Auto · Metro area · Wisconsin
Auto repair shops in the La Crosse-Onalaska, WI-MN metro area
The auto repair shops in the La Crosse-Onalaska, WI-MN metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 49 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #207 of 387 scored metro areas
#12 of 13 scored metro areas based in Wisconsin
- Listings
- 154
- 27 chain locations (18%)
- Official establishments
- 86
- −5.7% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $75.9M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $1,054 a household
- Spending per listing
- $493K
- 11% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 21.4
- In line with the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 171,182
- +0.4% since 2020
See the auto repair shops around any address in the La Crosse-Onalaska 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 La Crosse-Onalaska 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 154 auto repair shops in the La Crosse-Onalaska metro area. Chain locations make up 18% of them, against 16% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 21.4, in line with the U.S. rate of 21.5.
At $1,054 per household (10% above the U.S. average), households in the La Crosse-Onalaska metro area spend about $75.9M a year on vehicle maintenance and repairs. That works out to $493K per shop, 11% 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 La Crosse-Onalaska metro area was 86 in 2023, down 5.7% from 2019. That is one for every 838 households, against one for every 955 across the U.S. Another 118 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 5 SBA-backed loans worth $812K have gone to businesses classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in the La Crosse-Onalaska metro area.
Population estimates show the La Crosse-Onalaska metro area grew 0.4% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for auto repair shops in the La Crosse-Onalaska metro area is 49 (lower middle), #207 of 387 scored metro areas and #12 of 13 scored metro areas based in Wisconsin.
How the La Crosse-Onalaska metro area compares
The same measures for Wisconsin 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 | La Crosse-Onalaska metro area | Wisconsin | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 21.4 | 20.7 | 21.5 |
| Spending per listing | $493K | $511K | $445K |
| Households per official establishment | 838 | 890 | 955 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −5.7% | −1.4% | +2.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +0.4% | +1.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $1,054 | $1,061 | $958 |
| Median household income | $73,340 | $77,485 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 49 | 58 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 86−5.7% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 420
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $20.5M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 118Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 15427 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 171The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 5
- Amount
- $812K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in the La Crosse-Onalaska 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 La Crosse-Onalaska metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 171,182+0.4% since 2020
- Households
- 72,055
- Median age
- 40.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 68%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 1,796 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 95
- Median household income
- $73,340
- Average household income
- $96,598
- Median home value
- $247,400
- Jobs located here
- 86,774
- Daytime population
- 175,958Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the La Crosse-Onalaska 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 La Crosse-Onalaska 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 Wisconsin
Every Wisconsin market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Wisconsin for auto repair shops, numbered among those based in Wisconsin (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the La Crosse-Onalaska metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Wisconsin
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Madison, WI | 77 | 535 | 17.7 | $575K | +4.1% | #22 of 387 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI | 72 | 2,531 | 17.1 | $636K | +2.6% | #48 of 387 |
| 2Green Bay, WI | 67 | 278 | 20.4 | $537K | +2.5% | #72 of 387 |
| 3Oshkosh-Neenah, WI | 64 | 128 | 17.6 | $590K | +1.4% | #87 of 387 |
| 4Kenosha, WI | 62 | 146 | 21.2 | $518K | −0.4% | #98 of 387 |
| 5Appleton, WI | 57 | 223 | 22.4 | $508K | +2.7% | #141 of 387 |
| 6Wausau, WI | 55 | 122 | 21.1 | $535K | +1.0% | #154 of 387 |
| 7Fond du Lac, WI | 55 | 90 | 20.8 | $524K | +0.5% | #155 of 387 |
| 8Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI | 55 | 1,224 | 18.6 | $517K | 0.0% | #156 of 387 |
| 9Racine-Mount Pleasant, WI | 53 | 168 | 20.9 | $508K | +0.4% | #174 of 387 |
| 12La Crosse-Onalaska, WI-MN | 49 | 154 | 21.4 | $493K | +0.4% | #207 of 387 |
Other business types in the La Crosse-Onalaska 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 La Crosse-Onalaska, WI-MN metro area?
The La Crosse-Onalaska metro area has 154 auto repair shops on map listings as of September 2026. 27 of them (18%) are chain locations. The listings count general, specialty, body and glass repair shops. Official counts show 86 businesses with payroll classed as mechanical, body and glass repair in 2023, down 5.7% from 2019. Official counts list 118 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the La Crosse-Onalaska, WI-MN metro area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $75.9M a year, or $1,054 per household. That is 10% above the U.S. average (an index of 110, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 154 auto repair shops on map listings, it comes to $493K per shop. The spending figure covers all vehicle maintenance and repairs, not only auto repair shops. It is estimated from the incomes of the 72,055 households in the La Crosse-Onalaska metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the La Crosse-Onalaska, WI-MN metro area compare with the U.S. for auto repair shops?
The La Crosse-Onalaska metro area has 21.4 auto repair shops per 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 21.5. Spending per shop is $493K, 11% above the U.S. figure of $445K. At the national ratio of auto repair shops to household spending, the La Crosse-Onalaska metro area would have about 171, against 154 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 838 households, against one for every 955 across the U.S. The official count fell 5.7% from 2019 to 2023, against +2.1% for the U.S.
How fast is the La Crosse-Onalaska, WI-MN metro area growing?
Population estimates put the La Crosse-Onalaska metro area at 171,182 people in 2025, up 0.4% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 72,055 households. The median household income in the La Crosse-Onalaska metro area is $73,340 a year, 9% 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. 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 La Crosse-Onalaska metro area scores 49 for auto repair shops (lower middle), #207 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 La Crosse-Onalaska 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 La Crosse-Onalaska metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the La Crosse-Onalaska 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 La Crosse-Onalaska 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.