Child care · County · Minnesota
Child care centers and preschools in Nicollet County, MN
How Nicollet County, MN 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 27 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,389 of 1,611 scored counties
#39 of 44 scored counties in Minnesota
- Listings
- 10
- 1 chain location (10%)
- Official establishments
- 11
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $5.8M
- On child care and other personal services · $446 a household
- Spending per listing
- $580K
- 42% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 7.7
- 33% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 34,273
- −0.7% since 2020
See the child care centers and preschools around any address in Nicollet 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 Nicollet 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
For child care centers and preschools, Nicollet County has a Groundwork market score of 27 (lower middle): #1,389 of 1,611 scored counties and #39 of 44 scored counties in Minnesota. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
Map listings as of September 2026 show 10 child care centers and preschools in Nicollet County. One of them (10%) is a chain location, against 12% across the U.S. That comes to 7.7 for every 10,000 households, 33% above the U.S. rate of 5.8.
Households in Nicollet County spend about $5.8M a year on child care and other personal services, or $446 per household, 23% below the U.S. average. That works out to $580K per center, 42% below the U.S. figure of $1M.
In 2023, official counts showed 11 businesses with payroll in Nicollet County classed as child care services. That is one for every 1,182 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $97K has gone to businesses classed as child care services in Nicollet County. Population estimates put the population change in Nicollet County from 2020 to 2025 at −0.7%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How Nicollet County compares
The same measures for Minnesota 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 | Nicollet County | Minnesota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 7.7 | 6.0 | 5.8 |
| Spending per listing | $580K | $833K | $1M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,182 | 1,567 | 1,573 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +3.5% | +5.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −0.7% | +2.1% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on child care and other personal services | $446 | $500 | $581 |
| Median household income | $79,756 | $89,062 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 27 | 43 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 10 → 11
- Employees, 2023
- 173
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $3.9M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 56Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 101 chain location
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 6The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $97K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as child care services in Nicollet 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 Nicollet County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 34,273−0.7% since 2020
- Households
- 13,002
- Median age
- 38.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 72%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 448 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 77
- Median household income
- $79,756+18.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $112,374
- Median home value
- $270,300
- Jobs located here
- 15,748
- Daytime population
- 33,573Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Nicollet 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 Nicollet 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 Minnesota
Every Minnesota market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Minnesota for child care centers and preschools, numbered among those based in Minnesota, with Nicollet County marked.
Top counties in Minnesota
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Clay County, MN | 79 | 8 | 3.0 | $1.4M | +3.6% | #96 of 1,611 |
| 2Crow Wing County, MN | 78 | 6 | 2.0 | $1.9M | +4.3% | #107 of 1,611 |
| 3Wright County, MN | 75 | 27 | 5.0 | $1.1M | +11.1% | #161 of 1,611 |
| 4Otter Tail County, MN | 71 | 7 | 2.8 | $1.4M | +1.6% | #230 of 1,611 |
| 5Isanti County, MN | 70 | 7 | 4.3 | $996K | +7.3% | #264 of 1,611 |
| 6Becker County, MN | 67 | 5 | 3.5 | $1.1M | +0.9% | #336 of 1,611 |
| 7Winona County, MN | 67 | 7 | 3.5 | $1.1M | +1.8% | #338 of 1,611 |
| 8Sherburne County, MN | 66 | 19 | 5.3 | $1M | +6.8% | #368 of 1,611 |
| 9Washington County, MN | 66 | 70 | 6.6 | $960K | +6.9% | #372 of 1,611 |
| 10Douglas County, MN | 65 | 6 | 3.4 | $1.2M | +2.6% | #388 of 1,611 |
| 39Nicollet County, MN | 27 | 10 | 7.7 | $580K | −0.7% | #1,389 of 1,611 |
Other business types in Nicollet 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 preschools27
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many child care centers and preschools are in Nicollet County, MN?
There are 10 child care centers and preschools on map listings in Nicollet County as of September 2026. One of them (10%) is a chain location. The listings count day care centers and preschools. Official counts show 11 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in 2023. Official counts list 56 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Nicollet County, MN spend on child care and other personal services?
About $5.8M a year, or $446 per household. That is 23% below the U.S. average (an index of 77, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 10 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $580K per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 13,002 households in Nicollet County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Nicollet County, MN compare with the U.S. for child care centers and preschools?
Nicollet County has 7.7 child care centers and preschools per 10,000 households, 33% above the U.S. rate of 5.8. Spending per center is $580K, 42% below the U.S. figure of $1M. At the national ratio of child care centers and preschools to household spending, Nicollet County would have about 6, against 10 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,182 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S.
How fast is Nicollet County, MN growing?
Population estimates put Nicollet County at 34,273 people in 2025, down 0.7% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 13,002 households. The median household income in Nicollet County is $79,756 a year, in line with the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 18.3% 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. Nicollet County scores 27 for child care centers and preschools (lower middle), #1,389 of 1,611 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Nicollet 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 Nicollet County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Nicollet 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 Nicollet 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.