Auto · County · Pennsylvania
Car washes and detailers in Centre County, PA
How Centre County, PA compares with other counties and the U.S. for car washes and detailers: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 61 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #431 of 1,451 scored counties
#6 of 55 scored counties in Pennsylvania
- Listings
- 15
- 0 chain locations (0%)
- Official establishments
- 4
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $48.5M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $821 a household
- Spending per listing
- $3.2M
- 28% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 2.5
- 34% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 157,393
- −0.4% since 2020
See the car washes and detailers around any address in Centre 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 Centre County. 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
At $821 per household (14% below the U.S. average), households in Centre County spend about $48.5M a year on vehicle maintenance and repairs. Spread across 15 car washes and detailers, that is $3.2M per location, 28% above the U.S. figure of $2.5M. The spending figure covers all vehicle maintenance and repairs, not only car washes and detailers.
Centre County has 15 car washes and detailers on map listings as of September 2026. None of them are chain locations, against 23% across the U.S. That is 2.5 per 10,000 households, 34% below the U.S. rate of 3.8.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as car washes in Centre County was 4 in 2023. That is one for every 14,753 households, against one for every 6,523 across the U.S.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Centre County declined 0.4%, against +3.1% for the U.S. Centre County scores 61 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for car washes and detailers, ranking #431 of 1,451 scored counties and #6 of 55 scored counties in Pennsylvania.
How Centre County compares
The same measures for Pennsylvania 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 | Centre County | Pennsylvania | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 2.5 | 3.7 | 3.8 |
| Spending per listing | $3.2M | $2.2M | $2.5M |
| Households per official establishment | 14,753 | 8,399 | 6,523 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +9.0% | +16.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −0.4% | +0.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $821 | $837 | $958 |
| Median household income | $74,291 | $77,971 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 61 | 36 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 8 → 4
- Employees, 2023
- 31
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $791K
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 150 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 19The 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 Centre 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 Centre County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 157,393−0.4% since 2020
- Households
- 59,013
- Median age
- 38.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 62%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 1,107 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 143
- Median household income
- $74,291+23.0% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $100,987
- Median home value
- $323,500
- Jobs located here
- 66,922
- Daytime population
- 170,905Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Centre 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 Centre County. 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 Pennsylvania
Every Pennsylvania market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Pennsylvania for car washes and detailers, numbered among those based in Pennsylvania, with Centre County marked.
Top counties in Pennsylvania
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Monroe County, PA | 70 | 15 | 2.5 | $3.9M | −0.7% | #224 of 1,451 |
| 2Carbon County, PA | 65 | 6 | 2.2 | $4.1M | +1.7% | #332 of 1,451 |
| 3York County, PA | 65 | 75 | 4.1 | $2.3M | +3.6% | #350 of 1,451 |
| 4Berks County, PA | 63 | 56 | 3.4 | $2.7M | +2.7% | #393 of 1,451 |
| 5Adams County, PA | 63 | 17 | 4.2 | $2.5M | +3.6% | #398 of 1,451 |
| 6Centre County, PA | 61 | 15 | 2.5 | $3.2M | −0.4% | #431 of 1,451 |
| 7Chester County, PA | 61 | 85 | 4.2 | $2.5M | +4.2% | #442 of 1,451 |
| 8Bucks County, PA | 60 | 95 | 3.8 | $2.7M | +0.3% | #460 of 1,451 |
| 9Montgomery County, PA | 59 | 116 | 3.5 | $2.8M | +2.4% | #483 of 1,451 |
| 10Northampton County, PA | 59 | 46 | 3.8 | $2.5M | +3.7% | #492 of 1,451 |
Other business types in Centre County
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 care52
- Auto repair shops51
- Collision repair and body shops54
- Car washes and detailing61
- Tire shops61
- Oil change and quick lube39
- Gas stations59
- Insurance agencies35
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 Centre County, PA?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 15 car washes and detailers in Centre County. None of them are chain locations. The listings count car washes and detailers. Official counts show 4 businesses with payroll classed as car washes in 2023.
How much do households in Centre County, PA spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $48.5M a year, or $821 per household. That is 14% below the U.S. average (an index of 86, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 15 car washes and detailers on map listings, it comes to $3.2M 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 59,013 households in Centre County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Centre County, PA compare with the U.S. for car washes and detailers?
Centre County has 2.5 car washes and detailers per 10,000 households, 34% below the U.S. rate of 3.8. Spending per location is $3.2M, 28% above the U.S. figure of $2.5M. At the U.S. ratio of car washes and detailers to household spending, Centre County would have about 19, against 15 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 14,753 households, against one for every 6,523 across the U.S.
How fast is Centre County, PA growing?
Population estimates put Centre County at 157,393 people in 2025, down 0.4% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 59,013 households. The median household income in Centre County is $74,291 a year, 8% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 23.0% 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. 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. Centre County scores 61 for car washes and detailers (upper middle), #431 of 1,451 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Centre 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 Centre County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Centre 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 Centre 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.