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Car washes and detailers in Livingston County, MI

The car washes and detailers in Livingston County, MI, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 75 out of 100: High

Ranked #123 of 1,451 scored counties
#2 of 55 scored counties in Michigan

Listings
28
2 chain locations (7%)
Official establishments
12
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$95.7M
On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $1,252 a household
Spending per listing
$3.4M
36% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
3.7
3% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
197,315
+1.7% since 2020

See the car washes and detailers around any address in Livingston 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 Livingston County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

For car washes and detailers, Livingston County has a Groundwork market score of 75 (high): #123 of 1,451 scored counties and #2 of 55 scored counties in Michigan. That puts it in the top 10% of counties for car washes and detailers.

As of September 2026, map listings count 28 car washes and detailers in Livingston County. Chain locations make up 7% of them, against 23% across the U.S. That is 3.7 per 10,000 households, 3% below the U.S. rate of 3.8.

Household spending on vehicle maintenance and repairs in Livingston County comes to about $95.7M a year: $1,252 per household, 31% above the U.S. average. That is about $3.4M of household spending for each location on map listings, 36% above the U.S. figure of $2.5M. That spending covers all vehicle maintenance and repairs, which car washes and detailers share with other businesses in the trade.

In 2023, official counts showed 12 businesses with payroll in Livingston County classed as car washes. That is one for every 6,370 households, against one for every 6,523 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 3 SBA-backed loans worth $3.9M have gone to businesses classed as car washes in Livingston County. Population estimates show Livingston County grew 1.7% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How Livingston County compares

The same measures for Michigan 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.

Car washes and detailing in Livingston County, MI compared with Michigan and the U.S.
MeasureLivingston CountyMichiganU.S.
Listings per 10k households3.74.63.8
Spending per listing$3.4M$2.2M$2.5M
Households per official establishment6,3706,1026,523
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+13.2%+16.7%
Population growth, 2020–2025+1.7%+0.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs$1,252$1,022$958
Median household income$103,039$72,875$80,734
Groundwork market score7531

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
9 → 12
Employees, 2023
88
Annual payroll, 2023
$1.8M
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
282 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
38The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
3
Amount
$3.9M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as car washes in Livingston 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 Livingston County

Population, 2025 estimate
197,315+1.7% since 2020
Households
76,445
Median age
44.2
Homes lived in by their owners
87%
Vehicles per household
2.0
Land area
565 sq. mi.
People per square mile
346
Median household income
$103,039+22.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$129,893
Median home value
$356,800
Jobs located here
61,513
Daytime population
172,103Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Livingston 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 Livingston County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Car washes and detailing across Michigan

Every Michigan market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Michigan for car washes and detailers, numbered among those based in Michigan, with Livingston County marked.

Top counties in Michigan

Counties in Michigan ranked for car washes and detailers by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Clinton County, MI82113.5$3.5M+1.6%#49 of 1,451
2Livingston County, MI75283.7$3.4M+1.7%#123 of 1,451
3Shiawassee County, MI71103.6$3.1M−0.4%#204 of 1,451
4Hillsdale County, MI7052.8$3.9M0.0%#225 of 1,451
5Lapeer County, MI70123.4$3.4M+1.0%#231 of 1,451
6Van Buren County, MI69103.3$3.3M+0.7%#251 of 1,451
7Washtenaw County, MI68453.0$3.4M−0.4%#274 of 1,451
8Eaton County, MI68173.7$2.9M+0.4%#282 of 1,451
9Allegan County, MI68224.8$2.5M+2.1%#290 of 1,451
10Ionia County, MI6793.9$2.9M−0.5%#300 of 1,451

Other business types in Livingston County

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many car washes and detailers are in Livingston County, MI?

Livingston County has 28 car washes and detailers on map listings as of September 2026. 2 of them (7%) are chain locations. The listings count car washes and detailers. Official counts show 12 businesses with payroll classed as car washes in 2023.

How much do households in Livingston County, MI spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?

About $95.7M a year, or $1,252 per household. That is 31% above the U.S. average (an index of 131, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 28 car washes and detailers on map listings, it comes to $3.4M per location. The spending figure covers all vehicle maintenance and repairs, not only car washes and detailers. It is estimated from the incomes of the 76,445 households in Livingston County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Livingston County, MI compare with the U.S. for car washes and detailers?

Livingston County has 3.7 car washes and detailers per 10,000 households, 3% below the U.S. rate of 3.8. Spending per location is $3.4M, 36% above the U.S. figure of $2.5M. At the national ratio of car washes and detailers to household spending, Livingston County would have about 38, against 28 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 6,370 households, against one for every 6,523 across the U.S.

How fast is Livingston County, MI growing?

Population estimates put Livingston County at 197,315 people in 2025, up 1.7% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 76,445 households. Median household income in Livingston County is $103,039, 28% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 22.3%, 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. Livingston County scores 75 for car washes and detailers (high), #123 of 1,451 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Livingston 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 Livingston County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Livingston 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 Livingston 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.