Child care · County · Missouri
Child care centers and preschools in Ray County, MO
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for child care centers and preschools in Ray County, MO, set against other counties and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 35 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,214 of 1,611 scored counties
#27 of 55 scored counties in Missouri
- Listings
- 5
- 1 chain location (20%)
- Official establishments
- n/a
- Fewer than 3, or not published
- Household spending a year
- $3.4M
- On child care and other personal services · $377 a household
- Spending per listing
- $688K
- 31% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 5.5
- 5% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 23,398
- +1.1% since 2020
See the child care centers and preschools around any address in Ray 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 Ray 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, Ray County has a Groundwork market score of 35 (lower middle): #1,214 of 1,611 scored counties and #27 of 55 scored counties in Missouri. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
Households in Ray County spend about $3.4M a year on child care and other personal services, or $377 per household, 35% below the U.S. average. That is about $688K of household spending for each center on map listings, 31% below the U.S. figure of $1M.
Ray County has 5 child care centers and preschools on map listings as of September 2026. One of them (20%) is a chain location, against 12% across the U.S. That comes to 5.5 for every 10,000 households, 5% below the U.S. rate of 5.8.
Official counts don’t publish a figure for child care services in Ray County, since they leave out counts under 3. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $161K have gone to businesses classed as child care services in Ray County. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Ray County grew 1.1%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How Ray 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 | Ray County | Missouri | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 5.5 | 5.9 | 5.8 |
| Spending per listing | $688K | $679K | $1M |
| Households per official establishment | n/a | 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 | $377 | $399 | $581 |
| Median household income | $74,573 | $70,702 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 35 | 29 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- n/a
- Employees, 2023
- n/a
- Annual payroll, 2023
- n/a
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 38Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 51 chain location
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 3The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 2
- Amount
- $161K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as child care services in Ray 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 Ray County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 23,398+1.1% since 2020
- Households
- 9,116
- Median age
- 42.3
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 77%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 569 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 41
- Median household income
- $74,573+20.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $92,338
- Median home value
- $198,800
- Jobs located here
- 4,281
- Daytime population
- 16,549Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Ray 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 Ray 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 Ray 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 |
| 27Ray County, MO | 35 | 5 | 5.5 | $688K | +1.1% | #1,214 of 1,611 |
Other business types in Ray 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 preschools35
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many child care centers and preschools are in Ray County, MO?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 5 child care centers and preschools in Ray County. One of them (20%) is a chain location. The listings count day care centers and preschools. No official count is published for child care services in Ray County: counts under 3 are left out. Official counts also show 38 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Ray County, MO spend on child care and other personal services?
About $3.4M a year, or $377 per household. That is 35% below the U.S. average (an index of 65, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 5 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $688K per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 9,116 households in Ray County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Ray County, MO compare with the U.S. for child care centers and preschools?
Ray County has 5.5 child care centers and preschools per 10,000 households, 5% below the U.S. rate of 5.8. Spending per center is $688K, 31% below the U.S. figure of $1M. At the U.S. ratio of child care centers and preschools to household spending, Ray County would have about 3, against 5 on map listings.
How fast is Ray County, MO growing?
Population estimates put Ray County at 23,398 people in 2025, up 1.1% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 9,116 households. Median household income in Ray County is $74,573, 8% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 20.4%, 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. Ray County scores 35 for child care centers and preschools (lower middle), #1,214 of 1,611 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Ray 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 Ray County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Ray 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 Ray 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.