Auto · Metro area · Texas
Car washes and detailers in the Brownsville-Harlingen, TX metro area
How the Brownsville-Harlingen, TX metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for car washes and detailers: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 35 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #311 of 387 scored metro areas
#12 of 26 scored metro areas based in Texas
- Listings
- 84
- 28 chain locations (33%)
- Official establishments
- 16
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $116.5M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $841 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.4M
- 45% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 6.1
- 61% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 433,946
- +3.0% since 2020
See the car washes and detailers around any address in the Brownsville-Harlingen 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 Brownsville-Harlingen 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
The Groundwork market score for car washes and detailers in the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area is 35 (lower middle), #311 of 387 scored metro areas and #12 of 26 scored metro areas based in Texas. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.
Map listings as of September 2026 show 84 car washes and detailers in the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area. Of those, 28 are chain locations, or 33%, against 23% across the U.S. That is 6.1 per 10,000 households, 61% above the U.S. rate of 3.8.
Household spending on vehicle maintenance and repairs in the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area comes to about $116.5M a year: $841 per household, 12% below the U.S. average. Spread across 84 car washes and detailers, that is $1.4M per location, 45% 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 16 businesses with payroll classed as car washes in the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area in 2023. That is one for every 8,652 households, against one for every 6,523 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $100K has gone to businesses classed as car washes in the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area. Population estimates show the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area grew 3.0% from 2020 to 2025, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area compares
The same measures for Texas 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 | Brownsville-Harlingen metro area | Texas | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 6.1 | 4.7 | 3.8 |
| Spending per listing | $1.4M | $2M | $2.5M |
| Households per official establishment | 8,652 | 5,916 | 6,523 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +26.8% | +16.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +3.0% | +8.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $841 | $918 | $958 |
| Median household income | $52,601 | $78,476 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 35 | 35 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 16
- Employees, 2023
- 119
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $2.8M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 8428 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 46The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $100K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as car washes in the Brownsville-Harlingen 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 Brownsville-Harlingen metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 433,946+3.0% since 2020
- Households
- 138,433
- Median age
- 33.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 65%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 892 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 478
- Median household income
- $52,601+35.7% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $71,931
- Median home value
- $136,500
- Jobs located here
- 146,355
- Daytime population
- 405,619Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Brownsville-Harlingen 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 Brownsville-Harlingen 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 Texas
Every Texas market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Texas for car washes and detailers, numbered among those based in Texas, with the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Texas
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Sherman-Denison, TX | 75 | 20 | 3.6 | $2.6M | +12.8% | #23 of 387 |
| 2College Station-Bryan, TX | 60 | 34 | 3.2 | $2.7M | +6.9% | #121 of 387 |
| 3Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX | 58 | 386 | 3.9 | $2.3M | +14.0% | #138 of 387 |
| 4Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | 56 | 1,202 | 4.2 | $2.3M | +10.6% | #159 of 387 |
| 5Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX | 47 | 1,211 | 4.5 | $2M | +10.3% | #225 of 387 |
| 6Wichita Falls, TX | 45 | 17 | 3.0 | $2.9M | +0.7% | #236 of 387 |
| 7San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX | 44 | 439 | 4.5 | $2M | +9.5% | #247 of 387 |
| 8Killeen-Temple, TX | 44 | 82 | 4.6 | $1.9M | +7.2% | #249 of 387 |
| 9Waco, TX | 43 | 46 | 4.1 | $2.2M | +4.2% | #253 of 387 |
| 10McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX | 43 | 218 | 8.1 | $1.1M | +5.6% | #257 of 387 |
| 12Brownsville-Harlingen, TX | 35 | 84 | 6.1 | $1.4M | +3.0% | #311 of 387 |
Other business types in the Brownsville-Harlingen 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 care43
- Auto repair shops43
- Collision repair and body shops53
- Car washes and detailing35
- Tire shops39
- Oil change and quick lube29
- Gas stations55
- Insurance agencies45
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 Brownsville-Harlingen, TX metro area?
There are 84 car washes and detailers on map listings in the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area as of September 2026. 28 of them (33%) are chain locations. The listings count car washes and detailers. Official counts show 16 businesses with payroll classed as car washes in 2023.
How much do households in the Brownsville-Harlingen, TX metro area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $116.5M a year, or $841 per household. That is 12% below the U.S. average (an index of 88, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 84 car washes and detailers on map listings, it comes to $1.4M 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 138,433 households in the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Brownsville-Harlingen, TX metro area compare with the U.S. for car washes and detailers?
The Brownsville-Harlingen metro area has 6.1 car washes and detailers per 10,000 households, 61% above the U.S. rate of 3.8. Spending per location is $1.4M, 45% below the U.S. figure of $2.5M. At the national ratio of car washes and detailers to household spending, the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area would have about 46, against 84 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 8,652 households, against one for every 6,523 across the U.S.
How fast is the Brownsville-Harlingen, TX metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area at 433,946 people in 2025, up 3.0% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 138,433 households. Median household income in the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area is $52,601, 35% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 35.7%, 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. The Brownsville-Harlingen metro area scores 35 for car washes and detailers (lower middle), #311 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 Brownsville-Harlingen 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 Brownsville-Harlingen metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Brownsville-Harlingen 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 Brownsville-Harlingen 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.