Employee satisfaction is up at auto dealerships and fewer employees are looking to leave, according to the latest research from dealership management software provider CDK.

But that doesn’t mean all is perfect for dealership staff.

CDK’s 2025 Dealership Workplace Study, a survey of 409 employees from stores across the nation, found job satisfaction has soared to 82%, a significant jump from the 74% recorded in last year’s inaugural study.

In addition, the percentage of dealership workers saying they intend to leave their job in the next six months has dropped from 31% in 2024 to just 22% this year.

That said, employees spelled out areas that are causing them stress, including items that can’t be controlled by dealership management. In fact, the top three stress factors — economic uncertainty (cited by 40% of respondents), difficult customers (36%) and the future of the overall auto industry (31%) — all seem to fall into that category.

“Store leadership often focuses on the controllables, not letting outside forces like the state of the economy or politics impact their strategies,” said study author David Thomas, CDK’s director of content marketing. “But employees signal loud and clear that the economy and the health of the auto industry are top stressors.”

The next most common answers, on the other hand, are certainly things dealerships can address: pay structure (25%), time management (25%), work-life balance (21%) and inefficient technology (20%).

“These don’t necessarily require additional spending to address,” the study said. “Even pay structure as a stress could be handled by evaluating your current policies and engaging feedback from your team.”

Regarding pay, 54% of the staffers surveyed said their pay is competitive, and that makes sense as the average annual salary range of $50,000-$100,000 — which encompasses 44% of CDK’s sample — is in line with U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data showing the national median salary at $62,000.

The study also found 37% of the respondents are earning $100,000-$200,000, while 13% are making less than $50,000 and 6% earn more than $200,000 per year.

Even so, CDK said, compensation concerns continue to impact long-term employee retention. While all seems well in the short term, the study found less than half (49%) of dealership employees are firmly expecting to remain with their current employer during the next five to 10 years.

That number drops to 30% for associates and 32% for directors, managers and supervisors. The only group with a majority saying they have no interest in leaving in the 5-10-year range is executive leadership (66%).

In addition, a mere 26% of employees said they would recommend automotive retail to others as a career. The youngest employees, from Generation Z (age 18-28), were most likely to recommend an auto retail career at 35%, with some citing a flexible schedule, while Gen X (45-60) was least likely at 21%, with one respondent noting it’s a better job for young people without family responsibilities.

“While the rise in job satisfaction is encouraging, it’s not a signal to relax. Leadership responsiveness and team dynamics are now just as critical as pay,” CDK vice president of product marketing and enablement Bruce Johnson said. “Dealerships that thrive will be the ones that listen, adapt and lead with empathy, while aligning compensation strategies with retention goals and employee expectations.”

The full study is available here.