Child care · Metro area · New Mexico
Child care centers and preschools in the Las Cruces, NM metro area
How the Las Cruces, NM metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for child care centers and preschools: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 56 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #155 of 387 scored metro areas
#4 of 4 scored metro areas based in New Mexico
- Listings
- 42
- 4 chain locations (10%)
- Official establishments
- 57
- +7.6% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $42.5M
- On child care and other personal services · $500 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1M
- In line with the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 4.9
- 16% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 229,091
- +4.1% since 2020
See the child care centers and preschools around any address in the Las Cruces metro 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 Las Cruces metro 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
As of September 2026, map listings count 42 child care centers and preschools in the Las Cruces metro area. Of those, 4 are chain locations, or 10%, against 12% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 4.9, 16% below the U.S. rate of 5.8.
Households in the Las Cruces metro area spend about $42.5M a year on child care and other personal services, or $500 per household, 14% below the U.S. average. That works out to $1M per center, in line with the U.S. figure of $1M.
In 2023, official counts showed 57 businesses with payroll in the Las Cruces metro area classed as child care services, up 7.6% from 2019. That is one for every 1,489 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. Official counts also show 390 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $300K has gone to businesses classed as child care services in the Las Cruces metro area.
Population estimates show the Las Cruces metro area grew 4.1% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). For child care centers and preschools, the Las Cruces metro area has a Groundwork market score of 56 (upper middle): #155 of 387 scored metro areas and #4 of 4 scored metro areas based in New Mexico.
How the Las Cruces metro area compares
The same measures for New Mexico 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 | Las Cruces metro area | New Mexico | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 4.9 | 4.5 | 5.8 |
| Spending per listing | $1M | $1.3M | $1M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,489 | 1,865 | 1,573 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +7.6% | +11.4% | +5.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +4.1% | +0.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on child care and other personal services | $500 | $571 | $581 |
| Median household income | $56,848 | $64,059 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 56 | 64 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 57+7.6% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 999
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $28.8M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 390Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 424 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 42The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $300K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as child care services in the Las Cruces metro 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 Las Cruces metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 229,091+4.1% since 2020
- Households
- 84,889
- Median age
- 36.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 65%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 3,808 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 59
- Median household income
- $56,848+38.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $76,951
- Median home value
- $220,800
- Jobs located here
- 79,505
- Daytime population
- 218,304Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Las Cruces metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. 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 Las Cruces metro 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 New Mexico
Every New Mexico market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in New Mexico for child care centers and preschools, numbered among those based in New Mexico, with the Las Cruces metro area marked.
Top metro areas in New Mexico
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Santa Fe, NM | 83 | 30 | 4.2 | $1.7M | +1.2% | #14 of 387 |
| 2Albuquerque, NM | 60 | 195 | 5.2 | $1.2M | +0.8% | #117 of 387 |
| 3Farmington, NM | 60 | 20 | 4.8 | $1.1M | −0.9% | #118 of 387 |
| 4Las Cruces, NM | 56 | 42 | 4.9 | $1M | +4.1% | #155 of 387 |
Other business types in the Las Cruces metro 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 preschools56
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many child care centers and preschools are in the Las Cruces, NM metro area?
The Las Cruces metro area has 42 child care centers and preschools on map listings as of September 2026. 4 of them (10%) are chain locations. The listings count day care centers and preschools. Official counts show 57 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in 2023, up 7.6% from 2019. Another 390 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Las Cruces, NM metro area spend on child care and other personal services?
About $42.5M a year, or $500 per household. That is 14% below the U.S. average (an index of 86, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 42 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $1M per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 84,889 households in the Las Cruces metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Las Cruces, NM metro area compare with the U.S. for child care centers and preschools?
The Las Cruces metro area has 4.9 child care centers and preschools per 10,000 households, 16% below the U.S. rate of 5.8. Spending per center is $1M, in line with the U.S. figure of $1M. The count on map listings matches the U.S. ratio of child care centers and preschools to household spending. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,489 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. The official count rose 7.6% from 2019 to 2023, against +5.7% for the U.S.
How fast is the Las Cruces, NM metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Las Cruces metro area at 229,091 people in 2025, up 4.1% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 84,889 households. The median household income in the Las Cruces metro area is $56,848 a year, 30% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 38.8% 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. The Las Cruces metro area scores 56 for child care centers and preschools (upper middle), #155 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Las Cruces metro 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 Las Cruces metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Las Cruces metro 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 Las Cruces metro 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.