Groundwork

Auto · Small-town market · Minnesota

Collision repair and body shops in the Willmar, MN area

How the Willmar, MN area compares with other small-town markets and the U.S. for collision repair and body shops: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 53 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #162 of 387 scored small-town markets
#6 of 15 scored small-town markets based in Minnesota

Listings
7
0 chain locations (0%)
Official establishments
14
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$20.3M
On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $1,156 a household
Spending per listing
$2.9M
6% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
4.0
29% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
44,720
+2.3% since 2020

See the collision repair and body shops around any address in the Willmar area

The site report maps the collision repair and body shops 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 Willmar area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey 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 7 collision repair and body shops in the Willmar area. None of them are chain locations, against 14% across the U.S. That is 4.0 per 10,000 households, 29% above the U.S. rate of 3.1.

At $1,156 per household (21% above the U.S. average), households in the Willmar area spend about $20.3M a year on vehicle maintenance and repairs. That works out to $2.9M per shop, 6% below the U.S. figure of $3.1M. That spending covers all vehicle maintenance and repairs, which collision repair and body shops share with other businesses in the trade.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as automotive body, paint and interior repair in the Willmar area was 14 in 2023. That is one for every 1,257 households, against one for every 3,689 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $275K has gone to businesses classed as automotive body, paint and interior repair in the Willmar area.

Population estimates put the population change in the Willmar area from 2020 to 2025 at +2.3%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for collision repair and body shops in the Willmar area is 53 (upper middle), #162 of 387 scored small-town markets and #6 of 15 scored small-town markets based in Minnesota.

How the Willmar area compares

The same measures for Minnesota and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all vehicle maintenance and repairs by the collision repair and body shops counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.

Collision repair and body shops in Willmar, MN area compared with Minnesota and the U.S.
MeasureWillmar areaMinnesotaU.S.
Listings per 10k households4.03.13.1
Spending per listing$2.9M$3.6M$3.1M
Households per official establishment1,2573,0053,689
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+0.1%−0.8%
Population growth, 2020–2025+2.3%+2.1%+3.1%
Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs$1,156$1,108$958
Median household income$76,592$89,062$80,734
Groundwork market score5354

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
14
Employees, 2023
48
Annual payroll, 2023
$2.5M
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
70 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
7The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
1
Amount
$275K

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as automotive body, paint and interior repair in the Willmar 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 Willmar area

Population, 2025 estimate
44,720+2.3% since 2020
Households
17,603
Median age
39.7
Homes lived in by their owners
73%
Vehicles per household
2.0
Land area
797 sq. mi.
People per square mile
55
Median household income
$76,592+27.0% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$96,382
Median home value
$243,200
Jobs located here
24,957
Daytime population
46,873Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Willmar 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 collision repair and body shops on map listings by name and distance.

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Collision repair and body shops across Minnesota

Every Minnesota market ranked →

The highest-scoring small-town markets in Minnesota for collision repair and body shops, numbered among those based in Minnesota, with the Willmar area marked.

Top small-town markets in Minnesota

Small-town markets in Minnesota ranked for collision repair and body shops by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Hutchinson, MN7553.3$3.6M−0.3%#38 of 387
2Brainerd, MN67163.8$3M+4.3%#74 of 387
3Alexandria, MN6652.9$4.1M+2.6%#76 of 387
4Faribault-Northfield, MN6393.8$3M+4.2%#104 of 387
5Detroit Lakes, MN5564.2$3M+0.9%#151 of 387
6Willmar, MN5374.0$2.9M+2.3%#162 of 387
7Albert Lea, MN5253.9$2.8M−1.5%#168 of 387
8Fergus Falls, MN52114.4$2.7M+1.6%#171 of 387
9Grand Rapids, MN51105.4$2.1M+0.9%#182 of 387
10Winona, MN5084.0$2.8M+1.8%#185 of 387

Other business types in the Willmar area

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many collision repair and body shops are in the Willmar, MN area?

The Willmar area has 7 collision repair and body shops on map listings as of September 2026. None of them are chain locations. The listings count collision repair and auto body shops. Official counts show 14 businesses with payroll classed as automotive body, paint and interior repair in 2023.

How much do households in the Willmar, MN area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?

About $20.3M a year, or $1,156 per household. That is 21% above the U.S. average (an index of 121, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 7 collision repair and body shops on map listings, it comes to $2.9M per shop. The spending figure covers all vehicle maintenance and repairs, not only collision repair and body shops. It is estimated from the incomes of the 17,603 households in the Willmar area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Willmar, MN area compare with the U.S. for collision repair and body shops?

The Willmar area has 4.0 collision repair and body shops per 10,000 households, 29% above the U.S. rate of 3.1. Spending per shop is $2.9M, 6% below the U.S. figure of $3.1M. The count on map listings matches the U.S. ratio of collision repair and body shops to household spending. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,257 households, against one for every 3,689 across the U.S.

How fast is the Willmar, MN area growing?

Population estimates put the Willmar area at 44,720 people in 2025, up 2.3% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 17,603 households. The median household income in the Willmar area is $76,592 a year, 5% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 27.0% 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. 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 Willmar area scores 53 for collision repair and body shops (upper middle), #162 of 387 scored small-town markets.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Willmar area. It maps the collision repair and body shops 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 collision repair and body shops · All 56 business types in the Willmar area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Willmar 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 Willmar 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.