Child care · County · Kansas
Child care centers and preschools in Douglas County, KS
How Douglas County, KS 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 60 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #534 of 1,611 scored counties
#3 of 28 scored counties in Kansas
- Listings
- 19
- 3 chain locations (16%)
- Official establishments
- 28
- 0.0% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $21.5M
- On child care and other personal services · $427 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.1M
- 13% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 3.8
- 34% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 120,920
- +1.8% since 2020
See the child care centers and preschools around any address in Douglas 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 Douglas 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
As of September 2026, map listings count 19 child care centers and preschools in Douglas County. Of those, 3 are chain locations, or 16%, against 12% across the U.S. That is 3.8 per 10,000 households, 34% below the U.S. rate of 5.8.
At $427 per household (27% below the U.S. average), households in Douglas County spend about $21.5M a year on child care and other personal services. Spread across 19 child care centers and preschools, that is $1.1M per center, 13% above the U.S. figure of $1M.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as child care services in Douglas County was 28 in 2023, unchanged from 2019. That is one for every 1,800 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. Official counts list 156 one-person businesses without payroll.
Population estimates put the population change in Douglas County from 2020 to 2025 at +1.8%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). For child care centers and preschools, Douglas County has a Groundwork market score of 60 (upper middle): #534 of 1,611 scored counties and #3 of 28 scored counties in Kansas.
How Douglas County compares
The same measures for Kansas 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 | Douglas County | Kansas | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 3.8 | 6.1 | 5.8 |
| Spending per listing | $1.1M | $679K | $1M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,800 | 2,014 | 1,573 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | 0.0% | +3.4% | +5.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +1.8% | +1.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on child care and other personal services | $427 | $418 | $581 |
| Median household income | $69,746 | $74,275 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 60 | 37 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 28 → 280.0% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 461
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $9.3M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 156Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 193 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 22The 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 Douglas 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 Douglas County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 120,920+1.8% since 2020
- Households
- 50,406
- Median age
- 35.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 50%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 456 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 264
- Median household income
- $69,746+17.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $96,109
- Median home value
- $309,400
- Jobs located here
- 51,342
- Daytime population
- 115,968Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Douglas 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 Douglas 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 Kansas
Every Kansas market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Kansas for child care centers and preschools, numbered among those based in Kansas, with Douglas County marked.
Top counties in Kansas
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Butler County, KS | 76 | 6 | 2.4 | $1.8M | +3.1% | #138 of 1,611 |
| 2Johnson County, KS | 62 | 176 | 7.1 | $869K | +4.2% | #491 of 1,611 |
| 3Douglas County, KS | 60 | 19 | 3.8 | $1.1M | +1.8% | #534 of 1,611 |
| 4Miami County, KS | 59 | 8 | 5.8 | $804K | +5.9% | #584 of 1,611 |
| 5Pottawatomie County, KS | 54 | 5 | 5.3 | $878K | +6.9% | #721 of 1,611 |
| 6Sedgwick County, KS | 52 | 112 | 5.4 | $709K | +2.6% | #779 of 1,611 |
| 7Reno County, KS | 50 | 9 | 3.5 | $893K | −0.6% | #820 of 1,611 |
| 8Riley County, KS | 50 | 12 | 4.3 | $854K | +0.8% | #825 of 1,611 |
| 9Leavenworth County, KS | 47 | 23 | 7.6 | $625K | +3.2% | #910 of 1,611 |
| 10Cowley County, KS | 46 | 5 | 3.7 | $849K | −0.4% | #922 of 1,611 |
Other business types in Douglas 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 preschools60
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many child care centers and preschools are in Douglas County, KS?
Douglas County has 19 child care centers and preschools on map listings as of September 2026. 3 of them (16%) are chain locations. The listings count day care centers and preschools. Official counts show 28 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in 2023, unchanged from 2019. Official counts also show 156 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Douglas County, KS spend on child care and other personal services?
About $21.5M a year, or $427 per household. That is 27% below the U.S. average (an index of 73, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 19 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $1.1M per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 50,406 households in Douglas County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Douglas County, KS compare with the U.S. for child care centers and preschools?
Douglas County has 3.8 child care centers and preschools per 10,000 households, 34% below the U.S. rate of 5.8. Spending per center is $1.1M, 13% above the U.S. figure of $1M. At the national ratio of child care centers and preschools to household spending, Douglas County would have about 22, against 19 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,800 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. The official count held level from 2019 to 2023, against +5.7% for the U.S.
How fast is Douglas County, KS growing?
Population estimates put Douglas County at 120,920 people in 2025, up 1.8% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 50,406 households. The median household income in Douglas County is $69,746 a year, 14% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 17.4% 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. Douglas County scores 60 for child care centers and preschools (upper middle), #534 of 1,611 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Douglas 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 Douglas County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Douglas 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 Douglas 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.