Child care · Metro area · Massachusetts
Child care centers and preschools in the Worcester, MA metro area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for child care centers and preschools in the Worcester, MA metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 58 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #140 of 387 scored metro areas
#4 of 6 scored metro areas based in Massachusetts
- Listings
- 240
- 18 chain locations (8%)
- Official establishments
- 232
- +19.6% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $238.4M
- On child care and other personal services · $710 a household
- Spending per listing
- $993K
- In line with the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 7.1
- 22% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 888,502
- +3.7% since 2020
See the child care centers and preschools around any address in the Worcester 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 Worcester 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
Map listings as of September 2026 show 240 child care centers and preschools in the Worcester metro area. 18 of them (8%) are chain locations, against 12% across the U.S. That comes to 7.1 for every 10,000 households, 22% above the U.S. rate of 5.8.
Household spending on child care and other personal services in the Worcester metro area comes to about $238.4M a year: $710 per household, 22% above the U.S. average. That works out to $993K per center, in line with the U.S. figure of $1M.
Official counts show 232 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in the Worcester metro area in 2023, up 19.6% from 2019. That is one for every 1,448 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. Official counts also show 1,078 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 23 SBA-backed loans worth $13.5M have gone to businesses classed as child care services in the Worcester metro area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Worcester metro area grew 3.7%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). For child care centers and preschools, the Worcester metro area has a Groundwork market score of 58 (upper middle): #140 of 387 scored metro areas and #4 of 6 scored metro areas based in Massachusetts.
How the Worcester metro area compares
The same measures for Massachusetts 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 | Worcester metro area | Massachusetts | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 7.1 | 7.4 | 5.8 |
| Spending per listing | $993K | $1.1M | $1M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,448 | 1,206 | 1,573 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +19.6% | +3.2% | +5.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +3.7% | +2.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on child care and other personal services | $710 | $795 | $581 |
| Median household income | $95,939 | $103,960 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 58 | 58 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 232+19.6% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 3,395
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $110.4M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 1,078Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 24018 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 238The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 23
- Amount
- $13.5M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as child care services in the Worcester 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 Worcester metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 888,502+3.7% since 2020
- Households
- 335,826
- Median age
- 41.3
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 66%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 1,511 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 574
- Median household income
- $95,939
- Average household income
- $124,653
- Median home value
- $423,700
- Jobs located here
- 355,505
- Daytime population
- 797,239Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Worcester 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 Worcester 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 Massachusetts
Every Massachusetts market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Massachusetts for child care centers and preschools, numbered among those based in Massachusetts (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Worcester metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Massachusetts
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Barnstable Town, MA | 75 | 53 | 5.0 | $1.4M | +2.4% | #33 of 387 |
| 2Pittsfield, MA | 65 | 29 | 5.0 | $1.1M | −1.2% | #83 of 387 |
| 3Amherst Town-Northampton, MA | 65 | 37 | 6.0 | $1.1M | +10.4% | #84 of 387 |
| 4Worcester, MA | 58 | 240 | 7.1 | $993K | +3.7% | #140 of 387 |
| 5Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | 57 | 1,528 | 7.9 | $1.1M | +2.3% | #146 of 387 |
| Providence-Warwick, RI-MA | 56 | 414 | 6.1 | $1M | +2.1% | #154 of 387 |
| 6Springfield, MA | 52 | 100 | 5.4 | $1M | +0.2% | #180 of 387 |
Other business types in the Worcester 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 preschools58
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many child care centers and preschools are in the Worcester, MA metro area?
There are 240 child care centers and preschools on map listings in the Worcester metro area as of September 2026. 18 of them (8%) are chain locations. The listings count day care centers and preschools. Official counts show 232 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in 2023, up 19.6% from 2019. Another 1,078 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Worcester, MA metro area spend on child care and other personal services?
About $238.4M a year, or $710 per household. That is 22% above the U.S. average (an index of 122, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 240 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $993K per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 335,826 households in the Worcester metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Worcester, MA metro area compare with the U.S. for child care centers and preschools?
The Worcester metro area has 7.1 child care centers and preschools per 10,000 households, 22% above the U.S. rate of 5.8. Spending per center is $993K, in line with the U.S. figure of $1M. At the national ratio of child care centers and preschools to household spending, the Worcester metro area would have about 238, against 240 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,448 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. The official count rose 19.6% from 2019 to 2023, against +5.7% for the U.S.
How fast is the Worcester, MA metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Worcester metro area at 888,502 people in 2025, up 3.7% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 335,826 households. The median household income in the Worcester metro area is $95,939 a year, 19% above 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 Worcester metro area scores 58 for child care centers and preschools (upper middle), #140 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 Worcester 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 Worcester metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Worcester 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 Worcester 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.