Auto · Metro area · North Carolina
Auto repair shops in the Raleigh-Cary, NC metro area
How the Raleigh-Cary, NC metro area compares with other metro areas 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 #49 of 387 scored metro areas
#3 of 15 scored metro areas based in North Carolina
- Listings
- 1,061
- 250 chain locations (24%)
- Official establishments
- 558
- +5.5% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $557.1M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $970 a household
- Spending per listing
- $525K
- 18% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 18.5
- 14% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 1,595,720
- +12.6% since 2020
See the auto repair shops around any address in the Raleigh-Cary 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 Raleigh-Cary metro area. 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 the Raleigh-Cary metro area comes to about $557.1M a year: $970 per household, in line with the U.S. average. That is about $525K of household spending for each shop on map listings, 18% above the U.S. figure of $445K. The spending figure covers all vehicle maintenance and repairs, not only auto repair shops.
The Raleigh-Cary metro area has 1,061 auto repair shops on map listings as of September 2026. 250 of them (24%) are chain locations, against 16% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 18.5, 14% below the U.S. rate of 21.5.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in the Raleigh-Cary metro area was 558 in 2023, up 5.5% from 2019. That is one for every 1,029 households, against one for every 955 across the U.S. Official counts also show 969 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 26 SBA-backed loans worth $16.1M have gone to businesses classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in the Raleigh-Cary metro area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Raleigh-Cary metro area grew 12.6%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for auto repair shops in the Raleigh-Cary metro area is 72 (upper middle), #49 of 387 scored metro areas and #3 of 15 scored metro areas based in North Carolina. That puts it in the top quarter of metro areas.
How the Raleigh-Cary metro area compares
The same measures for North Carolina 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 | Raleigh-Cary metro area | North Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 18.5 | 21.7 | 21.5 |
| Spending per listing | $525K | $432K | $445K |
| Households per official establishment | 1,029 | 1,010 | 955 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +5.5% | +3.0% | +2.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +12.6% | +7.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $970 | $939 | $958 |
| Median household income | $100,103 | $72,388 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 72 | 53 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 558+5.5% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 3,136
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $179.3M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 969Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 1,061250 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 1,253The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 26
- Amount
- $16.1M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in the Raleigh-Cary 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 Raleigh-Cary metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 1,595,720+12.6% since 2020
- Households
- 574,295
- Median age
- 38.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 67%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 2,119 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 702
- Median household income
- $100,103+32.0% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $131,869
- Median home value
- $418,400
- Jobs located here
- 759,538
- Daytime population
- 1,525,914Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Raleigh-Cary 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 Raleigh-Cary metro area. 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 North Carolina
Every North Carolina market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in North Carolina for auto repair shops, numbered among those based in North Carolina (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Raleigh-Cary metro area marked.
Top metro areas in North Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Durham-Chapel Hill, NC | 79 | 376 | 15.1 | $592K | +7.5% | #14 of 387 |
| 2Pinehurst-Southern Pines, NC | 73 | 71 | 16.1 | $599K | +10.3% | #41 of 387 |
| 3Raleigh-Cary, NC | 72 | 1,061 | 18.5 | $525K | +12.6% | #49 of 387 |
| 4Rocky Mount, NC | 67 | 106 | 18.1 | $517K | +2.8% | #74 of 387 |
| 5Wilmington, NC | 60 | 401 | 20.1 | $458K | +15.9% | #110 of 387 |
| 6Burlington, NC | 60 | 159 | 22.7 | $415K | +8.5% | #111 of 387 |
| 7Jacksonville, NC | 54 | 175 | 23.3 | $390K | +6.0% | #172 of 387 |
| Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC | 53 | 1,321 | 18.7 | $490K | +0.9% | #179 of 387 |
| 8Winston-Salem, NC | 53 | 624 | 22.2 | $434K | +5.3% | #184 of 387 |
| 9Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC | 53 | 2,468 | 22.9 | $415K | +10.1% | #185 of 387 |
Other business types in the Raleigh-Cary metro area
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 the Raleigh-Cary, NC metro area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 1,061 auto repair shops in the Raleigh-Cary metro area. 250 of them (24%) are chain locations. The listings count general, specialty, body and glass repair shops. Official counts show 558 businesses with payroll classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in 2023, up 5.5% from 2019. Another 969 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Raleigh-Cary, NC metro area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $557.1M a year, or $970 per household. That is in line with the U.S. average (an index of 101, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 1,061 auto repair shops on map listings, it comes to $525K 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 574,295 households in the Raleigh-Cary metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Raleigh-Cary, NC metro area compare with the U.S. for auto repair shops?
The Raleigh-Cary metro area has 18.5 auto repair shops per 10,000 households, 14% below the U.S. rate of 21.5. Spending per shop is $525K, 18% above the U.S. figure of $445K. At the U.S. ratio of auto repair shops to household spending, the Raleigh-Cary metro area would have about 1,253, against 1,061 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,029 households, against one for every 955 across the U.S. The official count rose 5.5% from 2019 to 2023, against +2.1% for the U.S.
How fast is the Raleigh-Cary, NC metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Raleigh-Cary metro area at 1,595,720 people in 2025, up 12.6% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 574,295 households. Median household income in the Raleigh-Cary metro area is $100,103, 24% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 32.0%, 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 Raleigh-Cary metro area scores 72 for auto repair shops (upper middle), #49 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 Raleigh-Cary 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 Raleigh-Cary metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Raleigh-Cary 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 Raleigh-Cary 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.