Market rankings · Delaware
Child care centers and preschools in Delaware
Markets across Delaware ranked by the Groundwork market score for child care centers and preschools, with competitor counts and household spending for each.
- Listings
- 260
- 28 chain locations (11%)
- Official establishments
- 349
- +0.9% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $210M
- On child care and other personal services
- Listings per 10k households
- 6.5
- 12% above the U.S.
- Spending per listing
- $808K
- 19% below the U.S.
- Rank among states
- #33 of 51
- Market score 43 · Lower middle
A site report maps the child care centers and preschools on map listings around any address in Delaware by name and distance, and the spending within reach.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
Map listings as of September 2026 show 260 child care centers and preschools in Delaware. Chain locations make up 11% of them, against 12% across the U.S. That is 6.5 per 10,000 households, 12% above the U.S. rate of 5.8.
At $522 per household (10% below the U.S. average), households in Delaware spend about $210M a year on child care and other personal services. That is about $808K of household spending for each center on map listings, 19% below the U.S. figure of $1M.
In 2023, official counts showed 349 businesses with payroll in Delaware classed as child care services, up 0.9% from 2019. That is one for every 1,152 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. Across the U.S., the count rose 5.7% over the same years. Since fiscal 2022, 16 SBA-backed loans worth $6.9M have gone to businesses classed as child care services in Delaware.
Among the 50 states and DC, Delaware ranks #33 for child care centers and preschools, with a Groundwork market score of 43 (lower middle). Of the 2 scored metro areas in or partly in Delaware, the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metro area scores highest (43). The one scored small-town market in or partly in Delaware, the Seaford area, scores 81.
Every market in Delaware for child care centers and preschools
Download the ranking (CSV)Numbered by Groundwork market score among the markets based in Delaware, highest first; the U.S. rank compares each market with every other of its kind. A metro area that crosses a state line is listed in each state it reaches, and numbered only in the state its page is under. How the score works.
Metro areas
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | 43 | 1,939 | 7.9 | $873K | +1.4% | #249 of 387 |
| 1Dover, DE | 32 | 45 | 6.3 | $674K | +6.8% | #320 of 387 |
Small-town markets
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Seaford, DE | 81 | 35 | 3.3 | $1.5M | +16.1% | #15 of 454 |
Counties
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Sussex County, DE | 78 | 35 | 3.3 | $1.5M | +16.1% | #113 of 1,611 |
| 2New Castle County, DE | 43 | 180 | 8.0 | $706K | +3.0% | #1,014 of 1,611 |
| 3Kent County, DE | 41 | 45 | 6.3 | $674K | +6.8% | #1,072 of 1,611 |
Questions
How many child care centers and preschools are in Delaware?
There are 260 child care centers and preschools on map listings in Delaware as of September 2026. 28 of them (11%) are chain locations. The listings count day care centers and preschools. Official counts show 349 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in 2023, up 0.9% from 2019. Official counts list 838 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Delaware spend on child care and other personal services?
About $210M a year, or $522 per household. That is 10% below the U.S. average (an index of 90, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 260 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $808K per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 402,038 households in Delaware and national spending patterns by income.
How does Delaware compare with the U.S. for child care centers and preschools?
Delaware has 6.5 child care centers and preschools per 10,000 households, 12% above the U.S. rate of 5.8. Spending per center is $808K, 19% below the U.S. figure of $1M. At the national ratio of child care centers and preschools to household spending, Delaware would have about 210, against 260 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,152 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. The official count rose 0.9% from 2019 to 2023, against +5.7% for the U.S.
Which market in Delaware has the highest market score for child care centers and preschools?
Among 2 scored metro areas in or partly in Delaware, the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metro area scores highest, at 43 (lower middle). The one scored small-town market in or partly in Delaware is the Seaford area, at 81 (high). Among 3 scored counties in Delaware, Sussex County scores highest, at 78 (high). Scores compare each market with others of its kind across the U.S.
What is the Groundwork market score?
The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. Delaware scores 43 for child care centers and preschools (lower middle), #33 of the 50 states and DC.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Delaware. It maps the child care centers and preschools on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.
Child care and preschools in other states
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Top markets for child care centers and preschools across the U.S. · All business types in Delaware
Screening a site or an acquisition in Delaware?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.