Auto · Metro area · Maine
Car washes and detailers in the Lewiston-Auburn, ME metro area
How the Lewiston-Auburn, ME metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for car washes and detailers: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 45 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #244 of 387 scored metro areas
#3 of 3 scored metro areas based in Maine
- Listings
- 21
- 4 chain locations (19%)
- Official establishments
- 4
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $38.5M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $820 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.8M
- 27% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 4.5
- 18% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 116,487
- +4.8% since 2020
See the car washes and detailers around any address in the Lewiston-Auburn metro area
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 the Lewiston-Auburn 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
At $820 per household (14% below the U.S. average), households in the Lewiston-Auburn metro area spend about $38.5M a year on vehicle maintenance and repairs. Spread across 21 car washes and detailers, that is $1.8M per location, 27% below the U.S. figure of $2.5M. The spending figure covers all vehicle maintenance and repairs, not only car washes and detailers.
There are 21 car washes and detailers on map listings in the Lewiston-Auburn metro area as of September 2026. 4 of them (19%) are chain locations, against 23% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 4.5, 18% above the U.S. rate of 3.8.
Official counts show 4 businesses with payroll classed as car washes in the Lewiston-Auburn metro area in 2023. That is one for every 11,738 households, against one for every 6,523 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $2.1M have gone to businesses classed as car washes in the Lewiston-Auburn metro area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Lewiston-Auburn metro area grew 4.8%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for car washes and detailers in the Lewiston-Auburn metro area is 45 (lower middle), #244 of 387 scored metro areas and #3 of 3 scored metro areas based in Maine.
How the Lewiston-Auburn metro area 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 | Lewiston-Auburn metro area | Maine | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 4.5 | 3.6 | 3.8 |
| Spending per listing | $1.8M | $2.4M | $2.5M |
| Households per official establishment | 11,738 | 8,782 | 6,523 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +21.4% | +16.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +4.8% | +3.7% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $820 | $876 | $958 |
| Median household income | $67,873 | $74,733 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 45 | 56 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 4
- Employees, 2023
- 10
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $157K
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 214 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 15The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 2
- Amount
- $2.1M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as car washes in the Lewiston-Auburn 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 Lewiston-Auburn metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 116,487+4.8% since 2020
- Households
- 46,953
- Median age
- 41.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 68%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 468 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 242
- Median household income
- $67,873+26.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $86,271
- Median home value
- $252,800
- Jobs located here
- 50,802
- Daytime population
- 111,740Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Lewiston-Auburn 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 car washes and detailers on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Lewiston-Auburn metro area. 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 metro areas in Maine for car washes and detailers, numbered among those based in Maine, with the Lewiston-Auburn metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Maine
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Portland-South Portland, ME | 54 | 89 | 3.7 | $2.4M | +4.5% | #169 of 387 |
| 2Bangor, ME | 53 | 24 | 3.7 | $2.4M | +3.8% | #175 of 387 |
| 3Lewiston-Auburn, ME | 45 | 21 | 4.5 | $1.8M | +4.8% | #244 of 387 |
Other business types in the Lewiston-Auburn metro area
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 shops23
- Car washes and detailing45
- Tire shops31
- Oil change and quick lube
- Gas stations37
- Insurance agencies58
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 the Lewiston-Auburn, ME metro area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 21 car washes and detailers in the Lewiston-Auburn metro area. 4 of them (19%) are chain locations. 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 the Lewiston-Auburn, ME metro area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $38.5M a year, or $820 per household. That is 14% below the U.S. average (an index of 86, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 21 car washes and detailers on map listings, it comes to $1.8M 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 46,953 households in the Lewiston-Auburn metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Lewiston-Auburn, ME metro area compare with the U.S. for car washes and detailers?
The Lewiston-Auburn metro area has 4.5 car washes and detailers per 10,000 households, 18% above the U.S. rate of 3.8. Spending per location is $1.8M, 27% below the U.S. figure of $2.5M. At the U.S. ratio of car washes and detailers to household spending, the Lewiston-Auburn metro area would have about 15, against 21 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 11,738 households, against one for every 6,523 across the U.S.
How fast is the Lewiston-Auburn, ME metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Lewiston-Auburn metro area at 116,487 people in 2025, up 4.8% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 46,953 households. The median household income in the Lewiston-Auburn metro area is $67,873 a year, 16% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 26.8% 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 Lewiston-Auburn metro area scores 45 for car washes and detailers (lower middle), #244 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 Lewiston-Auburn metro area. 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 the Lewiston-Auburn metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Lewiston-Auburn 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 Lewiston-Auburn 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.