Child care · Metro area · Georgia
Child care centers and preschools in the Athens-Clarke County, GA metro area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for child care centers and preschools in the Athens-Clarke County, GA metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 62 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #99 of 387 scored metro areas
#5 of 14 scored metro areas based in Georgia
- Listings
- 39
- 8 chain locations (21%)
- Official establishments
- 40
- −11.4% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $38.1M
- On child care and other personal services · $443 a household
- Spending per listing
- $978K
- 2% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 4.5
- 22% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 224,148
- +3.9% since 2020
See the child care centers and preschools around any address in the Athens-Clarke County metro area
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 the Athens-Clarke County metro area. 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
Household spending on child care and other personal services in the Athens-Clarke County metro area comes to about $38.1M a year: $443 per household, 24% below the U.S. average. Spread across 39 child care centers and preschools, that is $978K per center, 2% below the U.S. figure of $1M.
There are 39 child care centers and preschools on map listings in the Athens-Clarke County metro area as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 21% of them, against 12% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 4.5, 22% below the U.S. rate of 5.8.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as child care services in the Athens-Clarke County metro area was 40 in 2023, down 11.4% from 2019. That is one for every 2,153 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. Official counts list 334 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $864K have gone to businesses classed as child care services in the Athens-Clarke County metro area.
Population estimates put the population change in the Athens-Clarke County metro area from 2020 to 2025 at +3.9%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for child care centers and preschools in the Athens-Clarke County metro area is 62 (upper middle), #99 of 387 scored metro areas and #5 of 14 scored metro areas based in Georgia.
How the Athens-Clarke County metro area compares
The same measures for Georgia 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 | Athens-Clarke County metro area | Georgia | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 4.5 | 5.6 | 5.8 |
| Spending per listing | $978K | $888K | $1M |
| Households per official establishment | 2,153 | 1,664 | 1,573 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −11.4% | +5.6% | +5.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +3.9% | +5.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on child care and other personal services | $443 | $496 | $581 |
| Median household income | $65,608 | $77,353 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 62 | 57 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 40−11.4% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 796
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $14.9M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 334Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 398 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 38The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 2
- Amount
- $864K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as child care services in the Athens-Clarke County metro area, 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 the Athens-Clarke County metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 224,148+3.9% since 2020
- Households
- 86,101
- Median age
- 36.7
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 56%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 1,025 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 215
- Median household income
- $65,608+39.0% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $94,551
- Median home value
- $310,200
- Jobs located here
- 94,787
- Daytime population
- 224,908Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Athens-Clarke County metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. 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 the Athens-Clarke County metro area. 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 Georgia
Every Georgia market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Georgia for child care centers and preschools, numbered among those based in Georgia (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Athens-Clarke County metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Georgia
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Gainesville, GA | 82 | 31 | 4.2 | $1.2M | +11.4% | #16 of 387 |
| 2Rome, GA | 69 | 11 | 3.0 | $1.3M | +2.8% | #58 of 387 |
| 3Dalton, GA | 66 | 12 | 2.3 | $1.6M | +3.5% | #76 of 387 |
| 4Hinesville, GA | 66 | 10 | 3.3 | $1M | +12.6% | #80 of 387 |
| 5Athens-Clarke County, GA | 62 | 39 | 4.5 | $978K | +3.9% | #99 of 387 |
| 6Warner Robins, GA | 60 | 35 | 4.7 | $967K | +8.2% | #119 of 387 |
| Chattanooga, TN-GA | 60 | 120 | 5.2 | $871K | +5.3% | #121 of 387 |
| 7Brunswick-St. Simons, GA | 58 | 21 | 4.4 | $960K | +4.4% | #141 of 387 |
| 8Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA | 57 | 1,412 | 6.1 | $932K | +5.9% | #147 of 387 |
| 9Savannah, GA | 53 | 84 | 5.2 | $902K | +8.1% | #179 of 387 |
Other business types in the Athens-Clarke County metro area
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 preschools62
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many child care centers and preschools are in the Athens-Clarke County, GA metro area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 39 child care centers and preschools in the Athens-Clarke County metro area. 8 of them (21%) are chain locations. The listings count day care centers and preschools. Official counts show 40 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in 2023, down 11.4% from 2019. Official counts also show 334 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Athens-Clarke County, GA metro area spend on child care and other personal services?
About $38.1M a year, or $443 per household. That is 24% below the U.S. average (an index of 76, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 39 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $978K per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 86,101 households in the Athens-Clarke County metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Athens-Clarke County, GA metro area compare with the U.S. for child care centers and preschools?
The Athens-Clarke County metro area has 4.5 child care centers and preschools per 10,000 households, 22% below the U.S. rate of 5.8. Spending per center is $978K, 2% below the U.S. figure of $1M. At the U.S. ratio of child care centers and preschools to household spending, the Athens-Clarke County metro area would have about 38, against 39 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,153 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. The official count fell 11.4% from 2019 to 2023, against +5.7% for the U.S.
How fast is the Athens-Clarke County, GA metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Athens-Clarke County metro area at 224,148 people in 2025, up 3.9% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 86,101 households. Median household income in the Athens-Clarke County metro area is $65,608, 19% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 39.0%, 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. The Athens-Clarke County metro area scores 62 for child care centers and preschools (upper middle), #99 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Athens-Clarke County metro area. 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 the Athens-Clarke County metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Athens-Clarke County metro area?
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 the Athens-Clarke County metro area. 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.