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Car washes and detailers in Lee County, NC

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

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 56 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #574 of 1,451 scored counties
#29 of 67 scored counties in North Carolina

Listings
11
2 chain locations (18%)
Official establishments
5
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$25.2M
On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $1,001 a household
Spending per listing
$2.3M
9% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
4.4
16% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
70,258
+10.8% since 2020

See the car washes and detailers around any address in Lee 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 Lee 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

Map listings as of September 2026 show 11 car washes and detailers in Lee County. 2 of them (18%) are chain locations, against 23% across the U.S. That is 4.4 per 10,000 households, 16% above the U.S. rate of 3.8.

At $1,001 per household (4% above the U.S. average), households in Lee County spend about $25.2M a year on vehicle maintenance and repairs. That is about $2.3M of household spending for each location on map listings, 9% below 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 5 businesses with payroll in Lee County classed as car washes. That is one for every 5,029 households, against one for every 6,523 across the U.S.

Population estimates show Lee County grew 10.8% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for car washes and detailers in Lee County is 56 (upper middle), #574 of 1,451 scored counties and #29 of 67 scored counties in North Carolina.

How Lee County compares

The same measures for North Carolina 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 Lee County, NC compared with North Carolina and the U.S.
MeasureLee CountyNorth CarolinaU.S.
Listings per 10k households4.43.93.8
Spending per listing$2.3M$2.4M$2.5M
Households per official establishment5,0296,9636,523
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+8.7%+16.7%
Population growth, 2020–2025+10.8%+7.2%+3.1%
Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs$1,001$939$958
Median household income$65,387$72,388$80,734
Groundwork market score5655

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
5 → 5
Employees, 2023
46
Annual payroll, 2023
$1.6M
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
112 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
10The 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 Lee 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 Lee County

Population, 2025 estimate
70,258+10.8% since 2020
Households
25,145
Median age
39.7
Homes lived in by their owners
67%
Vehicles per household
2.1
Land area
255 sq. mi.
People per square mile
258
Median household income
$65,387+30.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$81,746
Median home value
$240,200
Jobs located here
27,081
Daytime population
64,849Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Lee 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 Lee 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 North Carolina

Every North Carolina market ranked →

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

Top counties in North Carolina

Counties in North Carolina ranked for car washes and detailers by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Moore County, NC82122.7$3.5M+10.3%#48 of 1,451
2Orange County, NC81111.9$4.9M+6.1%#52 of 1,451
3Rowan County, NC78162.7$3.6M+5.6%#75 of 1,451
4Randolph County, NC77172.9$3.4M+3.5%#93 of 1,451
5Brunswick County, NC77253.6$2.7M+26.5%#102 of 1,451
6Robeson County, NC76102.3$3.9M+3.4%#107 of 1,451
7Stanly County, NC7593.6$2.9M+9.8%#129 of 1,451
8Union County, NC74323.8$3M+11.7%#142 of 1,451
9Jackson County, NC7252.7$3.4M+6.9%#177 of 1,451
10Rockingham County, NC72123.0$3M+3.3%#181 of 1,451
29Lee County, NC56114.4$2.3M+10.8%#574 of 1,451

Other business types in Lee County

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

Questions

How many car washes and detailers are in Lee County, NC?

There are 11 car washes and detailers on map listings in Lee County as of September 2026. 2 of them (18%) are chain locations. The listings count car washes and detailers. Official counts show 5 businesses with payroll classed as car washes in 2023.

How much do households in Lee County, NC spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?

About $25.2M a year, or $1,001 per household. That is 4% above the U.S. average (an index of 104, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 11 car washes and detailers on map listings, it comes to $2.3M 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 25,145 households in Lee County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Lee County has 4.4 car washes and detailers per 10,000 households, 16% above the U.S. rate of 3.8. Spending per location is $2.3M, 9% below the U.S. figure of $2.5M. At the national ratio of car washes and detailers to household spending, Lee County would have about 10, against 11 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 5,029 households, against one for every 6,523 across the U.S.

How fast is Lee County, NC growing?

Population estimates put Lee County at 70,258 people in 2025, up 10.8% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 25,145 households. Median household income in Lee County is $65,387, 19% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 30.8%, 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. Lee County scores 56 for car washes and detailers (upper middle), #574 of 1,451 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Lee 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 Lee 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.