Auto · Metro area · Virginia
Car washes and detailers in the Charlottesville, VA metro area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for car washes and detailers in the Charlottesville, VA metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 63 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #98 of 387 scored metro areas
#4 of 9 scored metro areas based in Virginia
- Listings
- 31
- 5 chain locations (16%)
- Official establishments
- 14
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $88.6M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $979 a household
- Spending per listing
- $2.9M
- 13% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 3.4
- 11% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 228,597
- +3.1% since 2020
See the car washes and detailers around any address in the Charlottesville 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 Charlottesville 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 31 car washes and detailers in the Charlottesville metro area. Of those, 5 are chain locations, or 16%, against 23% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 3.4, 11% below the U.S. rate of 3.8.
Household spending on vehicle maintenance and repairs in the Charlottesville metro area comes to about $88.6M a year: $979 per household, 2% above the U.S. average. That works out to $2.9M per location, 13% above 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 14 businesses with payroll classed as car washes in the Charlottesville metro area in 2023. That is one for every 6,461 households, against one for every 6,523 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $1.8M has gone to businesses classed as car washes in the Charlottesville metro area.
Population estimates show the Charlottesville metro area grew 3.1% from 2020 to 2025, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). For car washes and detailers, the Charlottesville metro area has a Groundwork market score of 63 (upper middle): #98 of 387 scored metro areas and #4 of 9 scored metro areas based in Virginia.
How the Charlottesville metro area compares
The same measures for Virginia 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 | Charlottesville metro area | Virginia | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 3.4 | 3.1 | 3.8 |
| Spending per listing | $2.9M | $3.1M | $2.5M |
| Households per official establishment | 6,461 | 6,997 | 6,523 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +24.3% | +16.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +3.1% | +2.8% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $979 | $968 | $958 |
| Median household income | $93,598 | $93,170 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 63 | 67 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 14
- Employees, 2023
- 81
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $2.6M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 315 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 35The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $1.8M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as car washes in the Charlottesville 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 Charlottesville metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 228,597+3.1% since 2020
- Households
- 90,452
- Median age
- 41.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 66%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 1,644 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 136
- Median household income
- $93,598+28.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $130,972
- Median home value
- $430,300
- Jobs located here
- 108,968
- Daytime population
- 237,767Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Charlottesville 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 Charlottesville 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 Virginia
Every Virginia market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Virginia for car washes and detailers, numbered among those based in Virginia (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Charlottesville metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Virginia
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | 73 | 552 | 2.3 | $3.9M | +3.3% | #31 of 387 |
| 1Staunton-Stuarts Draft, VA | 68 | 20 | 3.8 | $2.5M | +3.2% | #62 of 387 |
| 2Richmond, VA | 67 | 184 | 3.4 | $2.8M | +5.5% | #68 of 387 |
| 3Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford, VA | 65 | 23 | 3.3 | $2.9M | −0.1% | #80 of 387 |
| 4Charlottesville, VA | 63 | 31 | 3.4 | $2.9M | +3.1% | #98 of 387 |
| 5Lynchburg, VA | 61 | 41 | 4.0 | $2.5M | +2.9% | #117 of 387 |
| 6Winchester, VA-WV | 53 | 26 | 4.7 | $2.2M | +6.5% | #176 of 387 |
| Kingsport-Bristol, TN-VA | 52 | 59 | 4.5 | $2.1M | +2.3% | #182 of 387 |
| 7Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC | 50 | 228 | 3.2 | $2.8M | +0.9% | #188 of 387 |
| 8Roanoke, VA | 42 | 55 | 4.2 | $2.2M | +0.4% | #262 of 387 |
Other business types in the Charlottesville 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 care81
- Auto repair shops80
- Collision repair and body shops80
- Car washes and detailing63
- Tire shops76
- Oil change and quick lube
- Gas stations72
- 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 Charlottesville, VA metro area?
The Charlottesville metro area has 31 car washes and detailers on map listings as of September 2026. 5 of them (16%) are chain locations. The listings count car washes and detailers. Official counts show 14 businesses with payroll classed as car washes in 2023.
How much do households in the Charlottesville, VA metro area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $88.6M a year, or $979 per household. That is 2% above the U.S. average (an index of 102, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 31 car washes and detailers on map listings, it comes to $2.9M 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 90,452 households in the Charlottesville metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Charlottesville, VA metro area compare with the U.S. for car washes and detailers?
The Charlottesville metro area has 3.4 car washes and detailers per 10,000 households, 11% below the U.S. rate of 3.8. Spending per location is $2.9M, 13% above the U.S. figure of $2.5M. At the national ratio of car washes and detailers to household spending, the Charlottesville metro area would have about 35, against 31 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 6,461 households, against one for every 6,523 across the U.S.
How fast is the Charlottesville, VA metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Charlottesville metro area at 228,597 people in 2025, up 3.1% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 90,452 households. Median household income in the Charlottesville metro area is $93,598, 16% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 28.8%, 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 Charlottesville metro area scores 63 for car washes and detailers (upper middle), #98 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 Charlottesville 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 Charlottesville metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Charlottesville 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 Charlottesville 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.