Child care · Small-town market · Nebraska
Child care centers and preschools in the Norfolk, NE area
How the Norfolk, NE area compares with other small-town markets 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 #399 of 454 scored small-town markets
#8 of 9 scored small-town markets based in Nebraska
- Listings
- 15
- 2 chain locations (13%)
- Official establishments
- 27
- +30.0% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $7.2M
- On child care and other personal services · $370 a household
- Spending per listing
- $483K
- 52% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 7.6
- 31% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 49,228
- +1.1% since 2020
See the child care centers and preschools around any address in the Norfolk area
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 the Norfolk area. 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
The Groundwork market score for child care centers and preschools in the Norfolk area is 27 (lower middle), #399 of 454 scored small-town markets and #8 of 9 scored small-town markets based in Nebraska. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.
Households in the Norfolk area spend about $7.2M a year on child care and other personal services, or $370 per household, 36% below the U.S. average. Spread across 15 child care centers and preschools, that is $483K per center, 52% below the U.S. figure of $1M.
The Norfolk area has 15 child care centers and preschools on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 2 are chain locations, or 13%, against 12% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 7.6, 31% above the U.S. rate of 5.8.
Official counts show 27 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in the Norfolk area in 2023, up 30.0% from 2019. That is one for every 727 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. Population estimates show the Norfolk area grew 1.1% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Norfolk area compares
The same measures for Nebraska 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 | Norfolk area | Nebraska | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 7.6 | 7.4 | 5.8 |
| Spending per listing | $483K | $566K | $1M |
| Households per official establishment | 727 | 1,080 | 1,573 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +30.0% | +5.1% | +5.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +1.1% | +2.8% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on child care and other personal services | $370 | $421 | $581 |
| Median household income | $65,968 | $76,475 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 27 | 20 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 27+30.0% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 181
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $3.2M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 167Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 152 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 7The 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 the Norfolk area, 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 the Norfolk area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 49,228+1.1% since 2020
- Households
- 19,617
- Median age
- 38.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 69%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 1,574 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 31
- Median household income
- $65,968+18.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $88,357
- Median home value
- $204,700
- Jobs located here
- 24,757
- Daytime population
- 48,024Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Norfolk area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. 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 the Norfolk area. 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 Nebraska
Every Nebraska market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Nebraska for child care centers and preschools, numbered among those based in Nebraska, with the Norfolk area marked.
Top small-town markets in Nebraska
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Beatrice, NE | 47 | 5 | 5.4 | $654K | +0.2% | #257 of 454 |
| 2Lexington, NE | 47 | 6 | 6.0 | $616K | +1.1% | #259 of 454 |
| 3Hastings, NE | 42 | 7 | 4.1 | $909K | −0.2% | #299 of 454 |
| 4Kearney, NE | 41 | 14 | 6.1 | $645K | +1.9% | #309 of 454 |
| 5Columbus, NE | 41 | 14 | 8.1 | $456K | +3.8% | #312 of 454 |
| 6North Platte, NE | 34 | 8 | 5.3 | $643K | −3.6% | #356 of 454 |
| 7Fremont, NE | 31 | 15 | 9.9 | $364K | +2.6% | #378 of 454 |
| 8Norfolk, NE | 27 | 15 | 7.6 | $483K | +1.1% | #399 of 454 |
| 9Scottsbluff, NE | 20 | 12 | 7.8 | $421K | −1.2% | #422 of 454 |
Other business types in the Norfolk area
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 the Norfolk, NE area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 15 child care centers and preschools in the Norfolk area. 2 of them (13%) are chain locations. The listings count day care centers and preschools. Official counts show 27 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in 2023, up 30.0% from 2019. Official counts list 167 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Norfolk, NE area spend on child care and other personal services?
About $7.2M a year, or $370 per household. That is 36% below the U.S. average (an index of 64, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 15 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $483K per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 19,617 households in the Norfolk area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Norfolk, NE area compare with the U.S. for child care centers and preschools?
The Norfolk area has 7.6 child care centers and preschools per 10,000 households, 31% above the U.S. rate of 5.8. Spending per center is $483K, 52% below the U.S. figure of $1M. At the U.S. ratio of child care centers and preschools to household spending, the Norfolk area would have about 7, against 15 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 727 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. The official count rose 30.0% from 2019 to 2023, against +5.7% for the U.S.
How fast is the Norfolk, NE area growing?
Population estimates put the Norfolk area at 49,228 people in 2025, up 1.1% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 19,617 households. Median household income in the Norfolk area is $65,968, 18% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 18.2%, 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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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. The Norfolk area scores 27 for child care centers and preschools (lower middle), #399 of 454 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Norfolk area. 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 the Norfolk area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Norfolk area?
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 the Norfolk area. 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.