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Nueces County, TX — Auto repair Saturation

How many auto repair 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. 35 ZIP codes analyzed.

Includes: Auto repair & maintenance shops · Body, paint & interior repair. Counted together because official statistics use one 811121 code.

Measured density: Range spans bands — 0.61× the U.S. rate (between 0.61× and 1.66× 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. 30 ZIP cells in this county are withheld, 19 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   Nueces County auto repair — 61–166% of the U.S. rate

22 auto repair are counted in Nueces County — 0.5 per 10,000 people present (residents + daytime workers), 61% of the U.S. rate of 0.9.

On the comparable ZIP set (ZIPs with a published count in every year), the total has risen 9% between 2015 and 2023 (11 → 12). 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 78405 (Corpus Christi), 78408 (Corpus Christi), 78415 (Corpus Christi) — well above the national rate. On measured density alone, the lowest-density residential ZIPs with a published count are 78418 (Corpus Christi), 78413 (Corpus Christi), 78415 (Corpus Christi).

BLS QCEW puts the latest county-wide count (2026 Q1) at 27 establishments, the freshest available signal.

Measured density: Nueces County sits at 61% of the U.S. rate for auto repair. 19 ZIPs with population have no published count (each 0–2 businesses), so the true per-capita rate is between 61% and 166% of the U.S. rate. Why. The highest measured density is in 78405 and 78408; the lowest measured density is in 78418 and 78413.

This is a supply-side read: it counts existing auto repair 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.

Auto repair
22–82
published count; upper bound counts each withheld ZIP cell as 2 (30 cells) (2023)
Per 10,000 present
0.5
residents + daytime workers
U.S. average
0.9
per 10,000 present
County index
0.61×
vs. U.S.
Latest quarter (QCEW)
27
2026 Q1 — county total
Residents
351,950
24 ZIPs with data
Workers
130,507
jobs located in county

Is the area growing?

Population
353,125
Census PEP, July 1 2024
Change since 2020
−0.1%
−475 people
Net migration 2024
−288
international +1,248, domestic −1,536
Jobs located here
150,184
LODES 2022, −6.1% since 2019

Nueces County had an estimated 353,125 residents on July 1, 2024 — 0.1% fewer than in 2020 (−475). In the latest year it gained 480 people: births minus deaths +765, international migration +1,248, domestic migration −1,536. Components are published separately and may not sum exactly.

150,184 jobs were located in the county in 2022 (−6.1% since 2019), and 144,884 employed residents lived there (−1.6% 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
78414 Corpus Christi
+33.5%
ZIP losing residents
2015–19 → 2020–24
Change
78404 Corpus Christi
−28.9%
78373 Port Aransas
−23.8%
78416 Corpus Christi
−21.9%

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 auto glass shops, so an auto-repair-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. Individual mapped shops appear as dots at street level — Show locations zooms you in to them (scroll or double-click to zoom).

Basemap:
Under 50% 50–100% 100–150% 150–250% 250%+ 0–2 (not published) / no data ZIP total (dot size) Mapped shop (OpenStreetMap, street level)

Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors, tiles by OpenFreeMap.

White dots are ZIP totals from the official Census count — the bigger the dot, the more auto repair in that ZIP. They are aggregated, not individual shops. Turquoise dots are individual locations mapped in OpenStreetMap, shown only at street level; they are crowd-sourced and indicative, may be incomplete, and do not equal the official counts. Only the official ZIP totals feed the saturation index.

Market trend — up 9% since 2015

Number of auto repair in Nueces 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.

11
2015
12
2018
13
2020
13
2021
12
2022
12
2023

Highest measured density

ZIP
vs. U.S. average
Index
78405 Corpus Christi
254%
78408 Corpus Christi
254%
78415 Corpus Christi
196%
78413 Corpus Christi
120%
78418 Corpus Christi
108%

Lowest measured density

ZIP
vs. U.S. average
Index
78418 Corpus Christi
108%
78413 Corpus Christi
120%
78415 Corpus Christi
196%
78408 Corpus Christi
254%
78405 Corpus Christi
254%
Low measured density is not evidence of opportunity. A ZIP with few auto repair 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.

ZIPNeighborhoodType ResidentsWorkersAuto repairIndex
78401Corpus Christi Employment hub 4,34412,036 0–2 —
78409Corpus Christi Employment hub 2,93710,975 0–2 —

Scroll the table sideways to see all columns.

All ZIP codes

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

ZIPNeighborhood ResidentsWorkersAuto repair Per 10kIndexStatus
78405Corpus Christi 14,6027,156 4 2.2 254% Very high density
78408Corpus Christi 10,1117,076 3 2.2 254% Very high density
78415Corpus Christi 43,0808,170 8 1.7 196% High density
78413Corpus Christi 34,2898,777 4 1.0 120% Above average
78418Corpus Christi 29,7904,919 3 0.9 108% Above average
78330Agua Dulce 351106 0–2 — — Not published
78339Banquete 46576 0–2 — — Not published
78343Bishop 4,345634 0–2 — — Not published
78351Driscoll 483380 0–2 — — Not published
78373Port Aransas 3,3482,815 0–2 — — Not published
78380Robstown 23,1495,574 0–2 — — Not published
78401Corpus Christi 4,34412,036 0–2 — — Not published
78402Corpus Christi 554950 0–2 — — Not published
78403Corpus Christi —1,314 0–2 — — Not published
78404Corpus Christi 12,6357,080 0–2 — — Not published
78406Corpus Christi 2,3011,595 0–2 — — Not published
78407Corpus Christi 1,6742,138 0–2 — — Not published
78409Corpus Christi 2,93710,975 0–2 — — Not published
78410Corpus Christi 29,0407,059 0–2 — — Not published
78411Corpus Christi 23,68222,086 0–2 — — Not published
78412Corpus Christi 38,6318,077 0–2 — — Not published
78414Corpus Christi 54,2638,237 0–2 — — Not published
78416Corpus Christi 12,4802,542 0–2 — — Not published
78417Corpus Christi 4,7031,316 0–2 — — Not published
78419Corpus Christi 693733 0–2 — — Not published
78426Corpus Christi —24 0–2 — — Not published
78427Corpus Christi —222 0–2 — — Not published
78460Corpus Christi —102 0–2 — — Not published
78463Corpus Christi —22 0–2 — — Not published
78465Corpus Christi —57 0–2 — — Not published
78466Corpus Christi —53 0–2 — — Not published
78467Corpus Christi —70 0–2 — — Not published
78468Corpus Christi —1,347 0–2 — — Not published
78469Corpus Christi —133 0–2 — — Not published
78480Corpus Christi —32 0–2 — — Not published

Scroll the table sideways to see all columns.

Find an actual space in Corpus Christi

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 Corpus Christi retail space →
Crexi
Free listings + market data
Browse Corpus Christi retail space →
CityFeet
Retail space for lease
Browse Corpus Christi 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 Nueces County and auto repair

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.

Subscribe to updates (RSS) How these numbers are built →

Methodology & sources

Establishments. U.S. Census ZIP Code Business Patterns (ZBP 2023), NAICS 811121 — automotive body, paint & interior repair. Counts establishments with paid employees. ZBP is published annually with a ~2-year lag.

Fresh county signal. BLS QCEW (quarterly) is newer than ZBP — 2026 Q1 shows 27 establishments county-wide for this industry. 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 (0.87 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 →

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.