Auto · Metro area · South Carolina
Auto repair shops in the Charleston-North Charleston, SC metro area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for auto repair shops in the Charleston-North Charleston, SC metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 73 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #44 of 387 scored metro areas
#2 of 8 scored metro areas based in South Carolina
- Listings
- 594
- 154 chain locations (26%)
- Official establishments
- 276
- +11.3% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $306.8M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $913 a household
- Spending per listing
- $516K
- 16% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 17.7
- 18% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 889,263
- +10.7% since 2020
See the auto repair shops around any address in the Charleston-North Charleston 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 Charleston-North Charleston 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
As of September 2026, map listings count 594 auto repair shops in the Charleston-North Charleston metro area. Chain locations make up 26% of them, against 16% across the U.S. That is 17.7 per 10,000 households, 18% below the U.S. rate of 21.5.
Household spending on vehicle maintenance and repairs in the Charleston-North Charleston metro area comes to about $306.8M a year: $913 per household, 5% below the U.S. average. That is about $516K of household spending for each shop on map listings, 16% 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 Charleston-North Charleston metro area was 276 in 2023, up 11.3% from 2019. That is one for every 1,217 households, against one for every 955 across the U.S. Official counts list 549 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 17 SBA-backed loans worth $9.1M have gone to businesses classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in the Charleston-North Charleston metro area.
Population estimates show the Charleston-North Charleston metro area grew 10.7% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for auto repair shops in the Charleston-North Charleston metro area is 73 (upper middle), #44 of 387 scored metro areas and #2 of 8 scored metro areas based in South Carolina. That puts it in the top quarter of metro areas.
How the Charleston-North Charleston metro area compares
The same measures for South 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 | Charleston-North Charleston metro area | South Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 17.7 | 20.8 | 21.5 |
| Spending per listing | $516K | $435K | $445K |
| Households per official establishment | 1,217 | 1,161 | 955 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +11.3% | +5.9% | +2.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +10.7% | +8.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $913 | $907 | $958 |
| Median household income | $85,254 | $69,324 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 73 | 60 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 276+11.3% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,701
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $103.4M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 549Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 594154 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 690The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 17
- Amount
- $9.1M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in the Charleston-North Charleston 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 Charleston-North Charleston metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 889,263+10.7% since 2020
- Households
- 335,865
- Median age
- 39.3
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 69%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 2,590 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 322
- Median household income
- $85,254+33.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $118,282
- Median home value
- $377,500
- Jobs located here
- 390,960
- Daytime population
- 849,978Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Charleston-North Charleston 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 Charleston-North Charleston 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 South Carolina
Every South Carolina market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in South Carolina for auto repair shops, numbered among those based in South Carolina (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Charleston-North Charleston metro area marked.
Top metro areas in South Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC | 75 | 161 | 16.9 | $527K | +12.0% | #32 of 387 |
| 2Charleston-North Charleston, SC | 73 | 594 | 17.7 | $516K | +10.7% | #44 of 387 |
| Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC | 62 | 473 | 20.4 | $451K | +4.7% | #101 of 387 |
| 3Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach, SC | 56 | 307 | 19.3 | $437K | +20.9% | #151 of 387 |
| 4Greenville-Anderson-Greer, SC | 56 | 898 | 23.4 | $398K | +9.0% | #152 of 387 |
| 5Columbia, SC | 55 | 697 | 20.5 | $439K | +6.0% | #161 of 387 |
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC | 53 | 2,468 | 22.9 | $415K | +10.1% | #185 of 387 |
| 6Sumter, SC | 47 | 82 | 20.0 | $430K | −0.3% | #230 of 387 |
| 7Spartanburg, SC | 45 | 367 | 25.6 | $364K | +14.3% | #251 of 387 |
| 8Florence, SC | 25 | 223 | 28.4 | $298K | +0.9% | #354 of 387 |
Other business types in the Charleston-North Charleston 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 Charleston-North Charleston, SC metro area?
The Charleston-North Charleston metro area has 594 auto repair shops on map listings as of September 2026. 154 of them (26%) are chain locations. The listings count general, specialty, body and glass repair shops. Official counts show 276 businesses with payroll classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in 2023, up 11.3% from 2019. Official counts also show 549 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Charleston-North Charleston, SC metro area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $306.8M a year, or $913 per household. That is 5% below the U.S. average (an index of 95, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 594 auto repair shops on map listings, it comes to $516K per shop. The spending figure covers all vehicle maintenance and repairs, not only auto repair shops. It is estimated from the incomes of the 335,865 households in the Charleston-North Charleston metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Charleston-North Charleston, SC metro area compare with the U.S. for auto repair shops?
The Charleston-North Charleston metro area has 17.7 auto repair shops per 10,000 households, 18% below the U.S. rate of 21.5. Spending per shop is $516K, 16% above the U.S. figure of $445K. At the national ratio of auto repair shops to household spending, the Charleston-North Charleston metro area would have about 690, against 594 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,217 households, against one for every 955 across the U.S. The official count rose 11.3% from 2019 to 2023, against +2.1% for the U.S.
How fast is the Charleston-North Charleston, SC metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Charleston-North Charleston metro area at 889,263 people in 2025, up 10.7% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 335,865 households. The median household income in the Charleston-North Charleston metro area is $85,254 a year, 6% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 33.9% 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 Charleston-North Charleston metro area scores 73 for auto repair shops (upper middle), #44 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 Charleston-North Charleston 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 Charleston-North Charleston metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Charleston-North Charleston 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 Charleston-North Charleston 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.