Child care · County · Indiana
Child care centers and preschools in Howard County, IN
How Howard County, IN compares with other counties and the U.S. for child care centers and preschools: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 53 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #737 of 1,611 scored counties
#15 of 59 scored counties in Indiana
- Listings
- 9
- 1 chain location (11%)
- Official establishments
- 20
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $11.9M
- On child care and other personal services · $335 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.3M
- 32% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 2.5
- 57% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 83,904
- +0.4% since 2020
See the child care centers and preschools around any address in Howard 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 Howard 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
Households in Howard County spend about $11.9M a year on child care and other personal services, or $335 per household, 42% below the U.S. average. That is about $1.3M of household spending for each center on map listings, 32% above the U.S. figure of $1M.
There are 9 child care centers and preschools on map listings in Howard County as of September 2026. One of them (11%) is a chain location, against 12% across the U.S. That is 2.5 per 10,000 households, 57% below the U.S. rate of 5.8.
In 2023, official counts showed 20 businesses with payroll in Howard County classed as child care services. That is one for every 1,780 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. Official counts list 104 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $1.5M have gone to businesses classed as child care services in Howard County.
Population estimates put the population change in Howard County from 2020 to 2025 at +0.4%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for child care centers and preschools in Howard County is 53 (upper middle), #737 of 1,611 scored counties and #15 of 59 scored counties in Indiana.
How Howard County compares
The same measures for Indiana 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 | Howard County | Indiana | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 2.5 | 5.9 | 5.8 |
| Spending per listing | $1.3M | $668K | $1M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,780 | 1,893 | 1,573 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +2.1% | +5.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +0.4% | +2.7% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on child care and other personal services | $335 | $396 | $581 |
| Median household income | $64,027 | $71,957 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 53 | 34 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 16 → 20
- Employees, 2023
- 190
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $4.1M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 104Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 91 chain location
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 12The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 2
- Amount
- $1.5M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as child care services in Howard 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 Howard County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 83,904+0.4% since 2020
- Households
- 35,593
- Median age
- 40.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 71%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 293 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 286
- Median household income
- $64,027+22.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $83,020
- Median home value
- $165,000
- Jobs located here
- 35,309
- Daytime population
- 82,151Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Howard 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 Howard 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 Indiana
Every Indiana market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Indiana for child care centers and preschools, numbered among those based in Indiana, with Howard County marked.
Top counties in Indiana
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Boone County, IN | 73 | 17 | 5.9 | $1.1M | +13.5% | #202 of 1,611 |
| 2Clark County, IN | 69 | 18 | 3.5 | $1.1M | +7.5% | #292 of 1,611 |
| 3Hancock County, IN | 69 | 20 | 6.0 | $832K | +13.5% | #302 of 1,611 |
| 4Morgan County, IN | 65 | 11 | 3.9 | $1.1M | +4.4% | #396 of 1,611 |
| 5Hamilton County, IN | 64 | 104 | 7.6 | $894K | +10.9% | #436 of 1,611 |
| 6Johnson County, IN | 64 | 39 | 6.2 | $766K | +7.4% | #441 of 1,611 |
| 7Warrick County, IN | 63 | 11 | 4.4 | $1.1M | +4.4% | #452 of 1,611 |
| 8Hendricks County, IN | 63 | 48 | 7.2 | $736K | +10.2% | #469 of 1,611 |
| 9Porter County, IN | 60 | 39 | 5.7 | $818K | +1.6% | #557 of 1,611 |
| 10Dubois County, IN | 59 | 8 | 4.6 | $903K | +0.9% | #577 of 1,611 |
| 15Howard County, IN | 53 | 9 | 2.5 | $1.3M | +0.4% | #737 of 1,611 |
Other business types in Howard 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 preschools53
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many child care centers and preschools are in Howard County, IN?
As of September 2026, map listings count 9 child care centers and preschools in Howard County. One of them (11%) is a chain location. The listings count day care centers and preschools. Official counts show 20 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in 2023. Official counts also show 104 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Howard County, IN spend on child care and other personal services?
About $11.9M a year, or $335 per household. That is 42% below the U.S. average (an index of 58, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 9 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $1.3M per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 35,593 households in Howard County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Howard County, IN compare with the U.S. for child care centers and preschools?
Howard County has 2.5 child care centers and preschools per 10,000 households, 57% below the U.S. rate of 5.8. Spending per center is $1.3M, 32% above the U.S. figure of $1M. At the U.S. ratio of child care centers and preschools to household spending, Howard County would have about 12, against 9 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,780 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S.
How fast is Howard County, IN growing?
Population estimates put Howard County at 83,904 people in 2025, up 0.4% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 35,593 households. Median household income in Howard County is $64,027, 21% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 22.3%, 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. Howard County scores 53 for child care centers and preschools (upper middle), #737 of 1,611 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Howard 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 Howard County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Howard 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 Howard 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.