Child care · County · Iowa
Child care centers and preschools in Palo Alto County, IA
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for child care centers and preschools in Palo Alto County, IA, set against other counties and the U.S.
Groundwork market score
Not scored
Counties under 10,000 people aren’t scored, since a few businesses can swing their figures.
- Listings
- 2
- 0 chain locations (0%)
- Official establishments
- 3
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $1.4M
- On child care and other personal services · $366 a household
- Spending per listing
- $692K
- Too few listings to compare
- Listings per 10k households
- 5.3
- Too few listings to compare
- Population, 2025
- 8,899
- −1.0% since 2020
See the child care centers and preschools around any address in Palo Alto 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 Palo Alto 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
Household spending on child care and other personal services in Palo Alto County comes to about $1.4M a year: $366 per household, 37% below the U.S. average. That works out to $692K per center.
There are 2 child care centers and preschools on map listings in Palo Alto County as of September 2026. That is 5.3 per 10,000 households.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as child care services in Palo Alto County was 3 in 2023. That is one for every 1,261 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. Another 29 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Palo Alto County declined 1.0%, against +3.1% for the U.S. Counties under 10,000 people aren’t given a market score, since a few businesses can swing their figures.
How Palo Alto County compares
The same measures for Iowa 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 | Palo Alto County | Iowa | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 5.3 | 5.8 | 5.8 |
| Spending per listing | $692K | $700K | $1M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,261 | 1,470 | 1,573 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +5.8% | +5.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −1.0% | +1.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on child care and other personal services | $366 | $406 | $581 |
| Median household income | $72,781 | $75,059 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | Not scored | 24 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 3 → 3
- Employees, 2023
- 22
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $254K
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 29Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 20 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 1The 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 Palo Alto 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 Palo Alto County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 8,899−1.0% since 2020
- Households
- 3,782
- Median age
- 41.8
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 77%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 564 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 16
- Median household income
- $72,781
- Average household income
- $89,684
- Median home value
- $123,200
- Jobs located here
- 3,528
- Daytime population
- 8,293Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Palo Alto 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 Palo Alto 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 Iowa
Every Iowa market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Iowa for child care centers and preschools, numbered among those based in Iowa, with Palo Alto County marked.
Top counties in Iowa
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Warren County, IA | 63 | 11 | 5.3 | $907K | +9.0% | #463 of 1,611 |
| 2Dallas County, IA | 61 | 26 | 6.1 | $958K | +17.8% | #523 of 1,611 |
| 3Cerro Gordo County, IA | 54 | 5 | 2.6 | $1.4M | −1.5% | #702 of 1,611 |
| 4Polk County, IA | 54 | 114 | 5.6 | $833K | +4.8% | #727 of 1,611 |
| 5Dickinson County, IA | 52 | 6 | 6.8 | $636K | +1.7% | #783 of 1,611 |
| 6Scott County, IA | 51 | 47 | 6.4 | $678K | +0.4% | #806 of 1,611 |
| 7Marshall County, IA | 49 | 6 | 3.9 | $891K | −0.5% | #844 of 1,611 |
| 8Benton County, IA | 48 | 5 | 4.9 | $901K | +1.8% | #871 of 1,611 |
| 9Marion County, IA | 47 | 9 | 6.8 | $610K | +2.3% | #911 of 1,611 |
| 10Pottawattamie County, IA | 43 | 15 | 4.0 | $960K | −0.7% | #998 of 1,611 |
| Palo Alto County, IA | Not scored | 2 | 5.3 | $692K | −1.0% |
Other business types in Palo Alto County
None has a Groundwork market score here. Counties under 10,000 people aren’t scored, since a few businesses can swing their figures.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
- Child care and preschools
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many child care centers and preschools are in Palo Alto County, IA?
As of September 2026, map listings count 2 child care centers and preschools in Palo Alto County. The listings count day care centers and preschools. Official counts show 3 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in 2023. Official counts list 29 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Palo Alto County, IA spend on child care and other personal services?
About $1.4M a year, or $366 per household. That is 37% below the U.S. average (an index of 63, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 2 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $692K per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 3,782 households in Palo Alto County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Palo Alto County, IA compare with the U.S. for child care centers and preschools?
Palo Alto County has 2 child care centers and preschools on map listings, too few for a steady comparison with the U.S. rate. At the U.S. ratio of child care centers and preschools to household spending, Palo Alto County would have about 1, against 2 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,261 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S.
How fast is Palo Alto County, IA growing?
Population estimates put Palo Alto County at 8,899 people in 2025, down 1.0% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 3,782 households. Median household income in Palo Alto County is $72,781, 10% below the U.S. median of $80,734.
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 score leaves out counties under 10,000 people, where a handful of businesses would swing it.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Palo Alto 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 Palo Alto County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Palo Alto 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 Palo Alto 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.