Child care · Metro area · North Dakota
Child care centers and preschools in the Bismarck, ND metro area
The child care centers and preschools in the Bismarck, ND metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 45 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #233 of 387 scored metro areas
#1 of 4 scored metro areas based in North Dakota
- Listings
- 28
- 2 chain locations (7%)
- Official establishments
- 45
- +25.7% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $25.6M
- On child care and other personal services · $457 a household
- Spending per listing
- $913K
- 9% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 5.0
- 14% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 139,750
- +4.5% since 2020
See the child care centers and preschools around any address in the Bismarck 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 Bismarck 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
Household spending on child care and other personal services in the Bismarck metro area comes to about $25.6M a year: $457 per household, 21% below the U.S. average. That works out to $913K per center, 9% below the U.S. figure of $1M.
There are 28 child care centers and preschools on map listings in the Bismarck metro area as of September 2026. 2 of them (7%) are chain locations, against 12% across the U.S. That is 5.0 per 10,000 households, 14% below the U.S. rate of 5.8.
Official counts show 45 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in the Bismarck metro area in 2023, up 25.7% from 2019. That is one for every 1,243 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. Official counts also show 416 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $110K has gone to businesses classed as child care services in the Bismarck metro area.
Population estimates show the Bismarck metro area grew 4.5% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for child care centers and preschools in the Bismarck metro area is 45 (lower middle), #233 of 387 scored metro areas and #1 of 4 scored metro areas based in North Dakota.
How the Bismarck metro area compares
The same measures for North Dakota 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 | Bismarck metro area | North Dakota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 5.0 | 6.2 | 5.8 |
| Spending per listing | $913K | $686K | $1M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,243 | 885 | 1,573 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +25.7% | +19.5% | +5.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +4.5% | +2.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on child care and other personal services | $457 | $423 | $581 |
| Median household income | $85,156 | $76,657 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 45 | 20 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 45+25.7% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 623
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $15.8M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 416Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 282 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 26The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $110K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as child care services in the Bismarck 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 Bismarck metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 139,750+4.5% since 2020
- Households
- 55,940
- Median age
- 39.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 72%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 4,281 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 32
- Median household income
- $85,156+19.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $110,205
- Median home value
- $306,400
- Jobs located here
- 71,351
- Daytime population
- 138,130Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Bismarck 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 Bismarck 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 Dakota
Every North Dakota market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in North Dakota for child care centers and preschools, numbered among those based in North Dakota, with the Bismarck metro area marked.
Top metro areas in North Dakota
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Bismarck, ND | 45 | 28 | 5.0 | $913K | +4.5% | #233 of 387 |
| 2Fargo, ND-MN | 35 | 64 | 5.8 | $739K | +7.7% | #292 of 387 |
| 3Grand Forks, ND-MN | 32 | 20 | 4.6 | $842K | +0.8% | #314 of 387 |
| 4Minot, ND | 13 | 22 | 6.9 | $615K | −2.4% | #380 of 387 |
Other business types in the Bismarck 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 preschools45
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many child care centers and preschools are in the Bismarck, ND metro area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 28 child care centers and preschools in the Bismarck metro area. 2 of them (7%) are chain locations. The listings count day care centers and preschools. Official counts show 45 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in 2023, up 25.7% from 2019. Another 416 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Bismarck, ND metro area spend on child care and other personal services?
About $25.6M a year, or $457 per household. That is 21% below the U.S. average (an index of 79, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 28 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $913K per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 55,940 households in the Bismarck metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Bismarck, ND metro area compare with the U.S. for child care centers and preschools?
The Bismarck metro area has 5.0 child care centers and preschools per 10,000 households, 14% below the U.S. rate of 5.8. Spending per center is $913K, 9% below the U.S. figure of $1M. At the U.S. ratio of child care centers and preschools to household spending, the Bismarck metro area would have about 26, against 28 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,243 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. The official count rose 25.7% from 2019 to 2023, against +5.7% for the U.S.
How fast is the Bismarck, ND metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Bismarck metro area at 139,750 people in 2025, up 4.5% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 55,940 households. Median household income in the Bismarck metro area is $85,156, 5% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 19.3%, 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 Bismarck metro area scores 45 for child care centers and preschools (lower middle), #233 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 Bismarck 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 Bismarck metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Bismarck 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 Bismarck 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.