Child care · County · Missouri
Child care centers and preschools in Buchanan County, MO
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for child care centers and preschools in Buchanan County, MO, set against other counties and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 41 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,060 of 1,611 scored counties
#20 of 55 scored counties in Missouri
- Listings
- 13
- 1 chain location (8%)
- Official establishments
- 17
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $11.3M
- On child care and other personal services · $338 a household
- Spending per listing
- $870K
- 13% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 3.9
- 33% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 83,540
- −1.1% since 2020
See the child care centers and preschools around any address in Buchanan 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 Buchanan 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 Buchanan County comes to about $11.3M a year: $338 per household, 42% below the U.S. average. That works out to $870K per center, 13% below the U.S. figure of $1M.
Buchanan County has 13 child care centers and preschools on map listings as of September 2026. One of them (8%) is a chain location, against 12% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 3.9, 33% below the U.S. rate of 5.8.
In 2023, official counts showed 17 businesses with payroll in Buchanan County classed as child care services. That is one for every 1,967 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. Another 119 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
Population estimates put the population change in Buchanan County from 2020 to 2025 at −1.1%, against +3.1% for the U.S. Buchanan County scores 41 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for child care centers and preschools, ranking #1,060 of 1,611 scored counties and #20 of 55 scored counties in Missouri.
How Buchanan County compares
The same measures for Missouri 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 | Buchanan County | Missouri | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 3.9 | 5.9 | 5.8 |
| Spending per listing | $870K | $679K | $1M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,967 | 1,714 | 1,573 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | −2.2% | +5.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −1.1% | +1.9% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on child care and other personal services | $338 | $399 | $581 |
| Median household income | $62,158 | $70,702 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 41 | 29 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 15 → 17
- Employees, 2023
- 212
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $5.8M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 119Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 131 chain location
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 11The 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 Buchanan 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 Buchanan County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 83,540−1.1% since 2020
- Households
- 33,439
- Median age
- 40.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 66%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 408 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 205
- Median household income
- $62,158+19.7% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $82,732
- Median home value
- $166,300
- Jobs located here
- 45,678
- Daytime population
- 92,127Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Buchanan 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 Buchanan 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 Missouri
Every Missouri market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Missouri for child care centers and preschools, numbered among those based in Missouri, with Buchanan County marked.
Top counties in Missouri
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Warren County, MO | 75 | 6 | 4.3 | $981K | +9.2% | #167 of 1,611 |
| 2Lincoln County, MO | 67 | 13 | 5.7 | $748K | +11.4% | #351 of 1,611 |
| 3Platte County, MO | 65 | 28 | 6.4 | $839K | +6.7% | #405 of 1,611 |
| 4Cass County, MO | 64 | 25 | 5.8 | $782K | +7.1% | #440 of 1,611 |
| 5Jefferson County, MO | 63 | 38 | 4.3 | $971K | +2.7% | #458 of 1,611 |
| 6Clay County, MO | 63 | 52 | 5.1 | $901K | +4.3% | #464 of 1,611 |
| 7St. Charles County, MO | 63 | 100 | 6.2 | $900K | +4.9% | #465 of 1,611 |
| 8Camden County, MO | 61 | 7 | 3.9 | $984K | +2.9% | #520 of 1,611 |
| 9Taney County, MO | 59 | 7 | 3.1 | $1M | +1.7% | #572 of 1,611 |
| 10Franklin County, MO | 58 | 16 | 3.7 | $1M | +3.1% | #604 of 1,611 |
| 20Buchanan County, MO | 41 | 13 | 3.9 | $870K | −1.1% | #1,060 of 1,611 |
Other business types in Buchanan 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 preschools41
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many child care centers and preschools are in Buchanan County, MO?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 13 child care centers and preschools in Buchanan County. One of them (8%) is a chain location. The listings count day care centers and preschools. Official counts show 17 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in 2023. Official counts list 119 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Buchanan County, MO spend on child care and other personal services?
About $11.3M a year, or $338 per household. That is 42% below the U.S. average (an index of 58, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 13 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $870K per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 33,439 households in Buchanan County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Buchanan County, MO compare with the U.S. for child care centers and preschools?
Buchanan County has 3.9 child care centers and preschools per 10,000 households, 33% below the U.S. rate of 5.8. Spending per center is $870K, 13% below the U.S. figure of $1M. At the U.S. ratio of child care centers and preschools to household spending, Buchanan County would have about 11, against 13 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,967 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S.
How fast is Buchanan County, MO growing?
Population estimates put Buchanan County at 83,540 people in 2025, down 1.1% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 33,439 households. Median household income in Buchanan County is $62,158, 23% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 19.7%, 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. Buchanan County scores 41 for child care centers and preschools (lower middle), #1,060 of 1,611 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Buchanan 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 Buchanan County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Buchanan 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 Buchanan 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.