Auto · Small-town market · West Virginia
Car washes and detailers in the Bluefield, WV-VA area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for car washes and detailers in the Bluefield, WV-VA area, set against other small-town markets and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 27 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #395 of 441 scored small-town markets
#2 of 3 scored small-town markets based in West Virginia
- Listings
- 25
- 2 chain locations (8%)
- Official establishments
- 5
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $34.2M
- On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $844 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.4M
- 46% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 6.2
- 63% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 96,138
- −3.8% since 2020
See the car washes and detailers around any address in the Bluefield 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 Bluefield 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
For car washes and detailers, the Bluefield area has a Groundwork market score of 27 (lower middle): #395 of 441 scored small-town markets and #2 of 3 scored small-town markets based in West Virginia. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.
Household spending on vehicle maintenance and repairs in the Bluefield area comes to about $34.2M a year: $844 per household, 12% below the U.S. average. Spread across 25 car washes and detailers, that is $1.4M per location, 46% below the U.S. figure of $2.5M. The spending figure covers all vehicle maintenance and repairs, not only car washes and detailers.
There are 25 car washes and detailers on map listings in the Bluefield area as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 8% of them, against 23% across the U.S. That comes to 6.2 for every 10,000 households, 63% above the U.S. rate of 3.8.
In 2023, official counts showed 5 businesses with payroll in the Bluefield area classed as car washes. That is one for every 8,103 households, against one for every 6,523 across the U.S. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Bluefield area declined 3.8%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How the Bluefield area compares
The same measures for West 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 | Bluefield area | West Virginia | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 6.2 | 3.9 | 3.8 |
| Spending per listing | $1.4M | $2.1M | $2.5M |
| Households per official establishment | 8,103 | 9,108 | 6,523 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +23.1% | +16.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −3.8% | −1.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs | $844 | $833 | $958 |
| Median household income | $50,550 | $59,608 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 27 | 29 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 5
- Employees, 2023
- 13
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $276K
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 252 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 14The 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 the Bluefield 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 Bluefield area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 96,138−3.8% since 2020
- Households
- 40,514
- Median age
- 44.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 73%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 938 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 105
- Median household income
- $50,550
- Average household income
- $70,787
- Median home value
- $120,000
- Jobs located here
- 33,948
- Daytime population
- 95,290Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Bluefield area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. 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 Bluefield 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 West Virginia
Every West Virginia market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in West Virginia for car washes and detailers, numbered among those based in West Virginia (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Bluefield area marked.
Top small-town markets in West Virginia
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cumberland, MD-WV | 52 | 14 | 3.6 | $2.3M | −1.3% | #200 of 441 |
| 1Fairmont, WV | 47 | 6 | 2.6 | $3.2M | −1.2% | #238 of 441 |
| 2Bluefield, WV-VA | 27 | 25 | 6.2 | $1.4M | −3.8% | #395 of 441 |
| 3Clarksburg, WV | 12 | 23 | 6.5 | $1.3M | −2.4% | #433 of 441 |
Other business types in the Bluefield 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 care25
- Auto repair shops27
- Collision repair and body shops54
- Car washes and detailing27
- Tire shops35
- Oil change and quick lube
- Gas stations30
- Insurance agencies53
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 Bluefield, WV-VA area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 25 car washes and detailers in the Bluefield area. 2 of them (8%) are chain locations. The listings count car washes and detailers. Official counts show 5 businesses with payroll classed as car washes in 2023.
How much do households in the Bluefield, WV-VA area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?
About $34.2M a year, or $844 per household. That is 12% below the U.S. average (an index of 88, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 25 car washes and detailers on map listings, it comes to $1.4M 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 40,514 households in the Bluefield area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Bluefield, WV-VA area compare with the U.S. for car washes and detailers?
The Bluefield area has 6.2 car washes and detailers per 10,000 households, 63% above the U.S. rate of 3.8. Spending per location is $1.4M, 46% below the U.S. figure of $2.5M. At the U.S. ratio of car washes and detailers to household spending, the Bluefield area would have about 14, against 25 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 8,103 households, against one for every 6,523 across the U.S.
How fast is the Bluefield, WV-VA area growing?
Population estimates put the Bluefield area at 96,138 people in 2025, down 3.8% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 40,514 households. The median household income in the Bluefield area is $50,550 a year, 37% 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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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 Bluefield area scores 27 for car washes and detailers (lower middle), #395 of 441 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Bluefield 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 Bluefield area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Bluefield 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 Bluefield 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.