Child care · County · North Carolina
Child care centers and preschools in Carteret County, NC
The child care centers and preschools in Carteret County, NC, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 61 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #527 of 1,611 scored counties
#23 of 73 scored counties in North Carolina
- Listings
- 17
- 3 chain locations (18%)
- Official establishments
- 15
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $14.5M
- On child care and other personal services · $454 a household
- Spending per listing
- $854K
- 15% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 5.3
- 9% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 70,469
- +4.1% since 2020
See the child care centers and preschools around any address in Carteret 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 Carteret 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 Carteret County spend about $14.5M a year on child care and other personal services, or $454 per household, 22% below the U.S. average. That is about $854K of household spending for each center on map listings, 15% below the U.S. figure of $1M.
Carteret County has 17 child care centers and preschools on map listings as of September 2026. 3 of them (18%) are chain locations, against 12% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 5.3, 9% below the U.S. rate of 5.8.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as child care services in Carteret County was 15 in 2023. That is one for every 2,132 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. Official counts list 36 one-person businesses without payroll.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Carteret County grew 4.1%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). For child care centers and preschools, Carteret County has a Groundwork market score of 61 (upper middle): #527 of 1,611 scored counties and #23 of 73 scored counties in North Carolina.
How Carteret County compares
The same measures for North Carolina 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 | Carteret County | North Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 5.3 | 5.5 | 5.8 |
| Spending per listing | $854K | $844K | $1M |
| Households per official establishment | 2,132 | 1,639 | 1,573 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +2.5% | +5.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +4.1% | +7.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on child care and other personal services | $454 | $463 | $581 |
| Median household income | $72,322 | $72,388 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 61 | 53 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 17 → 15
- Employees, 2023
- 148
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $4.7M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 36Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 173 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 15The 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 Carteret 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 Carteret County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 70,469+4.1% since 2020
- Households
- 31,977
- Median age
- 49.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 75%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 508 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 136
- Median household income
- $72,322+26.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $99,351
- Median home value
- $333,300
- Jobs located here
- 23,748
- Daytime population
- 65,592Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Carteret 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 Carteret 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 North Carolina
Every North Carolina market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in North Carolina for child care centers and preschools, numbered among those based in North Carolina, with Carteret County marked.
Top counties in North Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Brunswick County, NC | 89 | 12 | 1.7 | $2.6M | +26.5% | #18 of 1,611 |
| 2Davie County, NC | 81 | 6 | 3.5 | $1.4M | +6.9% | #72 of 1,611 |
| 3Macon County, NC | 76 | 6 | 3.3 | $1.2M | +5.8% | #145 of 1,611 |
| 4Union County, NC | 76 | 47 | 5.6 | $1.1M | +11.7% | #147 of 1,611 |
| 5Lincoln County, NC | 75 | 14 | 3.8 | $1.3M | +13.2% | #156 of 1,611 |
| 6Henderson County, NC | 74 | 19 | 3.7 | $1.1M | +5.0% | #180 of 1,611 |
| 7Forsyth County, NC | 73 | 57 | 3.6 | $1.2M | +5.0% | #193 of 1,611 |
| 8Yadkin County, NC | 71 | 5 | 3.3 | $1.1M | +2.9% | #236 of 1,611 |
| 9Iredell County, NC | 71 | 43 | 5.6 | $895K | +12.9% | #247 of 1,611 |
| 10Burke County, NC | 69 | 9 | 2.5 | $1.4M | +1.6% | #277 of 1,611 |
| 23Carteret County, NC | 61 | 17 | 5.3 | $854K | +4.1% | #527 of 1,611 |
Other business types in Carteret 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 preschools61
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many child care centers and preschools are in Carteret County, NC?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 17 child care centers and preschools in Carteret County. 3 of them (18%) are chain locations. The listings count day care centers and preschools. Official counts show 15 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in 2023. Official counts also show 36 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Carteret County, NC spend on child care and other personal services?
About $14.5M a year, or $454 per household. That is 22% below the U.S. average (an index of 78, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 17 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $854K per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 31,977 households in Carteret County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Carteret County, NC compare with the U.S. for child care centers and preschools?
Carteret County has 5.3 child care centers and preschools per 10,000 households, 9% below the U.S. rate of 5.8. Spending per center is $854K, 15% below the U.S. figure of $1M. At the U.S. ratio of child care centers and preschools to household spending, Carteret County would have about 15, against 17 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,132 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S.
How fast is Carteret County, NC growing?
Population estimates put Carteret County at 70,469 people in 2025, up 4.1% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 31,977 households. Median household income in Carteret County is $72,322, 10% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 26.5%, 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. Carteret County scores 61 for child care centers and preschools (upper middle), #527 of 1,611 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Carteret 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 Carteret County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Carteret 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 Carteret 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.