Groundwork

Auto · Metro area · Pennsylvania

Auto repair shops in the Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA metro area

The auto repair shops in the Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 46 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #239 of 387 scored metro areas
#2 of 16 scored metro areas based in Pennsylvania

Listings
536
87 chain locations (16%)
Official establishments
240
−9.4% since 2019
Household spending a year
$219.3M
On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $891 a household
Spending per listing
$409K
8% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
21.8
In line with the U.S.
Population, 2025
617,427
+4.2% since 2020

See the auto repair shops around any address in the Harrisburg-Carlisle 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 Harrisburg-Carlisle 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

Household spending on vehicle maintenance and repairs in the Harrisburg-Carlisle metro area comes to about $219.3M a year: $891 per household, 7% below the U.S. average. Spread across 536 auto repair shops, that is $409K per shop, 8% below the U.S. figure of $445K. The spending figure covers all vehicle maintenance and repairs, not only auto repair shops.

There are 536 auto repair shops on map listings in the Harrisburg-Carlisle metro area as of September 2026. Of those, 87 are chain locations, or 16%, against 16% across the U.S. That comes to 21.8 for every 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 21.5.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in the Harrisburg-Carlisle metro area was 240 in 2023, down 9.4% from 2019. That is one for every 1,025 households, against one for every 955 across the U.S. Official counts list 370 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 14 SBA-backed loans worth $10.3M have gone to businesses classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in the Harrisburg-Carlisle metro area.

Population estimates put the population change in the Harrisburg-Carlisle metro area from 2020 to 2025 at +4.2%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Harrisburg-Carlisle metro area scores 46 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for auto repair shops, ranking #239 of 387 scored metro areas and #2 of 16 scored metro areas based in Pennsylvania.

How the Harrisburg-Carlisle metro area compares

The same measures for Pennsylvania 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 Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA metro area compared with Pennsylvania and the U.S.
MeasureHarrisburg-Carlisle metro areaPennsylvaniaU.S.
Listings per 10k households21.823.121.5
Spending per listing$409K$362K$445K
Households per official establishment1,025804955
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−9.4%−1.1%+2.1%
Population growth, 2020–2025+4.2%+0.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs$891$837$958
Median household income$80,919$77,971$80,734
Groundwork market score4614

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
240−9.4% over the period
Employees, 2023
1,388
Annual payroll, 2023
$70.2M
One-person businesses, 2023
370Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
53687 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
493The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
14
Amount
$10.3M

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

Population, 2025 estimate
617,427+4.2% since 2020
Households
246,084
Median age
40.7
Homes lived in by their owners
68%
Vehicles per household
1.8
Land area
1,622 sq. mi.
People per square mile
373
Median household income
$80,919+24.7% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$106,040
Median home value
$253,100
Jobs located here
349,053
Daytime population
676,005Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Harrisburg-Carlisle 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 Harrisburg-Carlisle 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 Pennsylvania

Every Pennsylvania market ranked →

The highest-scoring metro areas in Pennsylvania for auto repair shops, numbered among those based in Pennsylvania, with the Harrisburg-Carlisle metro area marked.

Top metro areas in Pennsylvania

Metro areas in Pennsylvania ranked for auto repair shops by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1State College, PA539315.8$521K−0.4%#173 of 387
2Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA4653621.8$409K+4.2%#239 of 387
3York-Hanover, PA3345024.8$390K+3.6%#315 of 387
4Gettysburg, PA3311628.4$370K+3.6%#318 of 387
5Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD314,87819.8$416K+1.4%#326 of 387
6Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ3182424.3$376K+3.0%#330 of 387
7Chambersburg, PA2917627.7$362K+3.0%#339 of 387
8Reading, PA2641825.6$359K+2.7%#348 of 387
9Lebanon, PA2514124.9$365K+2.2%#352 of 387
10Lancaster, PA2252824.8$367K+1.9%#363 of 387

Other business types in the Harrisburg-Carlisle 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 Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA metro area?

As of September 2026, map listings count 536 auto repair shops in the Harrisburg-Carlisle metro area. 87 of them (16%) are chain locations. The listings count general, specialty, body and glass repair shops. Official counts show 240 businesses with payroll classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in 2023, down 9.4% from 2019. Official counts also show 370 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in the Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA metro area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?

About $219.3M a year, or $891 per household. That is 7% below the U.S. average (an index of 93, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 536 auto repair shops on map listings, it comes to $409K 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 246,084 households in the Harrisburg-Carlisle metro area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA metro area compare with the U.S. for auto repair shops?

The Harrisburg-Carlisle metro area has 21.8 auto repair shops per 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 21.5. Spending per shop is $409K, 8% below the U.S. figure of $445K. At the U.S. ratio of auto repair shops to household spending, the Harrisburg-Carlisle metro area would have about 493, against 536 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,025 households, against one for every 955 across the U.S. The official count fell 9.4% from 2019 to 2023, against +2.1% for the U.S.

How fast is the Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA metro area growing?

Population estimates put the Harrisburg-Carlisle metro area at 617,427 people in 2025, up 4.2% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 246,084 households. Median household income in the Harrisburg-Carlisle metro area is $80,919, in line with the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 24.7%, 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 Harrisburg-Carlisle metro area scores 46 for auto repair shops (lower middle), #239 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 Harrisburg-Carlisle 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 Harrisburg-Carlisle metro area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Harrisburg-Carlisle 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 Harrisburg-Carlisle 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.