Colorado Springs Car Wash Market Analysis
Colorado Springs, CO
Data updated · September 26, 2026
39,634 Google reviews across 473 car washes in 2 Colorado Springs counties. Format mix, operator rank, county breakdown, rating vs. income, aspect-level customer signals.
Snapshot
- Locations
- 473
- 86% independent
- Chains
- 22
- lead: Quick Quack Car Wash (10 sites)
- Avg rating
- 4.47★
- +0.06 vs national MSA median
- Damage rate
- 2.1%
- 1.4× national MSA norm
- Cancel friction
- 8.1%
- Top format
- express tunnel
- 47% of classified inventory
Market Quality snapshot
- Population
- 760,782
- ACS 2023 5-year
- Households
- 294,427
- ACS 2023 5-year
- Residents per wash
- 1,608
- 1.2× denser than the national MSA median
- Express tunnels per 10K households
- 1.4
- above ~1.0 — contested · classified sites
Key findings
- 473 car wash locations operated by 22 chains and 405 independents across 2 counties.
- Weighted Google rating 4.47★ across the market; structural concentration and format mix sit near US-metro norms.
- Built from 39,634 Google reviews, 15,071 of them AI-extracted across 55 dimensions.
473 car wash locations across 2 counties · dots colored by format · sized by review volume
Colorado Springs's car wash market reads as US-metro-typical in shape; the distinctive cuts are at the format and aspect levels. 473 locations across 22 chains and 405 independents, distributed across 2 counties. Distinctive patterns show up below at the format and aspect levels.
Headline numbers sit near US-metro norms: rating 4.47★, damage 2.1%, cancel friction 8.1%. Staff strong (0.86); equipment reliability weak (-0.35). 39,634 Google reviews drive the analysis, 15,071 of them processed through the WashIndex LLM extractor.
See the top car wash chains in Colorado Springs
Ranked by location count in the metro
The car wash industry in the Colorado Springs metro, officially
the Colorado Springs metro has 42 car-wash employer establishments employing about 484 people, at a $34,419 average annual wage.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, QCEW (private, NAICS 811192). Counts car-wash employer establishments, a narrower universe than all physical wash locations — see methodology.
Car wash financing in the Colorado Springs metro
Build-out marketSince 2010, the U.S. Small Business Administration has backed 18 car-wash loans in the Colorado Springs metro worth $25.8M, at a $922,500 median per car wash and a 0.0% charge-off rate. Early read: the mix tilts toward new construction — 44% of loans funded brand-new washes — pointing to a market where operators are still adding supply.
FY2026 annualized from its first 6 months.
- El Paso 16
- Teller 2
- New build / open44% · $1.7M
- Acquisition11% · $349K
- Expansion / improvement44% · $691K
Source: U.S. Small Business Administration 7(a) & 504 FOIA datasets (NAICS 811192), data through 2026-03-31. See the Car Wash Lending Tracker for national figures and methodology.
About the Colorado Springs car wash market
How many car washes are in the Colorado Springs metro?
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What is the best-rated car wash in the Colorado Springs metro?
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Which car wash chain has the most locations in Colorado Springs?
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What is the average customer rating in the Colorado Springs car wash market?
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What is the typical household income near car washes in Colorado Springs?
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What kinds of car washes does Colorado Springs have?
The format mix in Colorado Springs reads as a typical mid-market US metro — express tunnels and detail shops carrying the bulk of supply, with full-service and self-serve layered in. The bar chart pairs location count with per-format average rating.
Highest-rated format: Detail Shop at 4.79★ across 32 locations. Lowest-rated: In-Bay Automatic at 3.87★ (6 locations).
386 (81.6%) of 473 locations are unclassified — small independents whose websites don't surface enough signal for format assignment. Format-level statistics describe the classified subset only.
| Format | Locations | % of MSA | Reviews | Avg Rating | Damage Rate | Cancel Friction |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unclassified | 386 | 81.6% | 11,060 | 4.16 | 0.77% | 25.0% |
| Express Tunnel | 41 | 8.7% | 22,227 | 4.63 | 2.85% | 7.8% |
| Detail Shop | 32 | 6.8% | 3,394 | 4.79 | 0.31% | 12.5% |
| Self-Serve Bay | 8 | 1.7% | 2,335 | 4.11 | 1.20% | 12.9% |
| In-Bay Automatic | 6 | 1.3% | 618 | 3.87 | 0.00% | — |
What is the household income near Colorado Springs car washes?
162 Colorado Springs car washes with at least 10 Google reviews are plotted below against the mean IRS AGI per return for their ZIP. The Pearson correlation we compute is one of the cleanest cuts on whether neighborhood income meaningfully shapes wash quality here.
Pearson r between ZIP income and Google rating across 162 qualifying locations: 0.03 — effectively zero. Operating quality dominates over neighborhood income. Scatter mean: $77K AGI/return, 4.32★.
Car wash count and quality by income tier
Blue bars: location count per tier. Orange tick marks: average Google rating (same y-axis).
| Income tier (mean AGI/return) | ZIPs | Locations | Reviews | Avg Rating | Top Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Under $50K | 2 | 29 | 3,170 | 4.21 | In-Bay Automatic (2) |
| $50K – $75K | 14 | 138 | 22,851 | 4.50 | Express Tunnel (24) |
| $75K – $100K | 8 | 47 | 6,324 | 4.35 | Detail Shop (6) |
| $100K – $150K | 6 | 39 | 3,452 | 4.32 | Express Tunnel (10) |
| $150K+ | 1 | 2 | 1,872 | 4.89 | Express Tunnel (1) |
Income band spread: 2/4.89★ at the highest tier; 29/4.21★ at the lowest. In a balanced market, the per-tier read is most useful as a sanity check on whether the operating quality is income-uniform or income-stratified.
Who operates the most Colorado Springs car washes?
22 chains run sites in Colorado Springs; the top 25 are listed below by location count, with their per-chain operating-quality numbers next to them. Useful for narrowing competitive-set considerations or for M&A evaluation.
| # | Chain | Locations | Reviews | Avg Rating | Damage | Cancel | Upsell |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Quick Quack Car Wash | 10 | 9,366 | 4.66 | 2.99% | 11.5% | 0.74% |
| 2 | Super Star Car Wash | 8 | 6,661 | 4.78 | 2.32% | 6.5% | 1.67% |
| 3 | Mister Car Wash | 7 | 2,758 | 4.25 | 5.46% | 6.3% | 2.88% |
| 4 | Conoco | 7 | 903 | 3.88 | — | — | — |
| 5 | Club Car Wash | 4 | 169 | 4.21 | 8.00% | 23.1% | 4.80% |
| 6 | Bighorn Bubbles Car Wash | 4 | 296 | 3.85 | — | — | — |
| 7 | Whistle Express Car Wash | 4 | 488 | 4.75 | 2.40% | 8.3% | 0.00% |
| 8 | Tommy's Express® Car Wash | 3 | 1,179 | 4.74 | 1.71% | 2.8% | 0.11% |
| 9 | Springs Detailing | 2 | 411 | 4.91 | 0.53% | — | 0.00% |
| 10 | Joe's Car & Truck Repair | 2 | 825 | 4.77 | 0.00% | — | 0.00% |
| 11 | Buffs Wash | 2 | 314 | 3.96 | — | — | — |
| 12 | Freedom Express Car Wash | 2 | 786 | 4.35 | 5.23% | — | 0.00% |
| 13 | ST6 Mobile Detailing & Ceramic Coatings | 2 | 41 | 5.00 | — | — | — |
| 14 | Beyond Clean Mobile Detailing | 2 | 86 | 5.00 | — | — | — |
| 15 | Shell | 2 | 323 | 3.08 | — | — | — |
| 16 | ST6 Detailers | 1 | 87 | 4.70 | — | — | — |
| 17 | Auto Excellence | 1 | 118 | 2.60 | — | — | — |
| 18 | Big Splash Car Wash | 1 | 212 | 4.60 | 0.00% | — | 0.60% |
| 19 | Turbo Tide Car Wash | 1 | 142 | 4.50 | 3.17% | 8.3% | 0.00% |
| 20 | Auto Angels | 1 | 17 | 4.80 | — | — | — |
| 21 | Phillips 66 | 1 | 213 | 4.00 | — | — | — |
| 22 | Zz Denver Mobile Detailing | 1 | 66 | 4.90 | — | — | — |
Which counties have the most car washes in Colorado Springs?
Counties of the Colorado Springs CBSA are listed below by car wash count. El Paso County is the most density-concentrated. Reading the rating column tells you whether quality is uniform across the metro or whether specific counties pull in either direction.
Cross-county rating dispersion: 0.35★ between the highest- and lowest-rated counties with meaningful sample size.
| County | Locations | % of MSA | Reviews | Avg Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| El Paso County | 463 | 97.9% | 39,196 | 4.48 |
| Teller County | 10 | 2.1% | 438 | 4.13 |
What do customers love and complain about in Colorado Springs?
Seven aspects, 15,071 reviews, 473 locations. The grid below gives a quick read on which dimensions of the experience Colorado Springs's car wash market does well at and which generate friction.
Where are all the car washes in the Colorado Springs metro?
The complete inventory of car wash locations in the Colorado Springs MSA is captured in the underlying dataset; the table below shows the highest-review-volume sites for at-a-glance comparison. Each row shows operator, address, format, chain affiliation, rating, review count, and the IRS mean AGI for the ZIP.
| Location | City | Format | Chain | Rating | Reviews | ZIP AGI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quick Quack Car Wash 7474 N Marksheffel Rd | Colorado Springs, CO | Express Tunnel | Quick Quack Car Wash | 4.9 | 1,868 | $150K |
| Quick Quack Car Wash 4285 Austin Bluffs Pkwy | Colorado Springs, CO | Express Tunnel | Quick Quack Car Wash | 4.6 | 1,540 | $70K |
| Super Star Car Wash - Razorback Rd & Dorothy Ln 8330 Razorback Rd | Colorado Springs, CO | Express Tunnel | Super Star Car Wash | 4.8 | 1,481 | $96K |
| Super Star Car Wash - Centennial Blvd & Fillmore St 3225 Centennial Blvd | Colorado Springs, CO | Express Tunnel | Super Star Car Wash | 4.8 | 1,448 | $68K |
| Quick Quack Car Wash 6020 Barnes Rd | Colorado Springs, CO | Express Tunnel | Quick Quack Car Wash | 4.7 | 1,276 | $71K |
| Quick Quack Car Wash 6160 Timber Rail Point | Fountain, CO | Express Tunnel | Quick Quack Car Wash | 4.6 | 1,131 | $58K |
| 5 Star Car Wash & Dog Wash 1510 Space Center Dr | Colorado Springs, CO | Self-Serve Bay | — | 4.3 | 976 | $56K |
| Quick Quack Car Wash 2437 Marksheffel Rd | Colorado Springs, CO | Express Tunnel | Quick Quack Car Wash | 4.6 | 970 | $66K |
| Super Star Car Wash - Academy Blvd & Pace Dr 1570 Pulsar Dr | Colorado Springs, CO | Express Tunnel | Super Star Car Wash | 4.8 | 968 | $47K |
| Super Star Car Wash - Woodmen Rd & Falcon Mkt Pl 7525 Falcon Mkt Pl | Falcon, CO | Express Tunnel | Super Star Car Wash | 4.6 | 967 | $92K |
| Mister Car Wash 5366 New Car Dr | Colorado Springs, CO | Express Tunnel | Mister Car Wash | 4.0 | 962 | $80K |
| Lakeside Auto Brokers 1331 S Tejon St | Colorado Springs, CO | — | — | 4.1 | 925 | $63K |
| Quick Quack Car Wash 1450 Harrison Rd | Colorado Springs, CO | Express Tunnel | Quick Quack Car Wash | 4.7 | 905 | $63K |
| Super Star Car Wash - Carefree Cir & Powers Blvd 3611 Rio Vista Dr | Colorado Springs, CO | Express Tunnel | Super Star Car Wash | 4.9 | 787 | $60K |
| Tommy's Express® Car Wash 1540 Garden of the Gods Rd | Colorado Springs, CO | Express Tunnel | Tommy's Express® Car Wash | 4.9 | 737 | $68K |
| Quick Quack Car Wash 1602 S Academy Blvd | Colorado Springs, CO | Express Tunnel | Quick Quack Car Wash | 4.4 | 727 | $47K |
| Phil Long Collision Center 4045 Sinton Rd | Colorado Springs, CO | — | — | 4.3 | 596 | $68K |
| Mister Car Wash 7980 Fountain Mesa Rd | Fountain, CO | Express Tunnel | Mister Car Wash | 4.3 | 590 | $59K |
| Joe's Car & Truck Repair 1590 York Rd | Colorado Springs, CO | — | Joe's Car & Truck Repair | 4.7 | 527 | $70K |
| Quick Quack Car Wash 1235 Interquest Pkwy | Colorado Springs, CO | Express Tunnel | Quick Quack Car Wash | 4.5 | 505 | $138K |
| Mister Car Wash 1822 Main St | Colorado Springs, CO | Express Tunnel | Mister Car Wash | 4.4 | 505 | $58K |
| Falcon Car Wash 7417 McLaughlin Rd | Falcon, CO | Detail Shop | — | 4.0 | 485 | $92K |
| Carlo Car Wash 813 N Union Blvd | Colorado Springs, CO | Express Tunnel | — | 4.5 | 466 | $54K |
| Big Wave Car Wash 2865 N New Center Point | Colorado Springs, CO | Self-Serve Bay | — | 4.0 | 463 | $71K |
| Super Star Car Wash - Dublin Blvd & Union Blvd 6410 N Union Blvd | Colorado Springs, CO | Express Tunnel | Super Star Car Wash | 4.9 | 442 | $70K |
Compare Colorado Springs to other CO car wash markets
Each link drills into a full per-metro analysis — operator concentration, format mix, and customer-experience signals against the same methodology.
Data as of 2026-09-26. Pick a format and click Copy.
WashIndex. (2026, September 26). Colorado Springs car wash market analysis. https://washindex.com/car-wash-markets/colorado-springs
WashIndex. "Colorado Springs car wash market analysis." WashIndex. Last modified September 26, 2026. https://washindex.com/car-wash-markets/colorado-springs.
"Colorado Springs car wash market analysis." WashIndex, Sep. 26, 2026, https://washindex.com/car-wash-markets/colorado-springs.
@misc{washindex_car_wash_markets_colorado_springs_2026,
title = {{Colorado Springs car wash market analysis}},
author = {{WashIndex}},
year = {2026},
month = {Sep},
url = {https://washindex.com/car-wash-markets/colorado-springs},
urldate = {2026-09-26},
} About this analysis
Car wash inventory for the Colorado Springs, CO CBSA is determined by point-in-polygon test against the official US Census county boundaries (TIGER/Line, 2024) for the 2 counties that make up the MSA. Each location was verified to fall inside one of those county polygons; lat/lng comes from Google Maps metadata.
Operating-quality signals are derived from 15,071 customer reviews processed through WashIndex's 55-field LLM extraction pipeline. Format classification comes from a separate per-location website-reading classifier. ZIP-level income data is from the IRS Statistics of Income (tax year 2022) — mean Adjusted Gross Income per tax return, which is directionally aligned with ACS median household income but available without authentication.
See our full methodology for the extraction pipeline, validation samples, and aggregation logic. Term definitions in the glossary.
Machine-readable: JSON ↓ · API root
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