Child care · County · Montana
Child care centers and preschools in Carbon County, MT
How Carbon County, MT 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 47 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #912 of 1,611 scored counties
#7 of 12 scored counties in Montana
- Listings
- 5
- 1 chain location (20%)
- Official establishments
- 4
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $3M
- On child care and other personal services · $652 a household
- Spending per listing
- $608K
- 39% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 10.7
- 84% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 11,466
- +9.1% since 2020
See the child care centers and preschools around any address in Carbon 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 Carbon 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
Households in Carbon County spend about $3M a year on child care and other personal services, or $652 per household, 12% above the U.S. average. Spread across 5 child care centers and preschools, that is $608K per center, 39% below the U.S. figure of $1M.
Carbon 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 is 10.7 per 10,000 households, 84% above the U.S. rate of 5.8.
In 2023, official counts showed 4 businesses with payroll in Carbon County classed as child care services. That is one for every 1,166 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. Another 9 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
Population estimates show Carbon County grew 9.1% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). Carbon County scores 47 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for child care centers and preschools, ranking #912 of 1,611 scored counties and #7 of 12 scored counties in Montana.
How Carbon County compares
The same measures for Montana 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 | Carbon County | Montana | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 10.7 | 7.5 | 5.8 |
| Spending per listing | $608K | $807K | $1M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,166 | 940 | 1,573 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +5.9% | +5.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +9.1% | +5.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on child care and other personal services | $652 | $608 | $581 |
| Median household income | $80,261 | $72,509 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 47 | 39 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 3 → 4
- Employees, 2023
- 24
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $375K
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 9Businesses 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
- 0
- Amount
- $0
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as child care services in Carbon 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 Carbon County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 11,466+9.1% since 2020
- Households
- 4,664
- Median age
- 51.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 78%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.4
- Land area
- 2,048 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 5
- Median household income
- $80,261+36.7% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $104,457
- Median home value
- $420,800
- Jobs located here
- 3,093
- Daytime population
- 9,712Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Carbon 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 Carbon 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 Montana
Every Montana market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Montana for child care centers and preschools, numbered among those based in Montana, with Carbon County marked.
Top counties in Montana
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Park County, MT | 79 | 5 | 6.0 | $1M | +5.7% | #106 of 1,611 |
| 2Gallatin County, MT | 55 | 48 | 9.4 | $848K | +7.7% | #692 of 1,611 |
| 3Flathead County, MT | 54 | 33 | 7.5 | $834K | +10.1% | #726 of 1,611 |
| 4Ravalli County, MT | 53 | 15 | 8.0 | $693K | +9.4% | #758 of 1,611 |
| 5Yellowstone County, MT | 50 | 55 | 7.9 | $816K | +4.5% | #827 of 1,611 |
| 6Missoula County, MT | 49 | 41 | 7.8 | $817K | +4.4% | #848 of 1,611 |
| 7Carbon County, MT | 47 | 5 | 10.7 | $608K | +9.1% | #912 of 1,611 |
| 8Lewis and Clark County, MT | 45 | 34 | 10.9 | $588K | +5.8% | #967 of 1,611 |
| 9Cascade County, MT | 43 | 23 | 6.5 | $862K | +0.7% | #1,002 of 1,611 |
| 10Lake County, MT | 41 | 14 | 11.1 | $506K | +6.9% | #1,086 of 1,611 |
Other business types in Carbon 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 preschools47
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many child care centers and preschools are in Carbon County, MT?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 5 child care centers and preschools in Carbon County. One of them (20%) is a chain location. The listings count day care centers and preschools. Official counts show 4 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in 2023. Official counts list 9 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Carbon County, MT spend on child care and other personal services?
About $3M a year, or $652 per household. That is 12% above the U.S. average (an index of 112, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 5 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $608K per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 4,664 households in Carbon County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Carbon County, MT compare with the U.S. for child care centers and preschools?
Carbon County has 10.7 child care centers and preschools per 10,000 households, 84% above the U.S. rate of 5.8. Spending per center is $608K, 39% below the U.S. figure of $1M. At the U.S. ratio of child care centers and preschools to household spending, Carbon County would have about 3, against 5 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,166 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S.
How fast is Carbon County, MT growing?
Population estimates put Carbon County at 11,466 people in 2025, up 9.1% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 4,664 households. Median household income in Carbon County is $80,261, in line with the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 36.7%, 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. Carbon County scores 47 for child care centers and preschools (lower middle), #912 of 1,611 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Carbon 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 Carbon County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Carbon 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 Carbon 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.