Auto · County · Maine
Car washes and detailers in Knox County, ME
How Knox County, ME compares with other counties and the U.S. for car washes and detailers: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 23 out of 100: Low
Ranked #1,340 of 1,451 scored counties
#11 of 11 scored counties in Maine
- Listings
- 12
- 1 chain location (8%)
- Official establishments
- 4
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $16.4M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $886 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.4M
- 46% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 6.5
- 71% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 41,117
- +1.1% since 2020
See the car washes and detailers around any address in Knox County
The site report maps the car washes and detailers 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 Knox County. 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
Knox County scores 23 (low) on the Groundwork market score for car washes and detailers, ranking #1,340 of 1,451 scored counties and #11 of 11 scored counties in Maine. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
At $886 per household (7% below the U.S. average), households in Knox County spend about $16.4M a year on vehicle maintenance and repairs. Spread across 12 car washes and detailers, that is $1.4M per location, 46% below the U.S. figure of $2.5M. The spending figure covers all vehicle maintenance and repairs, not only car washes and detailers.
Knox County has 12 car washes and detailers on map listings as of September 2026. One of them (8%) is a chain location, against 23% across the U.S. That comes to 6.5 for every 10,000 households, 71% above the U.S. rate of 3.8.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as car washes in Knox County was 4 in 2023. That is one for every 4,621 households, against one for every 6,523 across the U.S. Population estimates put the population change in Knox County from 2020 to 2025 at +1.1%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How Knox County compares
The same measures for Maine and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all vehicle maintenance and repairs by the car washes and detailers 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 | Knox County | Maine | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 6.5 | 3.6 | 3.8 |
| Spending per listing | $1.4M | $2.4M | $2.5M |
| Households per official establishment | 4,621 | 8,782 | 6,523 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +21.4% | +16.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +1.1% | +3.7% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $886 | $876 | $958 |
| Median household income | $74,096 | $74,733 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 23 | 56 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 3 → 4
- Employees, 2023
- 5
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $123K
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 121 chain location
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 7The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 0
- Amount
- $0
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as car washes in Knox County, 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 Knox County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 41,117+1.1% since 2020
- Households
- 18,484
- Median age
- 49.3
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 79%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 365 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 112
- Median household income
- $74,096+28.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $99,101
- Median home value
- $324,900
- Jobs located here
- 16,342
- Daytime population
- 41,779Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Knox County?
These figures cover the whole county. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the car washes and detailers on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of Knox County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardCar washes and detailing across Maine
Every Maine market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Maine for car washes and detailers, numbered among those based in Maine, with Knox County marked.
Top counties in Maine
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Hancock County, ME | 66 | 6 | 2.3 | $3.7M | +3.0% | #313 of 1,451 |
| 2Sagadahoc County, ME | 65 | 5 | 3.0 | $3.1M | +3.4% | #340 of 1,451 |
| 3Oxford County, ME | 64 | 7 | 2.9 | $3.1M | +4.2% | #360 of 1,451 |
| 4Cumberland County, ME | 58 | 47 | 3.6 | $2.5M | +4.5% | #519 of 1,451 |
| 5Kennebec County, ME | 57 | 20 | 3.7 | $2.3M | +3.5% | #547 of 1,451 |
| 6Penobscot County, ME | 55 | 24 | 3.7 | $2.4M | +3.8% | #597 of 1,451 |
| 7Somerset County, ME | 50 | 8 | 3.4 | $2.5M | +2.3% | #718 of 1,451 |
| 8York County, ME | 50 | 37 | 4.0 | $2.3M | +4.8% | #720 of 1,451 |
| 9Androscoggin County, ME | 50 | 21 | 4.5 | $1.8M | +4.8% | #734 of 1,451 |
| 10Aroostook County, ME | 32 | 11 | 3.7 | $2.2M | −0.7% | #1,156 of 1,451 |
| 11Knox County, ME | 23 | 12 | 6.5 | $1.4M | +1.1% | #1,340 of 1,451 |
Other business types in Knox County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
- Auto repair and car care21
- Auto repair shops21
- Collision repair and body shops27
- Car washes and detailing23
- Tire shops53
- Oil change and quick lube
- Gas stations47
- Insurance agencies51
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many car washes and detailers are in Knox County, ME?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 12 car washes and detailers in Knox County. One of them (8%) is a chain location. The listings count car washes and detailers. Official counts show 4 businesses with payroll classed as car washes in 2023.
How much do households in Knox County, ME spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $16.4M a year, or $886 per household. That is 7% below the U.S. average (an index of 93, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 12 car washes and detailers on map listings, it comes to $1.4M per location. That spending covers all vehicle maintenance and repairs, which car washes and detailers share with other businesses in the trade. It is estimated from the incomes of the 18,484 households in Knox County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Knox County, ME compare with the U.S. for car washes and detailers?
Knox County has 6.5 car washes and detailers per 10,000 households, 71% above the U.S. rate of 3.8. Spending per location is $1.4M, 46% below the U.S. figure of $2.5M. At the U.S. ratio of car washes and detailers to household spending, Knox County would have about 7, against 12 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 4,621 households, against one for every 6,523 across the U.S.
How fast is Knox County, ME growing?
Population estimates put Knox County at 41,117 people in 2025, up 1.1% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 18,484 households. The median household income in Knox County is $74,096 a year, 8% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 28.3% 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. Knox County scores 23 for car washes and detailers (low), #1,340 of 1,451 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Knox County. It maps the car washes and detailers 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 car washes and detailers · All 56 business types in Knox County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Knox County?
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 Knox County. 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.