Auto · Small-town market · South Dakota
Auto repair shops in the Watertown, SD area
How the Watertown, SD area compares with other small-town markets and the U.S. for auto repair shops: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 38 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #397 of 538 scored small-town markets
#9 of 9 scored small-town markets based in South Dakota
- Listings
- 53
- 9 chain locations (17%)
- Official establishments
- 27
- −3.6% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $14.7M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $1,177 a household
- Spending per listing
- $278K
- 37% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 42.3
- 97% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 29,562
- +4.3% since 2020
See the auto repair shops around any address in the Watertown 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 Watertown 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 53 auto repair shops in the Watertown area. 9 of them (17%) are chain locations, against 16% across the U.S. That is 42.3 per 10,000 households, 97% above the U.S. rate of 21.5.
Households in the Watertown area spend about $14.7M a year on vehicle maintenance and repairs, or $1,177 per household, 23% above the U.S. average. That is about $278K of household spending for each shop on map listings, 37% below 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.
Official counts show 27 businesses with payroll classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in the Watertown area in 2023, down 3.6% from 2019. That is one for every 464 households, against one for every 955 across the U.S. Another 23 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 3 SBA-backed loans worth $1.2M have gone to businesses classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in the Watertown area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Watertown area grew 4.3%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). For auto repair shops, the Watertown area has a Groundwork market score of 38 (lower middle): #397 of 538 scored small-town markets and #9 of 9 scored small-town markets based in South Dakota.
How the Watertown area compares
The same measures for South Dakota 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 | Watertown area | South Dakota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 42.3 | 25.0 | 21.5 |
| Spending per listing | $278K | $476K | $445K |
| Households per official establishment | 464 | 542 | 955 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −3.6% | +8.4% | +2.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +4.3% | +5.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $1,177 | $1,189 | $958 |
| Median household income | $72,727 | $75,081 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 38 | 55 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 27−3.6% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 118
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $5.6M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 23Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 539 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 33The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 3
- Amount
- $1.2M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in the Watertown 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 Watertown area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 29,562+4.3% since 2020
- Households
- 12,526
- Median age
- 39.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 70%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 688 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 42
- Median household income
- $72,727
- Average household income
- $90,805
- Median home value
- $237,700
- Jobs located here
- 16,302
- Daytime population
- 29,337Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Watertown area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. 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 Watertown 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 Dakota
Every South Dakota market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in South Dakota for auto repair shops, numbered among those based in South Dakota, with the Watertown area marked.
Top small-town markets in South Dakota
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Brookings, SD | 68 | 33 | 23.9 | $490K | +9.6% | #89 of 538 |
| 2Vermillion, SD | 62 | 12 | 21.6 | $493K | +0.2% | #145 of 538 |
| 3Spearfish, SD | 59 | 31 | 25.7 | $452K | +14.0% | #177 of 538 |
| 4Yankton, SD | 48 | 28 | 28.9 | $398K | +1.5% | #304 of 538 |
| 5Mitchell, SD | 45 | 32 | 29.2 | $405K | +0.6% | #332 of 538 |
| 6Pierre, SD | 43 | 23 | 26.9 | $410K | −0.5% | #348 of 538 |
| 7Aberdeen, SD | 40 | 49 | 27.4 | $412K | −1.5% | #369 of 538 |
| 8Huron, SD | 40 | 27 | 35.8 | $332K | +2.4% | #374 of 538 |
| 9Watertown, SD | 38 | 53 | 42.3 | $278K | +4.3% | #397 of 538 |
Other business types in the Watertown 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 Watertown, SD area?
The Watertown area has 53 auto repair shops on map listings as of September 2026. 9 of them (17%) are chain locations. The listings count general, specialty, body and glass repair shops. Official counts show 27 businesses with payroll classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in 2023, down 3.6% from 2019. Official counts list 23 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Watertown, SD area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $14.7M a year, or $1,177 per household. That is 23% above the U.S. average (an index of 123, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 53 auto repair shops on map listings, it comes to $278K per shop. The spending figure covers all vehicle maintenance and repairs, not only auto repair shops. It is estimated from the incomes of the 12,526 households in the Watertown area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Watertown, SD area compare with the U.S. for auto repair shops?
The Watertown area has 42.3 auto repair shops per 10,000 households, 97% above the U.S. rate of 21.5. Spending per shop is $278K, 37% below the U.S. figure of $445K. At the national ratio of auto repair shops to household spending, the Watertown area would have about 33, against 53 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 464 households, against one for every 955 across the U.S. The official count fell 3.6% from 2019 to 2023, against +2.1% for the U.S.
How fast is the Watertown, SD area growing?
Population estimates put the Watertown area at 29,562 people in 2025, up 4.3% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 12,526 households. The median household income in the Watertown area is $72,727 a year, 10% below the U.S. median of $80,734.
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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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 Watertown area scores 38 for auto repair shops (lower middle), #397 of 538 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Watertown 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 Watertown area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Watertown 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 Watertown 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.