Auto · Metro area · Maryland
Car washes and detailers in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD metro area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for car washes and detailers in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 55 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #164 of 387 scored metro areas
#3 of 4 scored metro areas based in Maryland
- Listings
- 337
- 62 chain locations (18%)
- Official establishments
- 147
- +12.4% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $973.8M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $869 a household
- Spending per listing
- $2.9M
- 15% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 3.0
- 21% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 2,857,781
- +0.4% since 2020
See the car washes and detailers around any address in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson 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 Baltimore-Columbia-Towson 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
Household spending on vehicle maintenance and repairs in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson metro area comes to about $973.8M a year: $869 per household, 9% below the U.S. average. That works out to $2.9M per location, 15% above the U.S. figure of $2.5M. The spending figure covers all vehicle maintenance and repairs, not only car washes and detailers.
The Baltimore-Columbia-Towson metro area has 337 car washes and detailers on map listings as of September 2026. 62 of them (18%) are chain locations, against 23% across the U.S. That is 3.0 per 10,000 households, 21% below the U.S. rate of 3.8.
In 2023, official counts showed 147 businesses with payroll in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson metro area classed as car washes, up 12.4% from 2019. That is one for every 7,621 households, against one for every 6,523 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 8 SBA-backed loans worth $6.5M have gone to businesses classed as car washes in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson metro area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson metro area grew 0.4%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for car washes and detailers in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson metro area is 55 (upper middle), #164 of 387 scored metro areas and #3 of 4 scored metro areas based in Maryland.
How the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson metro area compares
The same measures for Maryland 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 | Baltimore-Columbia-Towson metro area | Maryland | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 3.0 | 3.1 | 3.8 |
| Spending per listing | $2.9M | $3M | $2.5M |
| Households per official establishment | 7,621 | 8,205 | 6,523 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +12.4% | +15.2% | +16.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +0.4% | +1.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $869 | $908 | $958 |
| Median household income | $99,470 | $103,678 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 55 | 61 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 147+12.4% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,551
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $50.7M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 33762 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 387The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 8
- Amount
- $6.5M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as car washes in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson 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 Baltimore-Columbia-Towson metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 2,857,781+0.4% since 2020
- Households
- 1,120,269
- Median age
- 40.3
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 67%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 2,602 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 1,095
- Median household income
- $99,470+21.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $131,059
- Median home value
- $391,300
- Jobs located here
- 1,345,791
- Daytime population
- 2,886,566Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson 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 Baltimore-Columbia-Towson 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 Maryland
Every Maryland market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Maryland for car washes and detailers, numbered among those based in Maryland (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Maryland
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | 73 | 552 | 2.3 | $3.9M | +3.3% | #31 of 387 |
| 1Lexington Park, MD | 68 | 32 | 4.2 | $2.8M | +2.1% | #58 of 387 |
| 2Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV | 66 | 51 | 4.3 | $2.2M | +7.1% | #75 of 387 |
| 3Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD | 55 | 337 | 3.0 | $2.9M | +0.4% | #164 of 387 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | 50 | 775 | 3.1 | $2.6M | +1.4% | #189 of 387 |
| 4Salisbury, MD | 42 | 20 | 4.1 | $2.3M | +2.9% | #260 of 387 |
Other business types in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson 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 care44
- Auto repair shops37
- Collision repair and body shops36
- Car washes and detailing55
- Tire shops50
- Oil change and quick lube62
- Gas stations65
- Insurance agencies62
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 Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD metro area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 337 car washes and detailers in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson metro area. 62 of them (18%) are chain locations. The listings count car washes and detailers. Official counts show 147 businesses with payroll classed as car washes in 2023, up 12.4% from 2019.
How much do households in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD metro area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $973.8M a year, or $869 per household. That is 9% below the U.S. average (an index of 91, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 337 car washes and detailers on map listings, it comes to $2.9M 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 1,120,269 households in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD metro area compare with the U.S. for car washes and detailers?
The Baltimore-Columbia-Towson metro area has 3.0 car washes and detailers per 10,000 households, 21% below the U.S. rate of 3.8. Spending per location is $2.9M, 15% above the U.S. figure of $2.5M. At the U.S. ratio of car washes and detailers to household spending, the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson metro area would have about 387, against 337 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 7,621 households, against one for every 6,523 across the U.S. The official count rose 12.4% from 2019 to 2023, against +16.7% for the U.S.
How fast is the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson metro area at 2,857,781 people in 2025, up 0.4% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 1,120,269 households. The median household income in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson metro area is $99,470 a year, 23% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 21.9% 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 Baltimore-Columbia-Towson metro area scores 55 for car washes and detailers (upper middle), #164 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 Baltimore-Columbia-Towson 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 Baltimore-Columbia-Towson metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson 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 Baltimore-Columbia-Towson 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.