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Orange County, CA — Car washes Saturation

Name: Car washes density by ZIP code in Orange County, CA
Creator: BizGapMap

How many car washes exist per person present — residents plus daytime workers — by ZIP code, compared with the U.S. average. Establishment data: Census ZBP 2023. Population: ACS 2024 5-year. 135 ZIP codes analyzed.

Includes: Car wash tunnels & bays · Self-serve & automatic washes · Detailing (wash-attached). Counted together because official statistics use one 811192 code.

Measured density: Range spans bands — 0.94× the U.S. rate (between 0.94× and 1.45× once withheld ZIP cells are counted)

Why a range: Census does not publish a ZIP-by-industry count when that ZIP has 0–2 businesses. 97 ZIP cells in this county are withheld, 50 of them with residents. Each could hold 0, 1, or 2 businesses: counting them all as 0 gives the low end, counting them all as 2 gives the high end — the data cannot say where the truth sits. The density range uses only the populated cells, since ZIPs without residents are excluded from per-person rates. How ranges work

Range spans the U.S. rate Orange County car washes — 94–145% of the U.S. rate

182 car washes are counted in Orange County — 0.5 per 10,000 people present (residents + daytime workers), 94% of the U.S. rate of 0.5.

On the comparable ZIP set (ZIPs with a published count in every year), the total has risen 12% between 2015 and 2023 (101 → 113). That set is smaller than today's county total. 2020–2021 were pandemic-distorted, and Census rounds counts, so small moves are within noise.

Measured supply density is highest in 90623 (La Palma), 92705 (Santa Ana), 92647 (Huntington Beach) — well above the national rate. On measured density alone, the lowest-density residential ZIPs with a published count are 92618 (Irvine), 92677 (Laguna Niguel), 92802 (Anaheim).

Census County Business Patterns (2023) puts the county-wide count at 230 establishments, including locations in ZIP codes that do not map to a ZCTA — so it can run slightly above the sum of the ZIP rows on this page. It is annual, so it lags more than QCEW.

Measured density: Orange County sits at 94% of the U.S. rate for car washes. 50 ZIPs with population have no published count (each 0–2 businesses), so the true per-capita rate is between 94% and 145% of the U.S. rate. Why. The highest measured density is in 90623 and 92705; the lowest measured density is in 92618 and 92677.

This is a supply-side read: it counts existing car washes and the people present, not foot traffic, income, rent, or whether locals want more. Treat low density as a question to check, not an answer.

Car washes

182–376

published count; upper bound counts each withheld ZIP cell as 2 (97 cells) (2023)

Per 10,000 present

0.5

residents + daytime workers

U.S. average

0.5

per 10,000 present

County index

0.94×

vs. U.S.

Latest year (CBP)

230

2023 — $97M annual payroll

Residents

3,175,270

88 ZIPs with data

Workers

1,572,620

jobs located in county

Is the area growing?

Population

3,170,435

Census PEP, July 1 2024

Change since 2020

−0.5%

−15,826 people

Net migration 2024

+7,389

international +29,759, domestic −22,370

Jobs located here

1,697,322

LODES 2022, +0.7% since 2019

Orange County had an estimated 3,170,435 residents on July 1, 2024 — 0.5% fewer than in 2020 (−15,826). In the latest year it gained 15,872 people: births minus deaths +8,437, international migration +29,759, domestic migration −22,370. Components are published separately and may not sum exactly.

1,697,322 jobs were located in the county in 2022 (+0.7% since 2019), and 1,480,984 employed residents lived there (−1.0% since 2019). LODES counts wage and salary jobs covered by unemployment insurance plus federal jobs; it excludes the self-employed and military, and counts jobs rather than unique people. 2019→2022 spans the pandemic, so read it as one change, not a trend.

Population and migration say whether the customer base is growing. They do not say whether people want another business of this type. Definitions and limits → · Full county detail →

ZIP gaining residents

2015–19 → 2020–24

Change

92617 Irvine

+39.7%

92618 Irvine

+35.0%

92782 Tustin

+30.3%

ZIP losing residents

2015–19 → 2020–24

Change

92610 Foothill Ranch

−21.4%

92701 Santa Ana

−13.1%

92691 Mission Viejo

−9.8%

ACS 5-year estimates for 2015–2019 and 2020–2024. Only ZIPs with at least 2,000 residents in both windows and a change larger than the survey margin of error (90%) are listed — small ZIPs move a lot on paper without a real signal.

Nonemployer businesses

Not shown. Census publishes only a broader group that also includes oil-change and other auto service shops, so a car-wash-only nonemployer count is not published.

Census Nonemployer Statistics 2024 (NAICS 2022). We do not approximate this figure.

Saturation map

Each ZIP area is shaded by its density of this business type per person present (residents + workers) vs. the U.S. average. Click any ZIP to zoom to its boundary, see its numbers, and switch to aerial imagery.

Basemap:

Under 50% 50–100% 100–150% 150–250% 250%+ 0–2 (not published) / no data ZIP total (dot size)

Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors, tiles by OpenFreeMap.

White dots are ZIP totals from the official Census count — the bigger the dot, the more car washes in that ZIP.

Market trend — up 12% since 2015

Number of car washes in Orange County across 2015–2023, on a consistent set of ZIP codes present in every year — so changes are real, not ZIP-boundary artifacts. 2015/2018 are pre-pandemic baselines; 2020/2021 are COVID-distorted.

101

2015

106

2018

108

2020

100

2021

107

2022

113

2023

Highest measured density

ZIP

vs. U.S. average

Index

90623 La Palma

328%

92705 Santa Ana

327%

92647 Huntington Beach

282%

92627 Costa Mesa

264%

92701 Santa Ana

225%

92660 Newport Beach

220%

92651 Laguna Beach

214%

92869 Orange

210%

92604 Irvine

203%

92706 Santa Ana

203%

92801 Anaheim

194%

92675 San Juan Capistrano

191%

92806 Anaheim

190%

92648 Huntington Beach

187%

92673 San Clemente

176%

Lowest measured density

ZIP

vs. U.S. average

Index

92618 Irvine

62%

92677 Laguna Niguel

85%

92802 Anaheim

88%

92805 Anaheim

93%

92703 Santa Ana

94%

90630 Cypress

102%

92683 Westminster

103%

92704 Santa Ana

105%

92612 Irvine

107%

92691 Mission Viejo

108%

92867 Orange

113%

92707 Santa Ana

115%

92630 Lake Forest

129%

92804 Anaheim

139%

90620 Buena Park

141%

Low measured density is not evidence of opportunity. A ZIP with few car washes may simply lack foot traffic, retail space, or demand. We rank only residential and mixed ZIPs here; employment hubs and visitor destinations are listed separately below. ZIPs where Census did not publish a count (0–2 businesses) are not ranked: they may be the least served of all, but the data cannot tell 0 from 1 or 2. Verify those locally.

Employment hubs & destinations

These ZIPs have far more workers (or visitors) than residents, so their counts are driven by daytime and visitor demand — not a place to read "shortage" from resident numbers alone.

ZIP	Neighborhood	Type	Residents	Workers	Car washes	Index
92614	Irvine	Employment hub	29,239	71,739	0–2	—

Scroll the table sideways to see all columns.

All ZIP codes

Click a column header to sort. Index = car washes per 10,000 people present (residents + 0.5×workers) ÷ the U.S. average. 100% = exactly average.

ZIP	Neighborhood	Residents	Workers	Car washes	Per 10k	Index	Status
90623	La Palma	15,545	6,336	3	1.6	328%	Very high density
92705	Santa Ana	48,781	52,604	12	1.6	327%	Very high density
92647	Huntington Beach	59,047	26,672	10	1.4	282%	Very high density
92627	Costa Mesa	60,393	18,633	9	1.3	264%	Very high density
92701	Santa Ana	47,818	13,166	6	1.1	225%	High density
92660	Newport Beach	34,890	60,414	7	1.1	220%	High density
92651	Laguna Beach	23,557	10,107	3	1.0	214%	High density
92869	Orange	36,271	5,428	4	1.0	210%	High density
92604	Irvine	26,491	7,418	3	1.0	203%	High density
92706	Santa Ana	37,175	6,316	4	1.0	203%	High density
92801	Anaheim	60,547	26,223	7	1.0	194%	High density
92675	San Juan Capistrano	35,095	15,336	4	0.9	191%	High density
92806	Anaheim	41,003	47,143	6	0.9	190%	High density
92648	Huntington Beach	45,827	17,805	5	0.9	187%	High density
92673	San Clemente	29,406	11,028	3	0.9	176%	High density
92626	Costa Mesa	50,708	61,637	7	0.9	175%	High density
92606	Irvine	23,990	22,200	3	0.9	175%	High density
92807	Anaheim	37,296	25,692	4	0.8	163%	High density
90631	La Habra	68,309	15,356	6	0.8	161%	High density
92841	Garden Grove	33,219	13,789	3	0.7	153%	High density
92821	Brea	41,623	53,249	5	0.7	150%	Above average
92708	Fountain Valley	56,258	28,817	5	0.7	145%	Above average
92780	Tustin	54,374	36,196	5	0.7	141%	Above average
90620	Buena Park	46,608	23,068	4	0.7	141%	Above average
92804	Anaheim	83,537	8,751	6	0.7	139%	Above average
92630	Lake Forest	67,152	24,355	5	0.6	129%	Above average
92707	Santa Ana	58,695	24,470	4	0.6	115%	Above average
92867	Orange	44,726	19,456	3	0.6	113%	Above average
92691	Mission Viejo	45,841	22,393	3	0.5	108%	Above average
92612	Irvine	33,714	47,161	3	0.5	107%	Above average
92704	Santa Ana	82,120	29,907	5	0.5	105%	Above average
92683	Westminster	89,833	18,171	5	0.5	103%	Above average
90630	Cypress	49,318	21,856	3	0.5	102%	Above average
92703	Santa Ana	62,447	5,941	3	0.5	94%	Below average
92805	Anaheim	74,661	26,571	4	0.5	93%	Below average
92802	Anaheim	43,132	53,713	3	0.4	88%	Below average
92677	Laguna Niguel	64,139	15,621	3	0.4	85%	Below average
92618	Irvine	66,126	130,760	4	0.3	62%	Below average
90621	Buena Park	35,984	11,275	0–2	—	—	Not published
90622	Buena Park	—	893	0–2	—	—	Not published
90632	La Habra	—	63	0–2	—	—	Not published
90633	La Habra	—	88	0–2	—	—	Not published
90680	Stanton	31,991	7,219	0–2	—	—	Not published
90720	Los Alamitos	23,805	15,195	0–2	—	—	Not published
90721	Los Alamitos	—	42	0–2	—	—	Not published
90740	Seal Beach	24,254	11,439	0–2	—	—	Not published
90742	Sunset Beach	405	403	0–2	—	—	Not published
90743	Surfside	468	48	0–2	—	—	Not published
92602	Irvine	28,261	9,006	0–2	—	—	Not published
92603	Irvine	18,387	2,938	0–2	—	—	Not published
92605	Huntington Beach	—	47	0–2	—	—	Not published
92607	Laguna Niguel	—	55	0–2	—	—	Not published
92609	El Toro	—	56	0–2	—	—	Not published
92610	Foothill Ranch	12,867	11,543	0–2	—	—	Not published
92614	Irvine	29,239	71,739	0–2	—	—	Not published
92615	Huntington Beach	—	182	0–2	—	—	Not published
92616	Irvine	—	64	0–2	—	—	Not published
92617	Irvine	24,017	9,220	0–2	—	—	Not published
92619	Irvine	—	464	0–2	—	—	Not published
92620	Irvine	61,631	7,841	0–2	—	—	Not published
92623	Irvine	—	92	0–2	—	—	Not published
92624	Capistrano Beach	7,211	1,069	0–2	—	—	Not published
92625	Corona Del Mar	12,294	4,050	0–2	—	—	Not published
92628	Costa Mesa	—	133	0–2	—	—	Not published
92629	Dana Point	25,579	9,121	0–2	—	—	Not published
92637	Laguna Woods	17,289	2,030	0–2	—	—	Not published
92646	Huntington Beach	54,615	7,213	0–2	—	—	Not published
92649	Huntington Beach	35,346	17,452	0–2	—	—	Not published
92652	Laguna Beach	—	154	0–2	—	—	Not published
92653	Laguna Hills	29,624	20,458	0–2	—	—	Not published
92654	Laguna Hills	—	62	0–2	—	—	Not published
92655	Midway City	8,026	426	0–2	—	—	Not published
92656	Aliso Viejo	52,229	24,852	0–2	—	—	Not published
92657	Newport Coast	9,920	3,420	0–2	—	—	Not published
92658	Newport Beach	—	97	0–2	—	—	Not published
92659	Newport Beach	—	13	0–2	—	—	Not published
92661	Newport Beach	3,079	968	0–2	—	—	Not published
92662	Newport Beach	2,294	676	0–2	—	—	Not published
92663	Newport Beach	21,368	14,263	0–2	—	—	Not published
92672	San Clemente	36,939	12,008	0–2	—	—	Not published
92674	San Clemente	—	79	0–2	—	—	Not published
92676	Silverado	2,085	168	0–2	—	—	Not published
92678	Trabuco Canyon	664	73	0–2	—	—	Not published
92679	Trabuco Canyon	30,818	2,512	0–2	—	—	Not published
92684	Westminster	—	4	0–2	—	—	Not published
92685	Westminster	—	19	0–2	—	—	Not published
92688	Rancho Santa Margarita	43,320	17,871	0–2	—	—	Not published
92690	Mission Viejo	—	41	0–2	—	—	Not published
92692	Mission Viejo	47,022	6,539	0–2	—	—	Not published
92693	San Juan Capistrano	—	168	0–2	—	—	Not published
92694	Ladera Ranch	35,764	4,795	0–2	—	—	Not published
92697	Irvine	0	236	0–2	—	—	Not published
92698	Aliso Viejo	—	15	0–2	—	—	Not published
92702	Santa Ana	—	133	0–2	—	—	Not published
92711	Santa Ana	—	71	0–2	—	—	Not published
92728	Fountain Valley	—	119	0–2	—	—	Not published
92781	Tustin	—	107	0–2	—	—	Not published
92782	Tustin	30,073	9,254	0–2	—	—	Not published
92799	Santa Ana	—	15	0–2	—	—	Not published
92803	Anaheim	—	654	0–2	—	—	Not published
92808	Anaheim	21,539	5,987	0–2	—	—	Not published
92809	Anaheim	—	13	0–2	—	—	Not published
92811	Atwood	—	12	0–2	—	—	Not published
92812	Anaheim	—	35	0–2	—	—	Not published
92816	Anaheim	—	5	0–2	—	—	Not published
92817	Anaheim	—	23	0–2	—	—	Not published
92822	Brea	—	52	0–2	—	—	Not published
92823	Brea	5,846	5,290	0–2	—	—	Not published
92825	Anaheim	—	13	0–2	—	—	Not published
92831	Fullerton	35,618	19,845	0–2	—	—	Not published
92832	Fullerton	27,298	11,170	0–2	—	—	Not published
92833	Fullerton	51,842	9,105	0–2	—	—	Not published
92834	Fullerton	—	745	0–2	—	—	Not published
92835	Fullerton	26,005	12,791	0–2	—	—	Not published
92836	Fullerton	—	61	0–2	—	—	Not published
92837	Fullerton	—	134	0–2	—	—	Not published
92838	Fullerton	—	43	0–2	—	—	Not published
92840	Garden Grove	54,534	9,589	0–2	—	—	Not published
92842	Garden Grove	—	13	0–2	—	—	Not published
92843	Garden Grove	46,414	12,390	0–2	—	—	Not published
92844	Garden Grove	23,188	5,028	0–2	—	—	Not published
92845	Garden Grove	16,143	2,981	0–2	—	—	Not published
92846	Garden Grove	—	25	0–2	—	—	Not published
92856	Orange	—	22	0–2	—	—	Not published
92859	Orange	—	53	0–2	—	—	Not published
92861	Villa Park	5,748	1,190	0–2	—	—	Not published
92863	Orange	—	64	0–2	—	—	Not published
92865	Orange	20,589	17,444	0–2	—	—	Not published
92866	Orange	15,331	9,454	0–2	—	—	Not published
92868	Orange	26,380	50,123	0–2	—	—	Not published
92870	Placentia	52,826	12,959	0–2	—	—	Not published
92871	Placentia	—	46	0–2	—	—	Not published
92885	Yorba Linda	—	116	0–2	—	—	Not published
92886	Yorba Linda	49,704	8,621	0–2	—	—	Not published
92887	Yorba Linda	19,725	7,810	0–2	—	—	Not published

Scroll the table sideways to see all columns.

Find an actual space in Irvine

The numbers above tell you how the market looks. To find a specific storefront, these marketplaces list available retail space for lease.

LoopNet

Largest commercial marketplace

Browse Irvine retail space →

Crexi

Free listings + market data

Browse Irvine retail space →

CityFeet

Retail space for lease

Browse Irvine retail space →

Open vacancy data (actual empty units) is only published by some cities; where it exists we show it directly. Listings above are third-party.

Census withholds some ZIP-by-industry cells to protect small businesses. 0–2 means the cell was not published (Census publishes industry counts only at 3+ per ZIP), so the ZIP is left unranked rather than counted as zero. ~ means the count is estimated from the broader industry group and can be off by a business or two.

Follow Orange County and car washes

When a data vintage changes or a section of this report is revised, we post it to a public update feed. No email address, no account, no tracking — and nothing is sent unless something actually changed.

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Methodology & sources

Establishments. U.S. Census ZIP Code Business Patterns (ZBP 2023), NAICS 811192 — car washes. Counts establishments with paid employees. ZBP is published annually with a ~2-year lag.

Fresh county signal. This industry has no clean QCEW series, so the freshest county signal is Census County Business Patterns 2023: 230 establishments and $97M in annual payroll county-wide. This count includes locations in ZIP codes that do not map to a ZCTA, so it can be slightly higher than the sum of the ZIP rows. CBP is annual and slower than QCEW. It cannot be broken down by ZIP.

Population. U.S. Census American Community Survey 2024 5-year ZCTA population (table B01003). Workers are the ZIP's total employment from the same 2023 ZBP file.

Demand ("people present"). Demand comes from residents and daytime workers: residents + 0.5 × workers. This is the single documented assumption in the model and can be tuned.

Index. index = (ZIP establishments ÷ ZIP demand × 10,000) ÷ the U.S. average for this industry (0.49 per 10,000 present). It is a supply-side density measure; it does not capture income, rent, tourism, or whether locals actually want more.

Read the full methodology → · Data sources & vintages →

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BizGapMap — free, no-login small-business saturation reports for major U.S. counties. Built entirely from public U.S. Census, BLS, and IRS data (ZBP 2023, ACS 2024 5-year, PEP 2024, LODES, QCEW, IRS SOI). No forecasts, no revenue guesses — withheld cells are marked, and the few derived counts are labelled as estimates.