Home services · Metro area · California
HVAC and plumbing companies in the El Centro, CA metro area
How the El Centro, CA metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for HVAC and plumbing companies: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 50 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #194 of 387 scored metro areas
#17 of 25 scored metro areas based in California
- Listings
- 24
- 2 chain locations (8%)
- Official establishments
- 35
- 0.0% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $120.8M
- On home repairs, maintenance and insurance · $2,434 a household
- Spending per listing
- $5M
- 6% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 4.8
- 24% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 181,411
- +1.1% since 2020
See the HVAC and plumbing companies around any address in the El Centro metro area
The site report maps the HVAC and plumbing companies 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
At $2,434 per household (19% below the U.S. average), households in the El Centro metro area spend about $120.8M a year on home repairs, maintenance and insurance. That works out to $5M per company, 6% above the U.S. figure of $4.8M. The spending figure covers all home repairs, maintenance and insurance, not only HVAC and plumbing companies.
There are 24 HVAC and plumbing companies on map listings in the El Centro metro area as of September 2026. Of those, 2 are chain locations, or 8%, against 4% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 4.8, 24% below the U.S. rate of 6.3.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractors in the El Centro metro area was 35 in 2023, unchanged from 2019. That is one for every 1,418 households, against one for every 1,162 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $823K have gone to businesses classed as plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractors in the El Centro metro area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the El Centro metro area grew 1.1%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The El Centro metro area scores 50 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for HVAC and plumbing companies, ranking #194 of 387 scored metro areas and #17 of 25 scored metro areas based in California.
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 home repairs, maintenance and insurance by the HVAC and plumbing companies 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 | 4.8 | 6.2 | 6.3 |
| Spending per listing | $5M | $5.2M | $4.8M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,418 | 1,159 | 1,162 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | 0.0% | +10.4% | +7.6% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +1.1% | −0.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on home repairs, maintenance and insurance | $2,434 | $3,240 | $3,018 |
| Median household income | $57,681 | $99,122 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 50 | 54 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 350.0% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 297
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $19.8M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 242 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 25The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 2
- Amount
- $823K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractors 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 HVAC and plumbing companies 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 cardHVAC and plumbing across California
Every California market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in California for HVAC and plumbing companies, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | 74 | 905 | 5.2 | $7.3M | −2.4% | #21 of 387 |
| 2Vallejo, CA | 74 | 79 | 5.0 | $6.3M | +0.6% | #24 of 387 |
| 3Stockton-Lodi, CA | 73 | 130 | 5.3 | $5.7M | +5.5% | #30 of 387 |
| 4Yuba City, CA | 72 | 21 | 3.4 | $8.2M | +3.3% | #33 of 387 |
| 5San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | 70 | 402 | 5.9 | $7M | −0.6% | #47 of 387 |
| 6Merced, CA | 67 | 34 | 4.0 | $6.5M | +5.1% | #60 of 387 |
| 7Fresno, CA | 64 | 191 | 5.2 | $5.3M | +3.2% | #74 of 387 |
| 8Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA | 63 | 542 | 6.1 | $5.1M | +3.2% | #85 of 387 |
| 9Napa, CA | 61 | 26 | 5.2 | $6.6M | −3.3% | #103 of 387 |
| 10Visalia, CA | 60 | 73 | 5.1 | $5.3M | +2.4% | #111 of 387 |
| 17El Centro, CA | 50 | 24 | 4.8 | $5M | +1.1% | #194 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
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many HVAC and plumbing companies are in the El Centro, CA metro area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 24 HVAC and plumbing companies in the El Centro metro area. 2 of them (8%) are chain locations. The listings count heating and air-conditioning companies and plumbers. Official counts show 35 businesses with payroll classed as plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractors in 2023, unchanged from 2019.
How much do households in the El Centro, CA metro area spend on home repairs, maintenance and insurance?
About $120.8M a year, or $2,434 per household. That is 19% below the U.S. average (an index of 81, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 24 HVAC and plumbing companies on map listings, it comes to $5M per company. That spending covers all home repairs, maintenance and insurance, which HVAC and plumbing companies share with other businesses in the trade. 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 HVAC and plumbing companies?
The El Centro metro area has 4.8 HVAC and plumbing companies per 10,000 households, 24% below the U.S. rate of 6.3. Spending per company is $5M, 6% above the U.S. figure of $4.8M. At the U.S. ratio of HVAC and plumbing companies to household spending, the El Centro metro area would have about 25, against 24 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,418 households, against one for every 1,162 across the U.S. The official count held level from 2019 to 2023, against +7.6% 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 50 for HVAC and plumbing companies (upper middle), #194 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 HVAC and plumbing companies 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 HVAC and plumbing companies · 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.