Saturation ranking
Where car washes is most and least saturated in California
Every California market with sourced Car Wash 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
- 2,231
- 2023 County Business Patterns
- State median density
- 0.6
- Per 10,000 residents, counties
- Counties ranked
- 37
- of 42 with data
- Cities ranked
- 105
- of 195 with data
Most saturated counties for car wash
37 of 42 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 | Sutter County98,787 residents | 9 | 0.9 | +61% | Densely served |
| 2 | Stanislaus County557,719 residents | 41 | 0.7 | +30% | Above average |
| 3 | Orange County3,149,507 residents | 230 | 0.7 | +29% | Above average |
| 4 | San Bernardino County2,224,091 residents | 161 | 0.7 | +28% | Above average |
| 5 | Humboldt County131,647 residents | 9 | 0.7 | +21% | Above average |
| 6 | Shasta County181,648 residents | 12 | 0.7 | +17% | Above average |
| 7 | Santa Barbara County442,065 residents | 28 | 0.6 | +12% | Typical |
| 8 | El Dorado County192,323 residents | 12 | 0.6 | +10% | Typical |
| 9 | San Joaquin County823,815 residents | 51 | 0.6 | +9% | Typical |
| 10 | Solano County455,376 residents | 28 | 0.6 | +9% | Typical |
| 11 | Los Angeles County9,694,934 residents | 591 | 0.6 | +8% | Typical |
| 12 | Merced County297,260 residents | 18 | 0.6 | +7% | Typical |
| 13 | Ventura County830,851 residents | 50 | 0.6 | +6% | Typical |
| 14 | Napa County132,949 residents | 8 | 0.6 | +6% | Typical |
| 15 | Nevada County101,911 residents | 6 | 0.6 | +4% | Typical |
State median for this industry: 0.6 establishments per 10,000 residents. A high figure means more provision per resident, not more demand.
Least saturated counties for car wash
The same 37 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 | San Francisco County826,079 residents | 15 | 0.2 | -68% | Thinly served |
| 2 | Madera County167,927 residents | 5 | 0.3 | -47% | Thinly served |
| 3 | Contra Costa County1,170,070 residents | 44 | 0.4 | -34% | Below average |
| 4 | Butte County209,211 residents | 8 | 0.4 | -32% | Below average |
| 5 | Santa Cruz County258,852 residents | 10 | 0.4 | -32% | Below average |
| 6 | Santa Clara County1,914,391 residents | 74 | 0.4 | -32% | Below average |
| 7 | Monterey County433,729 residents | 19 | 0.4 | -23% | Below average |
| 8 | Alameda County1,636,630 residents | 77 | 0.5 | -17% | Below average |
| 9 | San Mateo County743,568 residents | 36 | 0.5 | -14% | Typical |
| 10 | Yolo County224,410 residents | 11 | 0.5 | -13% | Typical |
| 11 | Imperial County181,411 residents | 9 | 0.5 | -12% | Typical |
| 12 | Kern County927,068 residents | 47 | 0.5 | -10% | Typical |
| 13 | Marin County253,694 residents | 13 | 0.5 | -9% | Typical |
| 14 | Tulare County485,146 residents | 25 | 0.5 | -9% | Typical |
| 15 | Placer County442,081 residents | 24 | 0.5 | -4% | Typical |
State median for this industry: 0.6 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 car wash
105 of 195 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 | BarstowSan Bernardino, 506 businesses in total | 7 | 1.38% | +828% | Densely served |
| 2 | ColtonSan Bernardino, 874 businesses in total | 8 | 0.92% | +514% | Densely served |
| 3 | CeresStanislaus, 676 businesses in total | 6 | 0.89% | +495% | Densely served |
| 4 | RialtoSan Bernardino, 1,231 businesses in total | 10 | 0.81% | +445% | Densely served |
| 5 | FontanaSan Bernardino, 3,587 businesses in total | 29 | 0.81% | +442% | Densely served |
| 6 | Huntington ParkLos Angeles, 1,004 businesses in total | 8 | 0.80% | +435% | Densely served |
| 7 | Bell GardensLos Angeles, 1,012 businesses in total | 8 | 0.79% | +430% | Densely served |
| 8 | PerrisRiverside, 1,263 businesses in total | 9 | 0.71% | +378% | Densely served |
| 9 | HanfordKings, 1,151 businesses in total | 8 | 0.70% | +366% | Densely served |
| 10 | TulareTulare, 1,173 businesses in total | 8 | 0.68% | +357% | Densely served |
| 11 | VictorvilleSan Bernardino, 1,929 businesses in total | 13 | 0.67% | +352% | Densely served |
| 12 | YucaipaSan Bernardino, 891 businesses in total | 6 | 0.67% | +352% | Densely served |
| 13 | Arroyo GrandeSan Luis Obispo, 896 businesses in total | 6 | 0.67% | +349% | Densely served |
| 14 | Citrus HeightsSacramento, 1,423 businesses in total | 9 | 0.63% | +324% | Densely served |
| 15 | VacavilleSolano, 2,017 businesses in total | 12 | 0.59% | +299% | Densely served |
| 16 | MontebelloLos Angeles, 1,370 businesses in total | 8 | 0.58% | +292% | Densely served |
| 17 | ComptonLos Angeles, 1,736 businesses in total | 10 | 0.58% | +286% | Densely served |
| 18 | Jurupa Valley1,066 businesses in total | 6 | 0.56% | +278% | Densely served |
| 19 | Cathedral CityRiverside, 914 businesses in total | 5 | 0.55% | +267% | Densely served |
| 20 | NorwalkLos Angeles, 1,312 businesses in total | 7 | 0.53% | +258% | Densely served |
| 21 | El CajonSan Diego, 4,089 businesses in total | 21 | 0.51% | +245% | Densely served |
| 22 | HawthorneLos Angeles, 1,403 businesses in total | 7 | 0.50% | +235% | Densely served |
| 23 | MontclairSan Bernardino, 1,011 businesses in total | 5 | 0.49% | +232% | Densely served |
| 24 | El MonteLos Angeles, 1,835 businesses in total | 9 | 0.49% | +229% | Densely served |
| 25 | Yuba CitySutter, 1,959 businesses in total | 9 | 0.46% | +208% | Densely served |
Statewide, 0.15% 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 car wash
The bottom of the same ordering. These are the California cities carrying the least car wash provision per resident among those that clear both floors.
| # | City | Establishments | Share of local | Vs state share | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San JoseSanta Clara, 21,501 businesses in total | 14 | 0.07% | -56% | Thinly served |
| 2 | IrvineOrange, 14,947 businesses in total | 13 | 0.09% | -42% | Thinly served |
| 3 | Beverly HillsLos Angeles, 6,870 businesses in total | 6 | 0.09% | -41% | Thinly served |
| 4 | Rancho CucamongaSan Bernardino, 5,340 businesses in total | 5 | 0.09% | -37% | Below average |
| 5 | Los AngelesLos Angeles, 77,828 businesses in total | 74 | 0.10% | -36% | Below average |
| 6 | TorranceLos Angeles, 7,600 businesses in total | 8 | 0.11% | -29% | Below average |
| 7 | San DiegoSan Diego, 42,106 businesses in total | 47 | 0.11% | -25% | Below average |
| 8 | Newport BeachOrange, 6,234 businesses in total | 7 | 0.11% | -25% | Below average |
| 9 | BurbankLos Angeles, 5,899 businesses in total | 7 | 0.12% | -20% | Below average |
| 10 | OrangeOrange, 5,761 businesses in total | 7 | 0.12% | -18% | Below average |
| 11 | Santa ClaraSanta Clara, 4,587 businesses in total | 6 | 0.13% | -12% | Typical |
| 12 | SacramentoSacramento, 19,687 businesses in total | 27 | 0.14% | -8% | Typical |
| 13 | OceansideSan Diego, 3,630 businesses in total | 5 | 0.14% | -8% | Typical |
| 14 | Santa RosaSonoma, 6,121 businesses in total | 9 | 0.15% | -1% | Typical |
| 15 | TustinOrange, 3,361 businesses in total | 5 | 0.15% | -0% | Typical |
| 16 | OaklandAlameda, 10,328 businesses in total | 16 | 0.15% | +4% | Typical |
| 17 | Thousand OaksVentura, 3,759 businesses in total | 6 | 0.16% | +7% | Typical |
| 18 | Santa CruzSanta Cruz, 2,943 businesses in total | 5 | 0.17% | +14% | Typical |
| 19 | SunnyvaleSanta Clara, 3,376 businesses in total | 6 | 0.18% | +19% | Above average |
| 20 | LivermoreAlameda, 2,640 businesses in total | 5 | 0.19% | +27% | Above average |
| 21 | San RafaelMarin, 3,160 businesses in total | 6 | 0.19% | +27% | Above average |
| 22 | UplandSan Bernardino, 2,607 businesses in total | 5 | 0.19% | +29% | Above average |
| 23 | San BernardinoSan Bernardino, 3,569 businesses in total | 7 | 0.20% | +32% | Above average |
| 24 | BreaOrange, 2,531 businesses in total | 5 | 0.20% | +33% | Above average |
| 25 | ConcordContra Costa, 3,539 businesses in total | 7 | 0.20% | +33% | Above average |
Statewide, 0.15% 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 car wash 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.