Auto · Metro area · West Virginia
Auto repair shops in the Wheeling, WV-OH metro area
The auto repair shops in the Wheeling, WV-OH metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 36 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #294 of 387 scored metro areas
#4 of 7 scored metro areas based in West Virginia
- Listings
- 125
- 24 chain locations (19%)
- Official establishments
- 52
- +6.4% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $51.2M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $882 a household
- Spending per listing
- $410K
- 8% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 21.5
- In line with the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 134,089
- −3.6% since 2020
See the auto repair shops around any address in the Wheeling 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 Wheeling 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
The Groundwork market score for auto repair shops in the Wheeling metro area is 36 (lower middle), #294 of 387 scored metro areas and #4 of 7 scored metro areas based in West Virginia. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.
At $882 per household (8% below the U.S. average), households in the Wheeling metro area spend about $51.2M a year on vehicle maintenance and repairs. That is about $410K of household spending for each shop on map listings, 8% below the U.S. figure of $445K. The spending figure covers all vehicle maintenance and repairs, not only auto repair shops.
The Wheeling metro area has 125 auto repair shops on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 19% of them, against 16% across the U.S. That is 21.5 per 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 Wheeling metro area was 52 in 2023, up 6.4% from 2019. That is one for every 1,116 households, against one for every 955 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $70K have gone to businesses classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in the Wheeling metro area. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Wheeling metro area declined 3.6%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How the Wheeling metro area compares
The same measures for West Virginia 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 | Wheeling metro area | West Virginia | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 21.5 | 20.4 | 21.5 |
| Spending per listing | $410K | $409K | $445K |
| Households per official establishment | 1,116 | 1,081 | 955 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +6.4% | +3.2% | +2.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −3.6% | −1.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $882 | $833 | $958 |
| Median household income | $57,418 | $59,608 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 36 | 29 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 52+6.4% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 241
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $10.8M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 87Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 12524 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 115The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 2
- Amount
- $70K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in the Wheeling 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 Wheeling metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 134,089−3.6% since 2020
- Households
- 58,024
- Median age
- 44.8
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 72%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 944 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 145
- Median household income
- $57,418+14.0% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $79,303
- Median home value
- $156,600
- Jobs located here
- 58,297
- Daytime population
- 134,771Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Wheeling 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 Wheeling 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 West Virginia
Every West Virginia market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in West Virginia for auto repair shops, numbered among those based in West Virginia (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Wheeling metro area marked.
Top metro areas in West Virginia
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | 69 | 3,922 | 16.5 | $546K | +3.3% | #58 of 387 |
| 1Weirton-Steubenville, WV-OH | 53 | 87 | 17.5 | $504K | −3.6% | #177 of 387 |
| Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV | 48 | 287 | 24.3 | $394K | +7.1% | #223 of 387 |
| 2Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH | 45 | 300 | 19.7 | $441K | −2.6% | #249 of 387 |
| 3Morgantown, WV | 43 | 118 | 20.5 | $408K | +1.3% | #260 of 387 |
| Winchester, VA-WV | 39 | 148 | 26.7 | $386K | +6.5% | #285 of 387 |
| 4Wheeling, WV-OH | 36 | 125 | 21.5 | $410K | −3.6% | #294 of 387 |
| 5Parkersburg-Vienna, WV | 23 | 94 | 24.8 | $323K | −2.3% | #362 of 387 |
| 6Charleston, WV | 19 | 199 | 22.8 | $334K | −4.7% | #370 of 387 |
| 7Beckley, WV | 18 | 98 | 21.8 | $367K | −4.3% | #372 of 387 |
Other business types in the Wheeling 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 Wheeling, WV-OH metro area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 125 auto repair shops in the Wheeling metro area. 24 of them (19%) are chain locations. The listings count general, specialty, body and glass repair shops. Official counts show 52 businesses with payroll classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in 2023, up 6.4% from 2019. Official counts list 87 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Wheeling, WV-OH metro area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $51.2M a year, or $882 per household. That is 8% below the U.S. average (an index of 92, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 125 auto repair shops on map listings, it comes to $410K 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 58,024 households in the Wheeling metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Wheeling, WV-OH metro area compare with the U.S. for auto repair shops?
The Wheeling metro area has 21.5 auto repair shops per 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 21.5. Spending per shop is $410K, 8% below the U.S. figure of $445K. At the U.S. ratio of auto repair shops to household spending, the Wheeling metro area would have about 115, against 125 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,116 households, against one for every 955 across the U.S. The official count rose 6.4% from 2019 to 2023, against +2.1% for the U.S.
How fast is the Wheeling, WV-OH metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Wheeling metro area at 134,089 people in 2025, down 3.6% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 58,024 households. Median household income in the Wheeling metro area is $57,418, 29% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 14.0%, 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 Wheeling metro area scores 36 for auto repair shops (lower middle), #294 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 Wheeling 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 Wheeling metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Wheeling 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 Wheeling 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.