Groundwork

Child care · County · North Dakota

Child care centers and preschools in Nelson County, ND

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for child care centers and preschools in Nelson County, ND, set against other counties and the U.S.

Groundwork market score

Not scored

Counties under 10,000 people aren’t scored, since a few businesses can swing their figures.

Listings
1
0 chain locations (0%)
Official establishments
4
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$495K
On child care and other personal services · $370 a household
Spending per listing
$495K
Too few listings to compare
Listings per 10k households
7.5
Too few listings to compare
Population, 2025
2,963
−1.0% since 2020

See the child care centers and preschools around any address in Nelson 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 Nelson County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

Households in Nelson County spend about $495K a year on child care and other personal services, or $370 per household, 36% below the U.S. average. That is about $495K of household spending for each center on map listings.

Nelson County has 1 child care center or preschool on map listings as of September 2026. That is 7.5 per 10,000 households.

In 2023, official counts showed 4 businesses with payroll in Nelson County classed as child care services. That is one for every 335 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S.

Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Nelson County declined 1.0%, against +3.1% for the U.S. Counties under 10,000 people aren’t given a market score, since a few businesses can swing their figures.

How Nelson 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.

Child care and preschools in Nelson County, ND compared with North Dakota and the U.S.
MeasureNelson CountyNorth DakotaU.S.
Listings per 10k households7.56.25.8
Spending per listing$495K$686K$1M
Households per official establishment3358851,573
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+19.5%+5.7%
Population growth, 2020–2025−1.0%+2.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on child care and other personal services$370$423$581
Median household income$67,193$76,657$80,734
Groundwork market scoreNot scored20

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
3 → 4
Employees, 2023
24
Annual payroll, 2023
$429K
One-person businesses, 2023
0Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
10 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
1The 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 Nelson 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 Nelson County

Population, 2025 estimate
2,963−1.0% since 2020
Households
1,338
Median age
48.7
Homes lived in by their owners
75%
Vehicles per household
2.3
Land area
982 sq. mi.
People per square mile
3
Median household income
$67,193
Average household income
$100,705
Median home value
$139,700
Jobs located here
968
Daytime population
2,899Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Nelson 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 Nelson County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Child 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 Nelson County marked.

Top counties in North Dakota

Counties in North Dakota ranked for child care centers and preschools by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Morton County, ND5464.3$953K+3.8%#716 of 1,611
2Burleigh County, ND50225.3$887K+4.7%#821 of 1,611
3Grand Forks County, ND48123.8$997K+1.9%#868 of 1,611
4Cass County, ND40566.7$642K+9.1%#1,109 of 1,611
5Williams County, ND37106.6$747K+1.4%#1,161 of 1,611
6Ward County, ND24207.0$613K−2.4%#1,425 of 1,611
7Stark County, ND201410.3$404K+0.5%#1,487 of 1,611
8Richland County, ND20710.2$402K+1.2%#1,488 of 1,611
9Stutsman County, ND1677.4$493K−0.6%#1,537 of 1,611
10Rolette County, ND6615.9$227K−4.1%#1,600 of 1,611
Nelson County, NDNot scored17.5$495K−1.0%

Other business types in Nelson County

None has a Groundwork market score here. Counties under 10,000 people aren’t scored, since a few businesses can swing their figures.

Questions

How many child care centers and preschools are in Nelson County, ND?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 1 child care center or preschool in Nelson County. The listings count day care centers and preschools. Official counts show 4 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in 2023.

How much do households in Nelson County, ND spend on child care and other personal services?

About $495K a year, or $370 per household. That is 36% below the U.S. average (an index of 64, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 1 child care center or preschool on map listings, it comes to $495K per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 1,338 households in Nelson County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Nelson County, ND compare with the U.S. for child care centers and preschools?

Nelson County has 1 child care center or preschool 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 335 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S.

How fast is Nelson County, ND growing?

Population estimates put Nelson County at 2,963 people in 2025, down 1.0% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 1,338 households. Median household income in Nelson County is $67,193, 17% 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 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 Nelson 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 Nelson County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Nelson 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 Nelson 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.