Clothing and laundry · Metro area · California
Clothing, shoe and laundry businesses in the El Centro, CA metro area
How the El Centro, CA metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for clothing, shoe and laundry businesses: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 9 out of 100: Very low
Ranked #387 of 387 scored metro areas
#25 of 25 scored metro areas based in California
- Listings
- 172
- 99 chain locations (58%)
- Official establishments
- 79
- −22.5% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $77.6M
- On clothing, shoes and related services · $1,563 a household
- Spending per listing
- $451K
- 49% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 34.6
- 48% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 181,411
- +1.1% since 2020
See the clothing, shoe and laundry businesses around any address in the El Centro metro area
The site report maps the clothing, shoe and laundry businesses 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 El Centro 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 El Centro metro area scores 9 (very low) on the Groundwork market score for clothing, shoe and laundry businesses, ranking #387 of 387 scored metro areas and #25 of 25 scored metro areas based in California. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.
Map listings as of September 2026 show 172 clothing, shoe and laundry businesses in the El Centro metro area. 99 of them (58%) are chain locations, against 37% across the U.S. That is 34.6 per 10,000 households, 48% above the U.S. rate of 23.3.
Households in the El Centro metro area spend about $77.6M a year on clothing, shoes and related services, or $1,563 per household, 24% below the U.S. average. That is about $451K of household spending for each business on map listings, 49% below the U.S. figure of $880K.
Official counts show 79 businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores, laundromats and dry cleaners in the El Centro metro area in 2023, down 22.5% from 2019. That is one for every 628 households, against one for every 1,008 across the U.S. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the El Centro metro area grew 1.1%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the El Centro metro area compares
The same measures for California and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all clothing, shoes and related services by the clothing, shoe and laundry businesses 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 | El Centro metro area | California | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 34.6 | 28.0 | 23.3 |
| Spending per listing | $451K | $746K | $880K |
| Households per official establishment | 628 | 884 | 1,008 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −22.5% | −11.0% | −12.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +1.1% | −0.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on clothing, shoes and related services | $1,563 | $2,085 | $2,055 |
| Median household income | $57,681 | $99,122 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 9 | 25 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 79−22.5% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,614
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $30.7M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 155Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 17299 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 88The 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 clothing and shoe stores, laundromats and dry cleaners in the El Centro 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 El Centro metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 181,411+1.1% since 2020
- Households
- 49,644
- Median age
- 33.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 57%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 4,176 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 43
- Median household income
- $57,681+21.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $79,363
- Median home value
- $309,600
- Jobs located here
- 63,081
- Daytime population
- 165,766Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the El Centro 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 clothing, shoe and laundry businesses on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the El Centro metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardClothing, shoes and laundry across California
Every California market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in California for clothing, shoe and laundry businesses, numbered among those based in California, with the El Centro metro area marked.
Top metro areas in California
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Yuba City, CA | 75 | 75 | 12.1 | $1.5M | +3.3% | #32 of 387 |
| 2Stockton-Lodi, CA | 75 | 408 | 16.6 | $1.2M | +5.5% | #35 of 387 |
| 3Merced, CA | 71 | 108 | 12.6 | $1.3M | +5.1% | #51 of 387 |
| 4Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA | 70 | 1,533 | 17.4 | $1.2M | +3.2% | #57 of 387 |
| 5San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | 56 | 1,595 | 23.5 | $1.1M | −0.6% | #156 of 387 |
| 6Fresno, CA | 51 | 701 | 18.9 | $930K | +3.2% | #201 of 387 |
| 7Bakersfield-Delano, CA | 50 | 508 | 17.8 | $955K | +2.3% | #203 of 387 |
| 8Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | 48 | 3,106 | 21.4 | $893K | +3.5% | #221 of 387 |
| 9Vallejo, CA | 47 | 328 | 20.8 | $982K | +0.6% | #223 of 387 |
| 10Hanford-Corcoran, CA | 47 | 80 | 18.2 | $919K | +1.0% | #225 of 387 |
| 25El Centro, CA | 9 | 172 | 34.6 | $451K | +1.1% | #387 of 387 |
Other business types in the El Centro metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
- Clothing, shoes and laundry9
- Clothing and shoe stores8
- Laundromats33
- Dry cleaners
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many clothing, shoe and laundry businesses are in the El Centro, CA metro area?
There are 172 clothing, shoe and laundry businesses on map listings in the El Centro metro area as of September 2026. 99 of them (58%) are chain locations. The listings count clothing, shoe and jewelry stores, laundromats and dry cleaners. Official counts show 79 businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores, laundromats and dry cleaners in 2023, down 22.5% from 2019. Official counts list 155 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the El Centro, CA metro area spend on clothing, shoes and related services?
About $77.6M a year, or $1,563 per household. That is 24% below the U.S. average (an index of 76, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 172 clothing, shoe and laundry businesses on map listings, it comes to $451K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 49,644 households in the El Centro metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the El Centro, CA metro area compare with the U.S. for clothing, shoe and laundry businesses?
The El Centro metro area has 34.6 clothing, shoe and laundry businesses per 10,000 households, 48% above the U.S. rate of 23.3. Spending per business is $451K, 49% below the U.S. figure of $880K. At the national ratio of clothing, shoe and laundry businesses to household spending, the El Centro metro area would have about 88, against 172 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 628 households, against one for every 1,008 across the U.S. The official count fell 22.5% from 2019 to 2023, against −12.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the El Centro, CA metro area growing?
Population estimates put the El Centro metro area at 181,411 people in 2025, up 1.1% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 49,644 households. Median household income in the El Centro metro area is $57,681, 29% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 21.1%, 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 El Centro metro area scores 9 for clothing, shoe and laundry businesses (very low), #387 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 El Centro metro area. It maps the clothing, shoe and laundry businesses 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 clothing, shoe and laundry businesses · All 56 business types in the El Centro metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the El Centro 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 El Centro 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.