Child care · County · Florida
Child care centers and preschools in DeSoto County, FL
The child care centers and preschools in DeSoto County, FL, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 30 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,334 of 1,611 scored counties
#50 of 56 scored counties in Florida
- Listings
- 7
- 0 chain locations (0%)
- Official establishments
- 10
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $3.8M
- On child care and other personal services · $298 a household
- Spending per listing
- $546K
- 45% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 5.5
- 5% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 37,078
- +8.8% since 2020
See the child care centers and preschools around any address in DeSoto County
The site report maps the child care centers and preschools on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of DeSoto County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
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
For child care centers and preschools, DeSoto County has a Groundwork market score of 30 (lower middle): #1,334 of 1,611 scored counties and #50 of 56 scored counties in Florida. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
Household spending on child care and other personal services in DeSoto County comes to about $3.8M a year: $298 per household, 49% below the U.S. average. That works out to $546K per center, 45% below the U.S. figure of $1M.
DeSoto County has 7 child care centers and preschools on map listings as of September 2026. None of them are chain locations, against 12% across the U.S. That comes to 5.5 for every 10,000 households, 5% below the U.S. rate of 5.8.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as child care services in DeSoto County was 10 in 2023. That is one for every 1,282 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of DeSoto County grew 8.8%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How DeSoto County compares
The same measures for Florida and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all child care and other personal services by the child care centers and preschools counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.
| Measure | DeSoto County | Florida | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 5.5 | 5.5 | 5.8 |
| Spending per listing | $546K | $866K | $1M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,282 | 1,882 | 1,573 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +6.4% | +5.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +8.8% | +8.7% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on child care and other personal services | $298 | $476 | $581 |
| Median household income | $54,417 | $74,568 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 30 | 63 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 9 → 10
- Employees, 2023
- 72
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $2.2M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 49Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 70 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 4The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 0
- Amount
- $0
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as child care services in DeSoto County, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.
Population and households in DeSoto County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 37,078+8.8% since 2020
- Households
- 12,824
- Median age
- 44.7
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 73%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 637 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 56
- Median household income
- $54,417+53.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $65,542
- Median home value
- $174,100
- Jobs located here
- 9,687
- Daytime population
- 32,018Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in DeSoto County?
These figures cover the whole county. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the child care centers and preschools on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of DeSoto County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardChild care and preschools across Florida
Every Florida market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Florida for child care centers and preschools, numbered among those based in Florida, with DeSoto County marked.
Top counties in Florida
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Collier County, FL | 92 | 63 | 3.8 | $1.6M | +10.6% | #7 of 1,611 |
| 2Flagler County, FL | 91 | 9 | 1.7 | $2.8M | +21.0% | #9 of 1,611 |
| 3Sumter County, FL | 90 | 12 | 1.7 | $2.5M | +21.1% | #14 of 1,611 |
| 4Santa Rosa County, FL | 89 | 27 | 3.7 | $1.4M | +11.7% | #19 of 1,611 |
| 5Walton County, FL | 87 | 15 | 4.4 | $1.2M | +22.9% | #29 of 1,611 |
| 6Sarasota County, FL | 85 | 90 | 4.2 | $1.2M | +10.0% | #40 of 1,611 |
| 7St. Johns County, FL | 84 | 68 | 5.9 | $1.2M | +25.0% | #49 of 1,611 |
| 8Martin County, FL | 83 | 28 | 4.1 | $1.3M | +4.8% | #58 of 1,611 |
| 9Charlotte County, FL | 83 | 30 | 3.3 | $1.2M | +15.5% | #59 of 1,611 |
| 10Lake County, FL | 83 | 59 | 3.6 | $1.2M | +18.1% | #60 of 1,611 |
| 50DeSoto County, FL | 30 | 7 | 5.5 | $546K | +8.8% | #1,334 of 1,611 |
Other business types in DeSoto County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
- Child care and preschools30
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many child care centers and preschools are in DeSoto County, FL?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 7 child care centers and preschools in DeSoto County. None of them are chain locations. The listings count day care centers and preschools. Official counts show 10 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in 2023. Official counts also show 49 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in DeSoto County, FL spend on child care and other personal services?
About $3.8M a year, or $298 per household. That is 49% below the U.S. average (an index of 51, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 7 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $546K per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 12,824 households in DeSoto County and national spending patterns by income.
How does DeSoto County, FL compare with the U.S. for child care centers and preschools?
DeSoto County has 5.5 child care centers and preschools per 10,000 households, 5% below the U.S. rate of 5.8. Spending per center is $546K, 45% below the U.S. figure of $1M. At the U.S. ratio of child care centers and preschools to household spending, DeSoto County would have about 4, against 7 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,282 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S.
How fast is DeSoto County, FL growing?
Population estimates put DeSoto County at 37,078 people in 2025, up 8.8% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 12,824 households. Median household income in DeSoto County is $54,417, 33% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 53.6%, before inflation.
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. DeSoto County scores 30 for child care centers and preschools (lower middle), #1,334 of 1,611 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in DeSoto County. 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.
How the score works · Top markets for child care centers and preschools · All 56 business types in DeSoto County
Screening a site or an acquisition in DeSoto County?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
The button opens the report at the center of DeSoto County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
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.