Auto · Metro area · North Carolina
Car washes and detailers in the Wilmington, NC metro area
The car washes and detailers in the Wilmington, NC metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 49 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #206 of 387 scored metro areas
#12 of 15 scored metro areas based in North Carolina
- Listings
- 90
- 34 chain locations (38%)
- Official establishments
- 33
- +22.2% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $183.7M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $922 a household
- Spending per listing
- $2M
- 19% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 4.5
- 18% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 492,772
- +15.9% since 2020
See the car washes and detailers around any address in the Wilmington metro 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 Wilmington metro 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 90 car washes and detailers in the Wilmington metro area. Of those, 34 are chain locations, or 38%, against 23% across the U.S. That is 4.5 per 10,000 households, 18% above the U.S. rate of 3.8.
Household spending on vehicle maintenance and repairs in the Wilmington metro area comes to about $183.7M a year: $922 per household, 4% below the U.S. average. Spread across 90 car washes and detailers, that is $2M per location, 19% 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.
Official counts show 33 businesses with payroll classed as car washes in the Wilmington metro area in 2023, up 22.2% from 2019. That is one for every 6,039 households, against one for every 6,523 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $2.2M has gone to businesses classed as car washes in the Wilmington metro area.
Population estimates put the population change in the Wilmington metro area from 2020 to 2025 at +15.9%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for car washes and detailers in the Wilmington metro area is 49 (lower middle), #206 of 387 scored metro areas and #12 of 15 scored metro areas based in North Carolina.
How the Wilmington metro 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 | Wilmington metro area | North Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 4.5 | 3.9 | 3.8 |
| Spending per listing | $2M | $2.4M | $2.5M |
| Households per official establishment | 6,039 | 6,963 | 6,523 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +22.2% | +8.7% | +16.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +15.9% | +7.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $922 | $939 | $958 |
| Median household income | $76,471 | $72,388 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 49 | 55 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 33+22.2% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 263
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $5.3M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 9034 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 73The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $2.2M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as car washes in the Wilmington metro 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 Wilmington metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 492,772+15.9% since 2020
- Households
- 199,271
- Median age
- 45.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 72%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 1,913 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 237
- Median household income
- $76,471
- Average household income
- $104,427
- Median home value
- $362,400
- Jobs located here
- 180,798
- Daytime population
- 448,307Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Wilmington metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. 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 Wilmington metro 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 metro areas in North Carolina for car washes and detailers, numbered among those based in North Carolina, with the Wilmington metro area marked.
Top metro areas in North Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Pinehurst-Southern Pines, NC | 83 | 12 | 2.7 | $3.5M | +10.3% | #1 of 387 |
| 2Durham-Chapel Hill, NC | 76 | 74 | 3.0 | $3M | +7.5% | #20 of 387 |
| 3Raleigh-Cary, NC | 67 | 206 | 3.6 | $2.7M | +12.6% | #70 of 387 |
| 4Winston-Salem, NC | 66 | 99 | 3.5 | $2.7M | +5.3% | #74 of 387 |
| 5Greenville, NC | 63 | 24 | 3.2 | $2.5M | +5.4% | #103 of 387 |
| 6Rocky Mount, NC | 60 | 17 | 2.9 | $3.2M | +2.8% | #120 of 387 |
| 7Burlington, NC | 58 | 31 | 4.4 | $2.1M | +8.5% | #140 of 387 |
| 8Jacksonville, NC | 57 | 33 | 4.4 | $2.1M | +6.0% | #152 of 387 |
| 9Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC | 56 | 420 | 3.9 | $2.4M | +10.1% | #156 of 387 |
| 10Greensboro-High Point, NC | 51 | 123 | 3.9 | $2.4M | +4.1% | #187 of 387 |
| 12Wilmington, NC | 49 | 90 | 4.5 | $2M | +15.9% | #206 of 387 |
Other business types in the Wilmington metro 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 care60
- Auto repair shops60
- Collision repair and body shops69
- Car washes and detailing49
- Tire shops56
- Oil change and quick lube56
- Gas stations79
- Insurance agencies81
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 Wilmington, NC metro area?
The Wilmington metro area has 90 car washes and detailers on map listings as of September 2026. 34 of them (38%) are chain locations. The listings count car washes and detailers. Official counts show 33 businesses with payroll classed as car washes in 2023, up 22.2% from 2019.
How much do households in the Wilmington, NC metro area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $183.7M a year, or $922 per household. That is 4% below the U.S. average (an index of 96, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 90 car washes and detailers on map listings, it comes to $2M 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 199,271 households in the Wilmington metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Wilmington, NC metro area compare with the U.S. for car washes and detailers?
The Wilmington metro area has 4.5 car washes and detailers per 10,000 households, 18% above the U.S. rate of 3.8. Spending per location is $2M, 19% below the U.S. figure of $2.5M. At the national ratio of car washes and detailers to household spending, the Wilmington metro area would have about 73, against 90 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 6,039 households, against one for every 6,523 across the U.S. The official count rose 22.2% from 2019 to 2023, against +16.7% for the U.S.
How fast is the Wilmington, NC metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Wilmington metro area at 492,772 people in 2025, up 15.9% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 199,271 households. Median household income in the Wilmington metro area is $76,471, 5% 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. 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 Wilmington metro area scores 49 for car washes and detailers (lower middle), #206 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Wilmington metro 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 Wilmington metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Wilmington metro 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 Wilmington metro 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.