Groundwork

Child care · County · Florida

Child care centers and preschools in St. Johns County, FL

The child care centers and preschools in St. Johns County, FL, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 84 out of 100: High

Ranked #49 of 1,611 scored counties
#7 of 56 scored counties in Florida

Listings
68
24 chain locations (35%)
Official establishments
54
+12.5% since 2019
Household spending a year
$80.4M
On child care and other personal services · $694 a household
Spending per listing
$1.2M
18% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
5.9
2% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
346,328
+25.0% since 2020

See the child care centers and preschools around any address in St. Johns 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 St. Johns County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

The Groundwork market score for child care centers and preschools in St. Johns County is 84 (high), #49 of 1,611 scored counties and #7 of 56 scored counties in Florida. That puts it in the top 10% of counties for child care centers and preschools.

As of September 2026, map listings count 68 child care centers and preschools in St. Johns County. Of those, 24 are chain locations, or 35%, against 12% across the U.S. That is 5.9 per 10,000 households, 2% above the U.S. rate of 5.8.

At $694 per household (20% above the U.S. average), households in St. Johns County spend about $80.4M a year on child care and other personal services. That works out to $1.2M per center, 18% above the U.S. figure of $1M.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as child care services in St. Johns County was 54 in 2023, up 12.5% from 2019. That is one for every 2,144 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 6 SBA-backed loans worth $9.1M have gone to businesses classed as child care services in St. Johns County. Population estimates put the population change in St. Johns County from 2020 to 2025 at +25.0%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How St. Johns 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.

Child care and preschools in St. Johns County, FL compared with Florida and the U.S.
MeasureSt. Johns CountyFloridaU.S.
Listings per 10k households5.95.55.8
Spending per listing$1.2M$866K$1M
Households per official establishment2,1441,8821,573
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+12.5%+6.4%+5.7%
Population growth, 2020–2025+25.0%+8.7%+3.1%
Spending per household on child care and other personal services$694$476$581
Median household income$109,839$74,568$80,734
Groundwork market score8463

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
48 → 54+12.5% over the period
Employees, 2023
1,103
Annual payroll, 2023
$30.6M
One-person businesses, 2023
192Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
6824 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
80The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
6
Amount
$9.1M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as child care services in St. Johns 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 St. Johns County

Population, 2025 estimate
346,328+25.0% since 2020
Households
115,794
Median age
45.2
Homes lived in by their owners
82%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
601 sq. mi.
People per square mile
511
Median household income
$109,839+33.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$148,427
Median home value
$489,200
Jobs located here
95,238
Daytime population
271,916Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in St. Johns 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 St. Johns County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Child 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 St. Johns County marked.

Top counties in Florida

Counties in Florida ranked for child care centers and preschools by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Collier County, FL92633.8$1.6M+10.6%#7 of 1,611
2Flagler County, FL9191.7$2.8M+21.0%#9 of 1,611
3Sumter County, FL90121.7$2.5M+21.1%#14 of 1,611
4Santa Rosa County, FL89273.7$1.4M+11.7%#19 of 1,611
5Walton County, FL87154.4$1.2M+22.9%#29 of 1,611
6Sarasota County, FL85904.2$1.2M+10.0%#40 of 1,611
7St. Johns County, FL84685.9$1.2M+25.0%#49 of 1,611
8Martin County, FL83284.1$1.3M+4.8%#58 of 1,611
9Charlotte County, FL83303.3$1.2M+15.5%#59 of 1,611
10Lake County, FL83593.6$1.2M+18.1%#60 of 1,611

Other business types in St. Johns County

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many child care centers and preschools are in St. Johns County, FL?

St. Johns County has 68 child care centers and preschools on map listings as of September 2026. 24 of them (35%) are chain locations. The listings count day care centers and preschools. Official counts show 54 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in 2023, up 12.5% from 2019. Official counts also show 192 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in St. Johns County, FL spend on child care and other personal services?

About $80.4M a year, or $694 per household. That is 20% above the U.S. average (an index of 120, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 68 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $1.2M per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 115,794 households in St. Johns County and national spending patterns by income.

How does St. Johns County, FL compare with the U.S. for child care centers and preschools?

St. Johns County has 5.9 child care centers and preschools per 10,000 households, 2% above the U.S. rate of 5.8. Spending per center is $1.2M, 18% above the U.S. figure of $1M. At the national ratio of child care centers and preschools to household spending, St. Johns County would have about 80, against 68 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,144 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. The official count rose 12.5% from 2019 to 2023, against +5.7% for the U.S.

How fast is St. Johns County, FL growing?

Population estimates put St. Johns County at 346,328 people in 2025, up 25.0% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 115,794 households. The median household income in St. Johns County is $109,839 a year, 36% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 33.5% from the 2015–2019 survey, 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. St. Johns County scores 84 for child care centers and preschools (high), #49 of 1,611 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in St. Johns 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 St. Johns County

Screening a site or an acquisition in St. Johns 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 St. Johns 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.