Groundwork

Auto · Small-town market · New Mexico

Car washes and detailers in the Taos, NM area

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for car washes and detailers in the Taos, NM area, set against other small-town markets and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 73 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #62 of 441 scored small-town markets
#1 of 8 scored small-town markets based in New Mexico

Listings
5
1 chain location (20%)
Official establishments
n/a
Fewer than 3, or not published
Household spending a year
$17M
On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $1,094 a household
Spending per listing
$3.4M
35% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
3.2
16% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
34,564
+0.3% since 2020

See the car washes and detailers around any address in the Taos 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 Taos 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 Taos area comes to about $17M a year: $1,094 per household, 14% above the U.S. average. That works out to $3.4M per location, 35% above the U.S. figure of $2.5M. The spending figure covers all vehicle maintenance and repairs, not only car washes and detailers.

There are 5 car washes and detailers on map listings in the Taos area as of September 2026. One of them (20%) is a chain location, against 23% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 3.2, 16% below the U.S. rate of 3.8.

Official counts don’t publish a figure for car washes in the Taos area, since they leave out counts under 3.

Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Taos area grew 0.3%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Taos area scores 73 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for car washes and detailers, ranking #62 of 441 scored small-town markets and #1 of 8 scored small-town markets based in New Mexico. That puts it in the top quarter of small-town markets.

How the Taos area compares

The same measures for New Mexico 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 Taos, NM area compared with New Mexico and the U.S.
MeasureTaos areaNew MexicoU.S.
Listings per 10k households3.24.03.8
Spending per listing$3.4M$2.6M$2.5M
Households per official establishmentn/a6,2496,523
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+15.5%+16.7%
Population growth, 2020–2025+0.3%+0.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs$1,094$1,033$958
Median household income$58,950$64,059$80,734
Groundwork market score7345

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
n/a
Employees, 2023
n/a
Annual payroll, 2023
n/a
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
51 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 the Taos 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 Taos area

Population, 2025 estimate
34,564+0.3% since 2020
Households
15,549
Median age
50.4
Homes lived in by their owners
78%
Vehicles per household
2.1
Land area
2,202 sq. mi.
People per square mile
16
Median household income
$58,950+53.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$87,052
Median home value
$382,800
Jobs located here
10,507
Daytime population
34,773Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Taos 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 Taos 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 New Mexico

Every New Mexico market ranked →

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

Top small-town markets in New Mexico

Small-town markets in New Mexico ranked for car washes and detailers by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Taos, NM7353.2$3.4M+0.3%#62 of 441
2Hobbs, NM46135.3$2.1M+0.2%#248 of 441
3Alamogordo, NM46176.9$1.4M+3.7%#254 of 441
4Carlsbad-Artesia, NM39156.4$1.7M+0.3%#314 of 441
5Clovis, NM36124.6$2.1M−3.3%#329 of 441
6Roswell, NM31125.1$2.1M−2.7%#365 of 441
7Deming, NM2866.5$1.5M−0.2%#392 of 441
8Gallup, NM19125.6$1.7M−6.1%#420 of 441

Other business types in the Taos 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 Taos, NM area?

As of September 2026, map listings count 5 car washes and detailers in the Taos area. One of them (20%) is a chain location. The listings count car washes and detailers. No official count is published for car washes in the Taos area: counts under 3 are left out.

How much do households in the Taos, NM area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?

About $17M a year, or $1,094 per household. That is 14% above the U.S. average (an index of 114, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 5 car washes and detailers on map listings, it comes to $3.4M 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 15,549 households in the Taos area and national spending patterns by income.

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

The Taos area has 3.2 car washes and detailers per 10,000 households, 16% below the U.S. rate of 3.8. Spending per location is $3.4M, 35% above the U.S. figure of $2.5M. At the U.S. ratio of car washes and detailers to household spending, the Taos area would have about 7, against 5 on map listings.

How fast is the Taos, NM area growing?

Population estimates put the Taos area at 34,564 people in 2025, up 0.3% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 15,549 households. The median household income in the Taos area is $58,950 a year, 27% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 53.8% 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. 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 Taos area scores 73 for car washes and detailers (upper middle), #62 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 Taos 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 Taos area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Taos 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 Taos 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.