Market rankings · New Jersey
Child care centers and preschools in New Jersey
Markets across New Jersey ranked by the Groundwork market score for child care centers and preschools, with competitor counts and household spending for each.
- Listings
- 2,336
- 382 chain locations (16%)
- Official establishments
- 2,466
- +0.4% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $2.8B
- On child care and other personal services
- Listings per 10k households
- 6.7
- 16% above the U.S.
- Spending per listing
- $1.2M
- 18% above the U.S.
- Rank among states
- #8 of 51
- Market score 67 · Upper middle
A site report maps the child care centers and preschools on map listings around any address in New Jersey by name and distance, and the spending within reach.
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
As of September 2026, map listings count 2,336 child care centers and preschools in New Jersey. 382 of them (16%) are chain locations, against 12% across the U.S. That comes to 6.7 for every 10,000 households, 16% above the U.S. rate of 5.8.
Household spending on child care and other personal services in New Jersey comes to about $2.8B a year: $785 per household, 35% above the U.S. average. That is about $1.2M of household spending for each center on map listings, 18% above the U.S. figure of $1M.
In 2023, official counts showed 2,466 businesses with payroll in New Jersey classed as child care services, up 0.4% from 2019. That is one for every 1,422 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. Across the U.S., the count rose 5.7% over the same years. Since fiscal 2022, 174 SBA-backed loans worth $157.4M have gone to businesses classed as child care services in New Jersey.
Among the 50 states and DC, New Jersey ranks #8 for child care centers and preschools, with a Groundwork market score of 67 (upper middle). Of the 6 scored metro areas in or partly in New Jersey, the Atlantic City-Hammonton metro area scores highest (65). Among 21 scored counties, Burlington County scores highest (81).
Every market in New Jersey for child care centers and preschools
Download the ranking (CSV)Numbered by Groundwork market score among the markets based in New Jersey, highest first; the U.S. rank compares each market with every other of its kind. A metro area that crosses a state line is listed in each state it reaches, and numbered only in the state its page is under. How the score works.
Metro areas
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Atlantic City-Hammonton, NJ | 65 | 87 | 5.6 | $1.1M | +0.8% | #86 of 387 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | 55 | 4,815 | 6.5 | $1.2M | +0.6% | #162 of 387 |
| 2Trenton-Princeton, NJ | 50 | 127 | 8.8 | $879K | +3.3% | #193 of 387 |
| Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ | 48 | 220 | 6.5 | $939K | +3.0% | #207 of 387 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | 43 | 1,939 | 7.9 | $873K | +1.4% | #249 of 387 |
| 3Vineland, NJ | 42 | 29 | 5.4 | $917K | +2.2% | #254 of 387 |
Counties
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Burlington County, NJ | 81 | 93 | 5.2 | $1.5M | +4.3% | #69 of 1,611 |
| 2Ocean County, NJ | 80 | 93 | 3.8 | $1.7M | +5.6% | #79 of 1,611 |
| 3Sussex County, NJ | 78 | 28 | 4.8 | $1.7M | +2.9% | #109 of 1,611 |
| 4Cape May County, NJ | 78 | 18 | 4.0 | $1.7M | −1.7% | #110 of 1,611 |
| 5Gloucester County, NJ | 76 | 63 | 5.6 | $1.3M | +3.3% | #142 of 1,611 |
| 6Hunterdon County, NJ | 75 | 30 | 5.9 | $1.7M | +2.3% | #153 of 1,611 |
| 7Union County, NJ | 75 | 123 | 6.1 | $1.3M | +5.0% | #158 of 1,611 |
| 8Middlesex County, NJ | 70 | 198 | 6.4 | $1.3M | +2.6% | #257 of 1,611 |
| 9Somerset County, NJ | 69 | 117 | 8.9 | $1.1M | +3.5% | #289 of 1,611 |
| 10Warren County, NJ | 68 | 27 | 5.9 | $1.1M | +3.2% | #310 of 1,611 |
| 11Salem County, NJ | 68 | 16 | 6.4 | $880K | +2.3% | #325 of 1,611 |
| 12Monmouth County, NJ | 66 | 180 | 7.2 | $1.3M | +1.4% | #354 of 1,611 |
| 13Morris County, NJ | 66 | 160 | 8.3 | $1.2M | +3.2% | #360 of 1,611 |
| 14Camden County, NJ | 66 | 118 | 5.8 | $1.1M | +2.4% | #364 of 1,611 |
| 15Bergen County, NJ | 62 | 280 | 7.9 | $1.2M | +2.4% | #480 of 1,611 |
| 16Atlantic County, NJ | 60 | 69 | 6.3 | $908K | +1.6% | #548 of 1,611 |
| 17Hudson County, NJ | 58 | 200 | 6.7 | $1.1M | +1.8% | #597 of 1,611 |
| 18Essex County, NJ | 57 | 242 | 7.6 | $920K | +4.2% | #633 of 1,611 |
| 19Mercer County, NJ | 56 | 127 | 8.8 | $879K | +3.3% | #664 of 1,611 |
| 20Passaic County, NJ | 54 | 125 | 7.0 | $962K | +1.6% | #714 of 1,611 |
| 21Cumberland County, NJ | 49 | 29 | 5.4 | $917K | +2.2% | #843 of 1,611 |
Questions
How many child care centers and preschools are in New Jersey?
New Jersey has 2,336 child care centers and preschools on map listings as of September 2026. 382 of them (16%) are chain locations. The listings count day care centers and preschools. Official counts show 2,466 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in 2023, up 0.4% from 2019. Official counts list 13,510 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in New Jersey spend on child care and other personal services?
About $2.8B a year, or $785 per household. That is 35% above the U.S. average (an index of 135, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 2,336 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $1.2M per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 3,507,701 households in New Jersey and national spending patterns by income.
How does New Jersey compare with the U.S. for child care centers and preschools?
New Jersey has 6.7 child care centers and preschools per 10,000 households, 16% above the U.S. rate of 5.8. Spending per center is $1.2M, 18% above the U.S. figure of $1M. At the national ratio of child care centers and preschools to household spending, New Jersey would have about 2,749, against 2,336 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,422 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. The official count rose 0.4% from 2019 to 2023, against +5.7% for the U.S.
Which market in New Jersey has the highest market score for child care centers and preschools?
Among 6 scored metro areas in or partly in New Jersey, the Atlantic City-Hammonton metro area scores highest, at 65 (upper middle). Among 21 scored counties in New Jersey, Burlington County scores highest, at 81 (high). Scores compare each market with others of its kind across the U.S.
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. New Jersey scores 67 for child care centers and preschools (upper middle), #8 of the 50 states and DC.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in New Jersey. 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.
Child care and preschools in other states
All 51 states
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- District of Columbia
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
Top markets for child care centers and preschools across the U.S. · All business types in New Jersey
Screening a site or an acquisition in New Jersey?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
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.