Child care · County · North Dakota
Child care centers and preschools in Mercer County, ND
How Mercer County, ND compares with other counties and the U.S. for child care centers and preschools: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score
Not scored
Counties under 10,000 people aren’t scored, since a few businesses can swing their figures.
- Listings
- 2
- 0 chain locations (0%)
- Official establishments
- 5
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $1.5M
- On child care and other personal services · $413 a household
- Spending per listing
- $742K
- Too few listings to compare
- Listings per 10k households
- 5.6
- Too few listings to compare
- Population, 2025
- 8,441
- +1.1% since 2020
See the child care centers and preschools around any address in Mercer 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 Mercer 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
As of September 2026, map listings count 2 child care centers and preschools in Mercer County. That is 5.6 per 10,000 households.
At $413 per household (29% below the U.S. average), households in Mercer County spend about $1.5M a year on child care and other personal services. That is about $742K of household spending for each center on map listings.
Official counts show 5 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in Mercer County in 2023. That is one for every 719 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. Another 21 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
Population estimates put the population change in Mercer County from 2020 to 2025 at +1.1%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). Counties under 10,000 people aren’t given a market score, since a few businesses can swing their figures.
How Mercer County 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 | Mercer County | North Dakota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 5.6 | 6.2 | 5.8 |
| Spending per listing | $742K | $686K | $1M |
| Households per official establishment | 719 | 885 | 1,573 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +19.5% | +5.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +1.1% | +2.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on child care and other personal services | $413 | $423 | $581 |
| Median household income | $80,946 | $76,657 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | Not scored | 20 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 5 → 5
- Employees, 2023
- 39
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $779K
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 21Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 20 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 2The 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 Mercer 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 Mercer County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 8,441+1.1% since 2020
- Households
- 3,594
- Median age
- 44.3
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 81%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.5
- Land area
- 1,043 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 8
- Median household income
- $80,946
- Average household income
- $96,779
- Median home value
- $198,500
- Jobs located here
- 3,815
- Daytime population
- 8,416Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Mercer 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 Mercer 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 Dakota
Every North Dakota market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in North Dakota for child care centers and preschools, numbered among those based in North Dakota, with Mercer County marked.
Top counties in North Dakota
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Morton County, ND | 54 | 6 | 4.3 | $953K | +3.8% | #716 of 1,611 |
| 2Burleigh County, ND | 50 | 22 | 5.3 | $887K | +4.7% | #821 of 1,611 |
| 3Grand Forks County, ND | 48 | 12 | 3.8 | $997K | +1.9% | #868 of 1,611 |
| 4Cass County, ND | 40 | 56 | 6.7 | $642K | +9.1% | #1,109 of 1,611 |
| 5Williams County, ND | 37 | 10 | 6.6 | $747K | +1.4% | #1,161 of 1,611 |
| 6Ward County, ND | 24 | 20 | 7.0 | $613K | −2.4% | #1,425 of 1,611 |
| 7Stark County, ND | 20 | 14 | 10.3 | $404K | +0.5% | #1,487 of 1,611 |
| 8Richland County, ND | 20 | 7 | 10.2 | $402K | +1.2% | #1,488 of 1,611 |
| 9Stutsman County, ND | 16 | 7 | 7.4 | $493K | −0.6% | #1,537 of 1,611 |
| 10Rolette County, ND | 6 | 6 | 15.9 | $227K | −4.1% | #1,600 of 1,611 |
| Mercer County, ND | Not scored | 2 | 5.6 | $742K | +1.1% |
Other business types in Mercer County
None has a Groundwork market score here. Counties under 10,000 people aren’t scored, since a few businesses can swing their figures.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
- Child care and preschools
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many child care centers and preschools are in Mercer County, ND?
Mercer County has 2 child care centers and preschools on map listings as of September 2026. The listings count day care centers and preschools. Official counts show 5 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in 2023. Official counts list 21 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Mercer County, ND spend on child care and other personal services?
About $1.5M a year, or $413 per household. That is 29% below the U.S. average (an index of 71, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 2 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $742K per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 3,594 households in Mercer County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Mercer County, ND compare with the U.S. for child care centers and preschools?
Mercer County has 2 child care centers and preschools on map listings, too few for a steady comparison with the U.S. rate. 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 719 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S.
How fast is Mercer County, ND growing?
Population estimates put Mercer County at 8,441 people in 2025, up 1.1% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 3,594 households. The median household income in Mercer County is $80,946 a year, in line with 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 score leaves out counties under 10,000 people, where a handful of businesses would swing it.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Mercer 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 Mercer County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Mercer 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 Mercer 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.