Auto · Small-town market · North Carolina
Car washes and detailers in the North Wilkesboro, NC area
How the North Wilkesboro, NC 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 49 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #228 of 441 scored small-town markets
#13 of 22 scored small-town markets based in North Carolina
- Listings
- 15
- 2 chain locations (13%)
- Official establishments
- 3
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $25.9M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $955 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.7M
- 32% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 5.5
- 45% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 66,233
- +0.6% since 2020
See the car washes and detailers around any address in the North Wilkesboro 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 North Wilkesboro 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
As of September 2026, map listings count 15 car washes and detailers in the North Wilkesboro area. Chain locations make up 13% of them, against 23% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 5.5, 45% above the U.S. rate of 3.8.
Households in the North Wilkesboro area spend about $25.9M a year on vehicle maintenance and repairs, or $955 per household, in line with the U.S. average. Spread across 15 car washes and detailers, that is $1.7M per location, 32% 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 3 businesses with payroll in the North Wilkesboro area classed as car washes. That is one for every 9,036 households, against one for every 6,523 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $255K has gone to businesses classed as car washes in the North Wilkesboro area.
Population estimates show the North Wilkesboro area grew 0.6% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The North Wilkesboro area scores 49 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for car washes and detailers, ranking #228 of 441 scored small-town markets and #13 of 22 scored small-town markets based in North Carolina.
How the North Wilkesboro area 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.
| Measure | North Wilkesboro area | North Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 5.5 | 3.9 | 3.8 |
| Spending per listing | $1.7M | $2.4M | $2.5M |
| Households per official establishment | 9,036 | 6,963 | 6,523 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +8.7% | +16.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +0.6% | +7.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $955 | $939 | $958 |
| Median household income | $51,721 | $72,388 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 49 | 55 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 3
- Employees, 2023
- 14
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $210K
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 152 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
- 1
- Amount
- $255K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as car washes in the North Wilkesboro 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 North Wilkesboro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 66,233+0.6% since 2020
- Households
- 27,107
- Median age
- 45.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 74%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 754 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 87
- Median household income
- $51,721+17.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $66,361
- Median home value
- $168,800
- Jobs located here
- 19,607
- Daytime population
- 59,600Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the North Wilkesboro 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 North Wilkesboro 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 North Carolina
Every North Carolina market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in North Carolina for car washes and detailers, numbered among those based in North Carolina, with the North Wilkesboro area marked.
Top small-town markets in North Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Lumberton, NC | 79 | 10 | 2.3 | $3.9M | +3.4% | #18 of 441 |
| 2Albemarle, NC | 78 | 9 | 3.6 | $2.9M | +9.8% | #24 of 441 |
| 3Anderson Creek, NC | 75 | 21 | 4.2 | $2.4M | +12.3% | #49 of 441 |
| 4Shelby-Kings Mountain, NC | 74 | 14 | 3.6 | $2.7M | +3.4% | #57 of 441 |
| 5Waynesville, NC | 73 | 5 | 1.8 | $5.2M | +1.9% | #59 of 441 |
| 6Sanford, NC | 62 | 11 | 4.4 | $2.3M | +10.8% | #129 of 441 |
| 7Roanoke Rapids, NC | 59 | 8 | 2.8 | $3.2M | −4.3% | #143 of 441 |
| 8New Bern, NC | 58 | 23 | 4.4 | $2M | +3.6% | #155 of 441 |
| 9Kinston, NC | 57 | 8 | 3.4 | $2.4M | +1.4% | #158 of 441 |
| 10Morehead City, NC | 55 | 13 | 4.1 | $2.3M | +4.1% | #176 of 441 |
| 13North Wilkesboro, NC | 49 | 15 | 5.5 | $1.7M | +0.6% | #228 of 441 |
Other business types in the North Wilkesboro 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 care53
- Auto repair shops59
- Collision repair and body shops58
- Car washes and detailing49
- Tire shops47
- Oil change and quick lube
- Gas stations52
- Insurance agencies83
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 North Wilkesboro, NC area?
The North Wilkesboro area has 15 car washes and detailers on map listings as of September 2026. 2 of them (13%) 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 North Wilkesboro, NC area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $25.9M a year, or $955 per household. That is in line with the U.S. average (an index of 100, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 15 car washes and detailers on map listings, it comes to $1.7M 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 27,107 households in the North Wilkesboro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the North Wilkesboro, NC area compare with the U.S. for car washes and detailers?
The North Wilkesboro area has 5.5 car washes and detailers per 10,000 households, 45% above the U.S. rate of 3.8. Spending per location is $1.7M, 32% below the U.S. figure of $2.5M. At the national ratio of car washes and detailers to household spending, the North Wilkesboro area would have about 10, against 15 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 9,036 households, against one for every 6,523 across the U.S.
How fast is the North Wilkesboro, NC area growing?
Population estimates put the North Wilkesboro area at 66,233 people in 2025, up 0.6% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 27,107 households. Median household income in the North Wilkesboro area is $51,721, 36% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 17.3%, 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. 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 North Wilkesboro area scores 49 for car washes and detailers (lower middle), #228 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 North Wilkesboro 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 North Wilkesboro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the North Wilkesboro 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 North Wilkesboro 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.