Health care · Small-town market · North Carolina
Medical and dental practices in the Washington, NC area
How the Washington, NC area compares with other small-town markets and the U.S. for medical and dental practices: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 31 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #442 of 538 scored small-town markets
#19 of 23 scored small-town markets based in North Carolina
- Listings
- 122
- 11 chain locations (9%)
- Official establishments
- 61
- +29.8% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $19.3M
- On medical and dental services · $993 a household
- Spending per listing
- $158K
- 4% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 62.9
- 26% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 44,670
- 0.0% since 2020
See the medical and dental practices around any address in the Washington area
The site report maps the medical and dental practices 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 Washington 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 Groundwork market score for medical and dental practices in the Washington area is 31 (lower middle), #442 of 538 scored small-town markets and #19 of 23 scored small-town markets based in North Carolina. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.
As of September 2026, map listings count 122 medical and dental practices in the Washington area. 11 of them (9%) are chain locations, against 11% across the U.S. That is 62.9 per 10,000 households, 26% below the U.S. rate of 84.5.
Household spending on medical and dental services in the Washington area comes to about $19.3M a year: $993 per household, 23% below the U.S. average. Spread across 122 medical and dental practices, that is $158K per practice, 4% above the U.S. figure of $152K.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as offices of physicians, dentists, chiropractors, optometrists and therapists, and urgent care centers in the Washington area was 61 in 2023, up 29.8% from 2019. That is one for every 318 households, against one for every 270 across the U.S. Population estimates put the population change in the Washington area from 2020 to 2025 at 0.0%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How the Washington area compares
The same measures for North Carolina and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all medical and dental services by the medical and dental practices 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 | Washington area | North Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 62.9 | 83.3 | 84.5 |
| Spending per listing | $158K | $134K | $152K |
| Households per official establishment | 318 | 345 | 270 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +29.8% | +3.9% | +1.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | 0.0% | +7.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on medical and dental services | $993 | $1,116 | $1,288 |
| Median household income | $58,357 | $72,388 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 31 | 48 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 61+29.8% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 415
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $33.4M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 24Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 12211 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 126The 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 offices of physicians, dentists, chiropractors, optometrists and therapists, and urgent care centers in the Washington 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 Washington area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 44,6700.0% since 2020
- Households
- 19,385
- Median age
- 46.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 70%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 833 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 53
- Median household income
- $58,357+29.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $78,141
- Median home value
- $192,700
- Jobs located here
- 16,163
- Daytime population
- 41,743Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Washington 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 medical and dental practices on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Washington area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardDoctors, dentists and clinics across North Carolina
Every North Carolina market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in North Carolina for medical and dental practices, numbered among those based in North Carolina, with the Washington area marked.
Top small-town markets in North Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Anderson Creek, NC | 80 | 203 | 40.7 | $263K | +12.3% | #28 of 538 |
| 2New Bern, NC | 56 | 270 | 51.5 | $198K | +3.6% | #214 of 538 |
| 3Wilson, NC | 54 | 174 | 52.6 | $185K | +1.7% | #236 of 538 |
| 4Albemarle, NC | 52 | 183 | 72.5 | $140K | +9.8% | #258 of 538 |
| 5Marion, NC | 50 | 99 | 53.1 | $183K | +1.5% | #270 of 538 |
| 6Forest City, NC | 50 | 158 | 59.3 | $160K | +2.1% | #274 of 538 |
| 7Waynesville, NC | 48 | 167 | 61.6 | $166K | +1.9% | #290 of 538 |
| 8Brevard, NC | 47 | 90 | 61.7 | $171K | +2.9% | #297 of 538 |
| 9Sanford, NC | 47 | 174 | 69.2 | $148K | +10.8% | #304 of 538 |
| 10Morehead City, NC | 45 | 203 | 63.5 | $174K | +4.1% | #325 of 538 |
| 19Washington, NC | 31 | 122 | 62.9 | $158K | 0.0% | #442 of 538 |
Other business types in the Washington 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
- Doctors, dentists and clinics31
- Dentists and orthodontists55
- Primary care and pediatrics32
- Urgent care and walk-in clinics
- Chiropractors51
- Physical therapy38
- Optometrists and eye care37
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many medical and dental practices are in the Washington, NC area?
The Washington area has 122 medical and dental practices on map listings as of September 2026. 11 of them (9%) are chain locations. The listings count every outpatient clinic and practice, and urgent care. Official counts show 61 businesses with payroll classed as offices of physicians, dentists, chiropractors, optometrists and therapists, and urgent care centers in 2023, up 29.8% from 2019. Official counts also show 24 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Washington, NC area spend on medical and dental services?
About $19.3M a year, or $993 per household. That is 23% below the U.S. average (an index of 77, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 122 medical and dental practices on map listings, it comes to $158K per practice. It is estimated from the incomes of the 19,385 households in the Washington area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Washington, NC area compare with the U.S. for medical and dental practices?
The Washington area has 62.9 medical and dental practices per 10,000 households, 26% below the U.S. rate of 84.5. Spending per practice is $158K, 4% above the U.S. figure of $152K. At the national ratio of medical and dental practices to household spending, the Washington area would have about 126, against 122 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 318 households, against one for every 270 across the U.S. The official count rose 29.8% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.
How fast is the Washington, NC area growing?
Population estimates put the Washington area at 44,670 people in 2025, unchanged since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 19,385 households. Median household income in the Washington area is $58,357, 28% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 29.1%, 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. 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 Washington area scores 31 for medical and dental practices (lower middle), #442 of 538 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Washington area. It maps the medical and dental practices 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 medical and dental practices · All 56 business types in the Washington area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Washington 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 Washington 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.