Saturation ranking
Where automotive body & collision repair is most and least saturated in California
Every California market with sourced Auto Body data, ranked on how much provision it already has. Counties are measured per 10,000 residents. Cities are measured as a share of the businesses in the same ZIP codes, because a city’s establishment counts cover its ZIP codes rather than its city limits and cannot be divided by its municipal population. Neither measure says anything about revenue or profitability, and a crowded market is not automatically a bad one: it is also where the most businesses come up for sale.
- Statewide establishments
- 4,141
- 2023 County Business Patterns
- State median density
- 1.0
- Per 10,000 residents, counties
- Counties ranked
- 44
- of 48 with data
- Cities ranked
- 193
- of 259 with data
Most saturated counties for auto body
44 of 48 counties with sourced data qualify for this ranking. Markets with fewer than 5 establishments are excluded at both levels, because a single opening or closing would move them enough to dominate the list. Counties under 2,000 residents are also excluded, where a per-capita figure is arithmetically true and analytically useless.
| # | County | Establishments | Per 10k | Vs state median | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Mateo County743,568 residents | 137 | 1.8 | +82% | Densely served |
| 2 | Mendocino County88,122 residents | 16 | 1.8 | +79% | Densely served |
| 3 | Lassen County28,117 residents | 5 | 1.8 | +76% | Densely served |
| 4 | Amador County41,876 residents | 7 | 1.7 | +65% | Densely served |
| 5 | Marin County253,694 residents | 42 | 1.7 | +64% | Densely served |
| 6 | Siskiyou County42,013 residents | 6 | 1.4 | +41% | Above average |
| 7 | Sonoma County486,444 residents | 67 | 1.4 | +36% | Above average |
| 8 | Lake County67,772 residents | 9 | 1.3 | +31% | Above average |
| 9 | Shasta County181,648 residents | 24 | 1.3 | +30% | Above average |
| 10 | San Luis Obispo County282,367 residents | 36 | 1.3 | +26% | Above average |
| 11 | Santa Cruz County258,852 residents | 32 | 1.2 | +22% | Above average |
| 12 | Los Angeles County9,694,934 residents | 1,178 | 1.2 | +20% | Above average |
| 13 | Sutter County98,787 residents | 12 | 1.2 | +20% | Above average |
| 14 | Alameda County1,636,630 residents | 197 | 1.2 | +19% | Above average |
| 15 | Ventura County830,851 residents | 98 | 1.2 | +16% | Above average |
State median for this industry: 1.0 establishments per 10,000 residents. A high figure means more provision per resident, not more demand.
Least saturated counties for auto body
The same 44 counties, read from the bottom of the ordering upward. Thin provision is worth checking against the neighbouring counties before treating it as an opening.
| # | County | Establishments | Per 10k | Vs state median | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Merced County297,260 residents | 13 | 0.4 | -57% | Thinly served |
| 2 | Madera County167,927 residents | 10 | 0.6 | -41% | Thinly served |
| 3 | Tulare County485,146 residents | 30 | 0.6 | -39% | Below average |
| 4 | Imperial County181,411 residents | 13 | 0.7 | -29% | Below average |
| 5 | Kern County927,068 residents | 67 | 0.7 | -29% | Below average |
| 6 | Contra Costa County1,170,070 residents | 90 | 0.8 | -24% | Below average |
| 7 | Riverside County2,544,916 residents | 197 | 0.8 | -24% | Below average |
| 8 | San Francisco County826,079 residents | 68 | 0.8 | -19% | Below average |
| 9 | San Joaquin County823,815 residents | 69 | 0.8 | -17% | Below average |
| 10 | Kings County154,327 residents | 13 | 0.8 | -17% | Below average |
| 11 | Fresno County1,035,456 residents | 89 | 0.9 | -15% | Below average |
| 12 | Stanislaus County557,719 residents | 50 | 0.9 | -11% | Typical |
| 13 | Yolo County224,410 residents | 21 | 0.9 | -8% | Typical |
| 14 | San Diego County3,282,248 residents | 308 | 0.9 | -7% | Typical |
| 15 | Santa Clara County1,914,391 residents | 186 | 1.0 | -4% | Typical |
State median for this industry: 1.0 establishments per 10,000 residents. A low figure can mean a genuine gap, or a market served from the next county over.
Most saturated cities for auto body
193 of 259 cities with sourced data qualify for this ranking. Markets with fewer than 5 establishments are excluded at both levels, because a single opening or closing would move them enough to dominate the list. Cities with fewer than 500 businesses in total are also excluded, because on a base that small the industry’s share moves on rounding.
| # | City | Establishments | Share of local | Vs state share | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | HawthorneLos Angeles, 1,403 businesses in total | 32 | 2.28% | +547% | Densely served |
| 2 | BellflowerLos Angeles, 1,195 businesses in total | 20 | 1.67% | +375% | Densely served |
| 3 | San BrunoSan Mateo, 994 businesses in total | 16 | 1.61% | +357% | Densely served |
| 4 | StantonOrange, 584 businesses in total | 9 | 1.54% | +337% | Densely served |
| 5 | Bell GardensLos Angeles, 1,012 businesses in total | 14 | 1.38% | +292% | Densely served |
| 6 | South San FranciscoSan Mateo, 2,283 businesses in total | 29 | 1.27% | +260% | Densely served |
| 7 | South El MonteLos Angeles, 1,852 businesses in total | 23 | 1.24% | +252% | Densely served |
| 8 | PittsburgContra Costa, 1,059 businesses in total | 13 | 1.23% | +248% | Densely served |
| 9 | MontclairSan Bernardino, 1,011 businesses in total | 12 | 1.19% | +237% | Densely served |
| 10 | SeasideMonterey, 674 businesses in total | 8 | 1.19% | +237% | Densely served |
| 11 | LynwoodLos Angeles, 762 businesses in total | 9 | 1.18% | +235% | Densely served |
| 12 | San FernandoLos Angeles, 848 businesses in total | 10 | 1.18% | +234% | Densely served |
| 13 | Jurupa Valley1,066 businesses in total | 12 | 1.13% | +219% | Densely served |
| 14 | Cathedral CityRiverside, 914 businesses in total | 10 | 1.09% | +210% | Densely served |
| 15 | VallejoSolano, 1,732 businesses in total | 18 | 1.04% | +195% | Densely served |
| 16 | SanteeSan Diego, 1,273 businesses in total | 13 | 1.02% | +190% | Densely served |
| 17 | HaywardAlameda, 4,289 businesses in total | 43 | 1.00% | +184% | Densely served |
| 18 | Fort BraggMendocino, 503 businesses in total | 5 | 0.99% | +182% | Densely served |
| 19 | AlbanyAlameda, 505 businesses in total | 5 | 0.99% | +181% | Densely served |
| 20 | NewarkAlameda, 1,224 businesses in total | 12 | 0.98% | +178% | Densely served |
| 21 | San CarlosSan Mateo, 1,357 businesses in total | 13 | 0.96% | +172% | Densely served |
| 22 | Santa PaulaVentura, 523 businesses in total | 5 | 0.96% | +171% | Densely served |
| 23 | UkiahMendocino, 946 businesses in total | 9 | 0.95% | +170% | Densely served |
| 24 | Signal HillLos Angeles, 745 businesses in total | 7 | 0.94% | +167% | Densely served |
| 25 | El MonteLos Angeles, 1,835 businesses in total | 17 | 0.93% | +163% | Densely served |
Statewide, 0.35% of California businesses are in this industry. A higher local share means the industry takes up more of the local business base than it does statewide.
City figures are aggregated over the ZIP codes the Postal Service assigns to each place, which do not follow municipal boundaries. That is why the comparison here is a share of the businesses in those same ZIP codes rather than a figure per resident: both sides then cover the same ground, so a city that loses establishments to a separately named ZIP loses its denominator with them.
Most underserved cities for auto body
The bottom of the same ordering. These are the California cities carrying the least auto body provision per resident among those that clear both floors.
| # | City | Establishments | Share of local | Vs state share | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | IrvineOrange, 14,947 businesses in total | 9 | 0.06% | -83% | Thinly served |
| 2 | Santa MonicaLos Angeles, 7,320 businesses in total | 9 | 0.12% | -65% | Thinly served |
| 3 | Santa BarbaraSanta Barbara, 5,868 businesses in total | 8 | 0.14% | -61% | Thinly served |
| 4 | TustinOrange, 3,361 businesses in total | 5 | 0.15% | -58% | Thinly served |
| 5 | CoronaRiverside, 5,711 businesses in total | 10 | 0.18% | -50% | Thinly served |
| 6 | San FranciscoSan Francisco, 33,575 businesses in total | 60 | 0.18% | -49% | Thinly served |
| 7 | Chula VistaSan Diego, 4,885 businesses in total | 9 | 0.18% | -48% | Thinly served |
| 8 | CamarilloVentura, 2,597 businesses in total | 5 | 0.19% | -45% | Thinly served |
| 9 | BurbankLos Angeles, 5,899 businesses in total | 12 | 0.20% | -42% | Thinly served |
| 10 | San DiegoSan Diego, 42,106 businesses in total | 86 | 0.20% | -42% | Thinly served |
| 11 | ChinoSan Bernardino, 3,295 businesses in total | 7 | 0.21% | -40% | Below average |
| 12 | West CovinaLos Angeles, 2,345 businesses in total | 5 | 0.21% | -40% | Below average |
| 13 | La MesaSan Diego, 2,279 businesses in total | 5 | 0.22% | -38% | Below average |
| 14 | Moreno ValleyRiverside, 2,220 businesses in total | 5 | 0.23% | -36% | Below average |
| 15 | TemeculaRiverside, 4,281 businesses in total | 10 | 0.23% | -34% | Below average |
| 16 | BerkeleyAlameda, 4,279 businesses in total | 10 | 0.23% | -34% | Below average |
| 17 | PasadenaLos Angeles, 7,697 businesses in total | 19 | 0.25% | -30% | Below average |
| 18 | Walnut CreekContra Costa, 4,012 businesses in total | 10 | 0.25% | -29% | Below average |
| 19 | CerritosLos Angeles, 1,970 businesses in total | 5 | 0.25% | -28% | Below average |
| 20 | WalnutLos Angeles, 2,341 businesses in total | 6 | 0.26% | -27% | Below average |
| 21 | PalmdaleLos Angeles, 2,335 businesses in total | 6 | 0.26% | -27% | Below average |
| 22 | NapaNapa, 3,089 businesses in total | 8 | 0.26% | -27% | Below average |
| 23 | Rancho CucamongaSan Bernardino, 5,340 businesses in total | 14 | 0.26% | -26% | Below average |
| 24 | El SegundoLos Angeles, 2,288 businesses in total | 6 | 0.26% | -26% | Below average |
| 25 | TorranceLos Angeles, 7,600 businesses in total | 20 | 0.26% | -25% | Below average |
Statewide, 0.35% of California businesses are in this industry. A lower local share can mean a genuine gap, or a market served from the next town over.
How to read these rankings
- Both measures are supply measures. They say nothing about how much each business earns, how large it is, or how much demand comes from outside the market.
- The two levels are not directly comparable to each other. A county figure is establishments per resident; a city figure is this industry’s share of the local business base against the statewide share. Compare counties to counties and cities to cities.
- A thinly served market can be a genuine gap or a market already served from a neighbouring town. The individual market pages list the nearest comparable places for exactly this check.
- A densely served market means competition, but it is also where the largest pool of existing businesses sits, and therefore where the most owners reach retirement each year.
- Counties are the more stable measure. City figures rest on ZIP code geography, which the Postal Service redraws as it pleases, so a city can gain or lose a ZIP between years.
Full auto body data for California/All industry rankings/Methodology
Sources
- U.S. Census Bureau, 2023 County Business Patterns. Establishment counts, employment and annual payroll by NAICS. Retrieved 2026-09-08.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (2026Q1). Quarterly establishment counts and employment for employers covered by unemployment insurance. Retrieved 2026-09-08.
- U.S. Census Bureau, 2023 ZIP Code Business Patterns. Establishment counts by ZIP code and NAICS, aggregated over the ZIP codes assigned to each city, including the all-industry totals used as the local business base. Retrieved 2026-09-10.