Groundwork

Child care · County · Illinois

Child care centers and preschools in Union County, IL

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for child care centers and preschools in Union County, IL, set against other counties and the U.S.

Groundwork market score

Not scored

The score needs at least 5 listings; this market has 3.

Listings
3
0 chain locations (0%)
Official establishments
n/a
Fewer than 3, or not published
Household spending a year
$2.2M
On child care and other personal services · $325 a household
Spending per listing
$744K
26% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
4.4
24% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
16,656
−3.7% since 2020

See the child care centers and preschools around any address in Union 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 Union 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

Households in Union County spend about $2.2M a year on child care and other personal services, or $325 per household, 44% below the U.S. average. Spread across 3 child care centers and preschools, that is $744K per center, 26% below the U.S. figure of $1M.

There are 3 child care centers and preschools on map listings in Union County as of September 2026. That comes to 4.4 for every 10,000 households, 24% below the U.S. rate of 5.8.

Official counts don’t publish a figure for child care services in Union County, since they leave out counts under 3. Official counts list 21 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $621K has gone to businesses classed as child care services in Union County.

Population estimates put the population change in Union County from 2020 to 2025 at −3.7%, against +3.1% for the U.S. With 3 child care centers and preschools on map listings, Union County isn’t given a market score: the score needs at least 5, since one listing more or less would swing it.

How Union County compares

The same measures for Illinois 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 Union County, IL compared with Illinois and the U.S.
MeasureUnion CountyIllinoisU.S.
Listings per 10k households4.45.25.8
Spending per listing$744K$946K$1M
Households per official establishmentn/a1,6051,573
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+4.3%+5.7%
Population growth, 2020–2025−3.7%−0.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on child care and other personal services$325$489$581
Median household income$55,728$83,390$80,734
Groundwork market scoreNot scored45

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
n/a
Employees, 2023
n/a
Annual payroll, 2023
n/a
One-person businesses, 2023
21Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
30 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
2The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
1
Amount
$621K

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as child care services in Union 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 Union County

Population, 2025 estimate
16,656−3.7% since 2020
Households
6,868
Median age
43.9
Homes lived in by their owners
77%
Vehicles per household
1.8
Land area
413 sq. mi.
People per square mile
41
Median household income
$55,728+10.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$75,826
Median home value
$131,700
Jobs located here
5,222
Daytime population
15,422Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Union 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 Union 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 Illinois

Every Illinois market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Illinois for child care centers and preschools, numbered among those based in Illinois, with Union County marked.

Top counties in Illinois

Counties in Illinois ranked for child care centers and preschools by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Grundy County, IL7783.9$1.3M+2.9%#130 of 1,611
2Boone County, IL7273.6$1.3M+0.4%#212 of 1,611
3Kane County, IL681005.4$1.1M+1.8%#316 of 1,611
4McHenry County, IL66595.0$1.1M+2.5%#363 of 1,611
5Will County, IL641496.1$970K+2.2%#432 of 1,611
6McLean County, IL61314.4$1M+0.1%#513 of 1,611
7Kendall County, IL60378.2$710K+9.9%#560 of 1,611
8Sangamon County, IL59303.5$1.2M−1.0%#566 of 1,611
9Madison County, IL59433.9$1.1M−1.0%#568 of 1,611
10LaSalle County, IL59184.0$986K−1.5%#574 of 1,611
Union County, ILNot scored34.4$744K−3.7%

Other business types in Union 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 Union County, IL?

As of September 2026, map listings count 3 child care centers and preschools in Union County. The listings count day care centers and preschools. No official count is published for child care services in Union County: counts under 3 are left out. Official counts also show 21 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Union County, IL spend on child care and other personal services?

About $2.2M a year, or $325 per household. That is 44% below the U.S. average (an index of 56, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 3 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $744K per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 6,868 households in Union County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Union County, IL compare with the U.S. for child care centers and preschools?

Union County has 4.4 child care centers and preschools per 10,000 households, 24% below the U.S. rate of 5.8. Spending per center is $744K, 26% below the U.S. figure of $1M. At the U.S. ratio of child care centers and preschools to household spending, Union County would have about 2, against 3 on map listings.

How fast is Union County, IL growing?

Population estimates put Union County at 16,656 people in 2025, down 3.7% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 6,868 households. Median household income in Union County is $55,728, 31% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 10.1%, 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. Union County has no market score for child care centers and preschools: the score needs at least 5 on map listings, and it has 3.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Union 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 Union County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Union 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 Union 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.