Groundwork

Child care · County · Missouri

Child care centers and preschools in Howell County, MO

The child care centers and preschools in Howell County, MO, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 23 out of 100: Low

Ranked #1,444 of 1,611 scored counties
#37 of 55 scored counties in Missouri

Listings
10
1 chain location (10%)
Official establishments
11
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$4.6M
On child care and other personal services · $286 a household
Spending per listing
$456K
54% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
6.3
9% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
40,798
+2.5% since 2020

See the child care centers and preschools around any address in Howell 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 Howell County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

Howell County scores 23 (low) on the Groundwork market score for child care centers and preschools, ranking #1,444 of 1,611 scored counties and #37 of 55 scored counties in Missouri. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.

As of September 2026, map listings count 10 child care centers and preschools in Howell County. One of them (10%) is a chain location, against 12% across the U.S. That comes to 6.3 for every 10,000 households, 9% above the U.S. rate of 5.8.

Households in Howell County spend about $4.6M a year on child care and other personal services, or $286 per household, 51% below the U.S. average. Spread across 10 child care centers and preschools, that is $456K per center, 54% below the U.S. figure of $1M.

Official counts show 11 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in Howell County in 2023. That is one for every 1,451 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. Population estimates show Howell County grew 2.5% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How Howell 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.

Child care and preschools in Howell County, MO compared with Missouri and the U.S.
MeasureHowell CountyMissouriU.S.
Listings per 10k households6.35.95.8
Spending per listing$456K$679K$1M
Households per official establishment1,4511,7141,573
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a−2.2%+5.7%
Population growth, 2020–2025+2.5%+1.9%+3.1%
Spending per household on child care and other personal services$286$399$581
Median household income$50,993$70,702$80,734
Groundwork market score2329

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
8 → 11
Employees, 2023
107
Annual payroll, 2023
$2.4M
One-person businesses, 2023
64Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
101 chain location
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
5The 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 Howell 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 Howell County

Population, 2025 estimate
40,798+2.5% since 2020
Households
15,965
Median age
41.7
Homes lived in by their owners
70%
Vehicles per household
2.0
Land area
927 sq. mi.
People per square mile
44
Median household income
$50,993+32.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$66,539
Median home value
$173,000
Jobs located here
15,317
Daytime population
40,659Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Howell 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 Howell County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Child 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 Howell County marked.

Top counties in Missouri

Counties in Missouri ranked for child care centers and preschools by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Warren County, MO7564.3$981K+9.2%#167 of 1,611
2Lincoln County, MO67135.7$748K+11.4%#351 of 1,611
3Platte County, MO65286.4$839K+6.7%#405 of 1,611
4Cass County, MO64255.8$782K+7.1%#440 of 1,611
5Jefferson County, MO63384.3$971K+2.7%#458 of 1,611
6Clay County, MO63525.1$901K+4.3%#464 of 1,611
7St. Charles County, MO631006.2$900K+4.9%#465 of 1,611
8Camden County, MO6173.9$984K+2.9%#520 of 1,611
9Taney County, MO5973.1$1M+1.7%#572 of 1,611
10Franklin County, MO58163.7$1M+3.1%#604 of 1,611
37Howell County, MO23106.3$456K+2.5%#1,444 of 1,611

Other business types in Howell County

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many child care centers and preschools are in Howell County, MO?

Howell County has 10 child care centers and preschools on map listings 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 also show 64 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Howell County, MO spend on child care and other personal services?

About $4.6M a year, or $286 per household. That is 51% below the U.S. average (an index of 49, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 10 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $456K per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 15,965 households in Howell County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Howell County, MO compare with the U.S. for child care centers and preschools?

Howell County has 6.3 child care centers and preschools per 10,000 households, 9% above the U.S. rate of 5.8. Spending per center is $456K, 54% below the U.S. figure of $1M. At the national ratio of child care centers and preschools to household spending, Howell County would have about 5, against 10 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,451 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S.

How fast is Howell County, MO growing?

Population estimates put Howell County at 40,798 people in 2025, up 2.5% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 15,965 households. The median household income in Howell County is $50,993 a year, 37% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 32.9% 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. Howell County scores 23 for child care centers and preschools (low), #1,444 of 1,611 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Howell 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 Howell County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Howell 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 Howell 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.