Groundwork

Auto · Small-town market · Mississippi

Car washes and detailers in the Meridian, MS area

How the Meridian, MS area compares with other small-town markets and the U.S. for car washes and detailers: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 48 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #233 of 441 scored small-town markets
#5 of 11 scored small-town markets based in Mississippi

Listings
13
4 chain locations (31%)
Official establishments
3
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$29.2M
On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $842 a household
Spending per listing
$2.2M
11% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
3.8
In line with the U.S.
Population, 2025
85,419
−3.2% since 2020

See the car washes and detailers around any address in the Meridian 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 Meridian area. 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

Household spending on vehicle maintenance and repairs in the Meridian area comes to about $29.2M a year: $842 per household, 12% below the U.S. average. That works out to $2.2M per location, 11% 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 13 car washes and detailers on map listings in the Meridian area as of September 2026. 4 of them (31%) are chain locations, against 23% across the U.S. That comes to 3.8 for every 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 3.8.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as car washes in the Meridian area was 3 in 2023. That is one for every 11,551 households, against one for every 6,523 across the U.S.

Population estimates put the population change in the Meridian area from 2020 to 2025 at −3.2%, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Meridian area scores 48 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for car washes and detailers, ranking #233 of 441 scored small-town markets and #5 of 11 scored small-town markets based in Mississippi.

How the Meridian area compares

The same measures for Mississippi 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 Meridian, MS area compared with Mississippi and the U.S.
MeasureMeridian areaMississippiU.S.
Listings per 10k households3.83.63.8
Spending per listing$2.2M$2.5M$2.5M
Households per official establishment11,55111,0146,523
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a−5.4%+16.7%
Population growth, 2020–2025−3.2%−0.1%+3.1%
Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs$842$890$958
Median household income$49,822$56,447$80,734
Groundwork market score4848

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
3
Employees, 2023
21
Annual payroll, 2023
$545K
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
134 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
12The 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 the Meridian 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 Meridian area

Population, 2025 estimate
85,419−3.2% since 2020
Households
34,652
Median age
40.4
Homes lived in by their owners
68%
Vehicles per household
1.8
Land area
1,395 sq. mi.
People per square mile
62
Median household income
$49,822
Average household income
$69,927
Median home value
$128,100
Jobs located here
35,184
Daytime population
88,462Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Meridian area?

These figures cover the whole small-town market. 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 Meridian area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Car washes and detailing across Mississippi

Every Mississippi market ranked →

The highest-scoring small-town markets in Mississippi for car washes and detailers, numbered among those based in Mississippi, with the Meridian area marked.

Top small-town markets in Mississippi

Small-town markets in Mississippi ranked for car washes and detailers by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Oxford, MS7662.5$3.7M+5.3%#34 of 441
2Starkville, MS5393.5$2.5M+0.8%#189 of 441
3Tupelo, MS51275.2$1.8M+0.8%#217 of 441
4Laurel, MS4992.8$3M−1.5%#222 of 441
5Meridian, MS48133.8$2.2M−3.2%#233 of 441
6Vicksburg, MS4063.6$2.4M−6.3%#302 of 441
7Natchez, MS-LA4083.9$2M−0.9%#304 of 441
8Columbus, MS32114.1$2.1M−2.7%#358 of 441
9Grenada, MS3154.0$2.2M−3.6%#364 of 441
10McComb, MS28115.4$1.6M−2.6%#391 of 441

Other business types in the Meridian area

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

Questions

How many car washes and detailers are in the Meridian, MS area?

As of September 2026, map listings count 13 car washes and detailers in the Meridian area. 4 of them (31%) are chain locations. The listings count car washes and detailers. Official counts show 3 businesses with payroll classed as car washes in 2023.

How much do households in the Meridian, MS area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?

About $29.2M a year, or $842 per household. That is 12% below the U.S. average (an index of 88, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 13 car washes and detailers on map listings, it comes to $2.2M 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 34,652 households in the Meridian area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Meridian, MS area compare with the U.S. for car washes and detailers?

The Meridian area has 3.8 car washes and detailers per 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 3.8. Spending per location is $2.2M, 11% below the U.S. figure of $2.5M. At the U.S. ratio of car washes and detailers to household spending, the Meridian area would have about 12, against 13 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 11,551 households, against one for every 6,523 across the U.S.

How fast is the Meridian, MS area growing?

Population estimates put the Meridian area at 85,419 people in 2025, down 3.2% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 34,652 households. The median household income in the Meridian area is $49,822 a year, 38% 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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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 Meridian area scores 48 for car washes and detailers (lower middle), #233 of 441 scored small-town markets.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Meridian 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 Meridian area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Meridian 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 Meridian 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.