montana
- Listings
- 20
- 3 chain locations (15%)
- Official establishments
- 20
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $15.5M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $1,236 a household
- Spending per listing
- $777K
- 75% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 15.9
- 26% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 33,392
- +6.9% since 2020
See the auto repair shops around any address in Lake County
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 Lake 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
Household spending on vehicle maintenance and repairs in Lake County comes to about $15.5M a year: $1,236 per household, 29% above the U.S. average. That works out to $777K per shop, 75% above the U.S. figure of $445K. The spending figure covers all vehicle maintenance and repairs, not only auto repair shops.
Lake County has 20 auto repair shops on map listings as of September 2026. 3 of them (15%) are chain locations, against 16% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 15.9, 26% below the U.S. rate of 21.5.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in Lake County was 20 in 2023. That is one for every 629 households, against one for every 955 across the U.S. Official counts list 39 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 3 SBA-backed loans worth $185K have gone to businesses classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in Lake County.
Population estimates show Lake County grew 6.9% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). Lake County scores 72 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for auto repair shops, ranking #282 of 2,378 scored counties and #3 of 21 scored counties in Montana. That puts it in the top quarter of counties.
How Lake County compares
The same measures for Montana 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.
| Measure | Lake County | Montana | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 15.9 | 26.1 | 21.5 |
| Spending per listing | $777K | $443K | $445K |
| Households per official establishment | 629 | 609 | 955 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +6.7% | +2.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +6.9% | +5.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $1,236 | $1,157 | $958 |
| Median household income | $63,360 | $72,509 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 72 | 49 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 15 → 20
- Employees, 2023
- 74
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $3.5M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 39Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 203 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 35The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 3
- Amount
- $185K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in Lake 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 Lake County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 33,392+6.9% since 2020
- Households
- 12,576
- Median age
- 44.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 75%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.3
- Land area
- 1,491 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 22
- Median household income
- $63,360+29.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $90,243
- Median home value
- $421,800
- Jobs located here
- 9,693
- Daytime population
- 30,848Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Lake 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 shops on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of Lake County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardAuto repair shops across Montana
Every Montana market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Montana for auto repair shops, numbered among those based in Montana, with Lake County marked.
Top counties in Montana
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Jefferson County, MT | 96 | 7 | 14.0 | $1.1M | +9.8% | #1 of 2,378 |
| 2Sanders County, MT | 84 | 10 | 18.3 | $650K | +12.9% | #62 of 2,378 |
| 3Lake County, MT | 72 | 20 | 15.9 | $777K | +6.9% | #282 of 2,378 |
| 4Big Horn County, MT | 69 | 5 | 13.1 | $869K | −2.5% | #359 of 2,378 |
| 5Carbon County, MT | 66 | 11 | 23.6 | $559K | +9.1% | #493 of 2,378 |
| 6Gallatin County, MT | 63 | 126 | 24.6 | $498K | +7.7% | #618 of 2,378 |
| 7Glacier County, MT | 57 | 9 | 21.0 | $487K | −2.0% | #858 of 2,378 |
| 8Fergus County, MT | 55 | 14 | 26.4 | $446K | +3.1% | #964 of 2,378 |
| 9Ravalli County, MT | 55 | 54 | 28.9 | $429K | +9.4% | #972 of 2,378 |
| 10Missoula County, MT | 53 | 115 | 21.8 | $486K | +4.4% | #1,051 of 2,378 |
Other business types in Lake 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 shops are in Lake County, MT?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 20 auto repair shops in Lake County. 3 of them (15%) are chain locations. The listings count general, specialty, body and glass repair shops. Official counts show 20 businesses with payroll classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in 2023. Official counts also show 39 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Lake County, MT spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $15.5M a year, or $1,236 per household. That is 29% above the U.S. average (an index of 129, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 20 auto repair shops on map listings, it comes to $777K 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 12,576 households in Lake County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Lake County, MT compare with the U.S. for auto repair shops?
Lake County has 15.9 auto repair shops per 10,000 households, 26% below the U.S. rate of 21.5. Spending per shop is $777K, 75% above the U.S. figure of $445K. At the U.S. ratio of auto repair shops to household spending, Lake County would have about 35, against 20 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 629 households, against one for every 955 across the U.S.
How fast is Lake County, MT growing?
Population estimates put Lake County at 33,392 people in 2025, up 6.9% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 12,576 households. Median household income in Lake County is $63,360, 22% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 29.8%, 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. Lake County scores 72 for auto repair shops (upper middle), #282 of 2,378 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Lake County. 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 Lake County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Lake 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 Lake 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.