Child care · Metro area · North Carolina
Child care centers and preschools in the Fayetteville, NC metro area
The child care centers and preschools in the Fayetteville, NC metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 17 out of 100: Low
Ranked #376 of 387 scored metro areas
#15 of 15 scored metro areas based in North Carolina
- Listings
- 106
- 6 chain locations (6%)
- Official establishments
- 119
- +1.7% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $55.3M
- On child care and other personal services · $371 a household
- Spending per listing
- $522K
- 48% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 7.1
- 22% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 395,412
- +1.6% since 2020
See the child care centers and preschools around any address in the Fayetteville 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 Fayetteville 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
The Fayetteville metro area scores 17 (low) on the Groundwork market score for child care centers and preschools, ranking #376 of 387 scored metro areas and #15 of 15 scored metro areas based in North Carolina. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.
At $371 per household (36% below the U.S. average), households in the Fayetteville metro area spend about $55.3M a year on child care and other personal services. That works out to $522K per center, 48% below the U.S. figure of $1M.
There are 106 child care centers and preschools on map listings in the Fayetteville metro area as of September 2026. Of those, 6 are chain locations, or 6%, against 12% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 7.1, 22% above the U.S. rate of 5.8.
In 2023, official counts showed 119 businesses with payroll in the Fayetteville metro area classed as child care services, up 1.7% from 2019. That is one for every 1,252 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $389K has gone to businesses classed as child care services in the Fayetteville metro area. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Fayetteville metro area grew 1.6%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Fayetteville metro area 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 | Fayetteville metro area | North Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 7.1 | 5.5 | 5.8 |
| Spending per listing | $522K | $844K | $1M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,252 | 1,639 | 1,573 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +1.7% | +2.5% | +5.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +1.6% | +7.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on child care and other personal services | $371 | $463 | $581 |
| Median household income | $61,763 | $72,388 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 17 | 53 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 119+1.7% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,318
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $32.8M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 656Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 1066 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 55The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $389K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as child care services in the Fayetteville 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 Fayetteville metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 395,412+1.6% since 2020
- Households
- 149,016
- Median age
- 34.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 57%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 1,043 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 376
- Median household income
- $61,763
- Average household income
- $81,373
- Median home value
- $202,700
- Jobs located here
- 124,855
- Daytime population
- 386,104Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Fayetteville 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 Fayetteville 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 North Carolina
Every North Carolina market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in North Carolina for child care centers and preschools, numbered among those based in North Carolina (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Fayetteville metro area marked.
Top metro areas in North Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Wilmington, NC | 73 | 90 | 4.5 | $1M | +15.9% | #41 of 387 |
| 2Winston-Salem, NC | 67 | 108 | 3.8 | $1.1M | +5.3% | #73 of 387 |
| 3Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC | 65 | 570 | 5.3 | $1M | +10.1% | #87 of 387 |
| 4Asheville, NC | 61 | 79 | 4.9 | $917K | +3.6% | #114 of 387 |
| 5Burlington, NC | 59 | 24 | 3.4 | $1.1M | +8.5% | #126 of 387 |
| 6Raleigh-Cary, NC | 58 | 395 | 6.9 | $907K | +12.6% | #142 of 387 |
| 7Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC | 54 | 61 | 4.1 | $902K | +3.2% | #173 of 387 |
| Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC | 52 | 387 | 5.5 | $925K | +0.9% | #184 of 387 |
| 8Jacksonville, NC | 50 | 33 | 4.4 | $863K | +6.0% | #194 of 387 |
| 9Durham-Chapel Hill, NC | 48 | 169 | 6.8 | $822K | +7.5% | #211 of 387 |
| 15Fayetteville, NC | 17 | 106 | 7.1 | $522K | +1.6% | #376 of 387 |
Other business types in the Fayetteville 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 preschools17
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many child care centers and preschools are in the Fayetteville, NC metro area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 106 child care centers and preschools in the Fayetteville metro area. 6 of them (6%) are chain locations. The listings count day care centers and preschools. Official counts show 119 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in 2023, up 1.7% from 2019. Another 656 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Fayetteville, NC metro area spend on child care and other personal services?
About $55.3M a year, or $371 per household. That is 36% below the U.S. average (an index of 64, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 106 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $522K per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 149,016 households in the Fayetteville metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Fayetteville, NC metro area compare with the U.S. for child care centers and preschools?
The Fayetteville metro area has 7.1 child care centers and preschools per 10,000 households, 22% above the U.S. rate of 5.8. Spending per center is $522K, 48% below the U.S. figure of $1M. At the U.S. ratio of child care centers and preschools to household spending, the Fayetteville metro area would have about 55, against 106 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,252 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. The official count rose 1.7% from 2019 to 2023, against +5.7% for the U.S.
How fast is the Fayetteville, NC metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Fayetteville metro area at 395,412 people in 2025, up 1.6% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 149,016 households. Median household income in the Fayetteville metro area is $61,763, 23% below the U.S. median of $80,734.
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 Fayetteville metro area scores 17 for child care centers and preschools (low), #376 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 Fayetteville 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 Fayetteville metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Fayetteville 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 Fayetteville 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.