Auto · County · Texas
Car washes and detailers in Howard County, TX
How Howard County, TX 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 7 out of 100: Very low
Ranked #1,439 of 1,451 scored counties
#100 of 102 scored counties in Texas
- Listings
- 9
- 3 chain locations (33%)
- Official establishments
- 4
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $10.5M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $865 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.2M
- 53% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 7.4
- 95% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 30,504
- −12.4% since 2020
See the car washes and detailers around any address in Howard 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 Howard 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
The Groundwork market score for car washes and detailers in Howard County is 7 (very low), #1,439 of 1,451 scored counties and #100 of 102 scored counties in Texas. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
Household spending on vehicle maintenance and repairs in Howard County comes to about $10.5M a year: $865 per household, 10% below the U.S. average. That works out to $1.2M per location, 53% below the U.S. figure of $2.5M. The spending figure covers all vehicle maintenance and repairs, not only car washes and detailers.
Howard County has 9 car washes and detailers on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 3 are chain locations, or 33%, against 23% across the U.S. That comes to 7.4 for every 10,000 households, 95% above the U.S. rate of 3.8.
Official counts show 4 businesses with payroll classed as car washes in Howard County in 2023. That is one for every 3,048 households, against one for every 6,523 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $3.6M has gone to businesses classed as car washes in Howard County. Population estimates put the population change in Howard County from 2020 to 2025 at −12.4%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How Howard County 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 | Howard County | Texas | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 7.4 | 4.7 | 3.8 |
| Spending per listing | $1.2M | $2M | $2.5M |
| Households per official establishment | 3,048 | 5,916 | 6,523 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +26.8% | +16.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −12.4% | +8.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $865 | $918 | $958 |
| Median household income | $69,649 | $78,476 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 7 | 35 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 3 → 4
- Employees, 2023
- 27
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $907K
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 93 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 4The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $3.6M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as car washes in Howard 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 Howard County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 30,504−12.4% since 2020
- Households
- 12,191
- Median age
- 37.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 70%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 901 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 36
- Median household income
- $69,649+28.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $90,688
- Median home value
- $155,600
- Jobs located here
- 11,735
- Daytime population
- 29,322Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Howard 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 Howard 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 Texas
Every Texas market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Texas for car washes and detailers, numbered among those based in Texas, with Howard County marked.
Top counties in Texas
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Cooke County, TX | 79 | 5 | 3.0 | $3.4M | +6.5% | #65 of 1,451 |
| 2Wilson County, TX | 79 | 8 | 4.4 | $2.6M | +12.2% | #72 of 1,451 |
| 3Van Zandt County, TX | 78 | 7 | 3.1 | $3.3M | +10.7% | #81 of 1,451 |
| 4Guadalupe County, TX | 76 | 19 | 2.9 | $3.6M | +15.8% | #108 of 1,451 |
| 5Fort Bend County, TX | 76 | 96 | 3.3 | $3.2M | +17.4% | #110 of 1,451 |
| 6Wise County, TX | 76 | 12 | 4.8 | $2.4M | +21.5% | #115 of 1,451 |
| 7Grayson County, TX | 74 | 20 | 3.6 | $2.6M | +12.8% | #145 of 1,451 |
| 8Wood County, TX | 73 | 6 | 3.2 | $3M | +10.3% | #165 of 1,451 |
| 9Walker County, TX | 72 | 6 | 2.3 | $3.5M | +9.5% | #176 of 1,451 |
| 10Hunt County, TX | 72 | 13 | 3.4 | $2.9M | +23.0% | #183 of 1,451 |
| 100Howard County, TX | 7 | 9 | 7.4 | $1.2M | −12.4% | #1,439 of 1,451 |
Other business types in Howard 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 care33
- Auto repair shops45
- Collision repair and body shops
- Car washes and detailing7
- Tire shops21
- Oil change and quick lube
- Gas stations13
- Insurance agencies39
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 Howard County, TX?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 9 car washes and detailers in Howard County. 3 of them (33%) 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 Howard County, TX spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $10.5M a year, or $865 per household. That is 10% below the U.S. average (an index of 90, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 9 car washes and detailers on map listings, it comes to $1.2M 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 12,191 households in Howard County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Howard County, TX compare with the U.S. for car washes and detailers?
Howard County has 7.4 car washes and detailers per 10,000 households, 95% above the U.S. rate of 3.8. Spending per location is $1.2M, 53% below the U.S. figure of $2.5M. At the U.S. ratio of car washes and detailers to household spending, Howard County would have about 4, against 9 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 3,048 households, against one for every 6,523 across the U.S.
How fast is Howard County, TX growing?
Population estimates put Howard County at 30,504 people in 2025, down 12.4% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 12,191 households. The median household income in Howard County is $69,649 a year, 14% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 28.5% 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. Howard County scores 7 for car washes and detailers (very low), #1,439 of 1,451 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Howard 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 Howard County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Howard 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 Howard 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.