Groundwork

Child care · County · Ohio

Child care centers and preschools in Defiance County, OH

The child care centers and preschools in Defiance County, OH, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 35 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #1,215 of 1,611 scored counties
#51 of 69 scored counties in Ohio

Listings
8
1 chain location (13%)
Official establishments
8
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$5.3M
On child care and other personal services · $344 a household
Spending per listing
$660K
34% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
5.2
10% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
38,292
+0.1% since 2020

See the child care centers and preschools around any address in Defiance 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 Defiance 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

Defiance County scores 35 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for child care centers and preschools, ranking #1,215 of 1,611 scored counties and #51 of 69 scored counties in Ohio. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.

At $344 per household (41% below the U.S. average), households in Defiance County spend about $5.3M a year on child care and other personal services. That works out to $660K per center, 34% below the U.S. figure of $1M.

There are 8 child care centers and preschools on map listings in Defiance County as of September 2026. One of them (13%) is a chain location, against 12% across the U.S. That is 5.2 per 10,000 households, 10% below the U.S. rate of 5.8.

In 2023, official counts showed 8 businesses with payroll in Defiance County classed as child care services. That is one for every 1,916 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $1.7M have gone to businesses classed as child care services in Defiance County. Population estimates put the population change in Defiance County from 2020 to 2025 at +0.1%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How Defiance County compares

The same measures for Ohio 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 Defiance County, OH compared with Ohio and the U.S.
MeasureDefiance CountyOhioU.S.
Listings per 10k households5.25.55.8
Spending per listing$660K$736K$1M
Households per official establishment1,9161,7291,573
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+6.0%+5.7%
Population growth, 2020–2025+0.1%+0.9%+3.1%
Spending per household on child care and other personal services$344$407$581
Median household income$73,064$71,389$80,734
Groundwork market score3535

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
6 → 8
Employees, 2023
104
Annual payroll, 2023
$2.5M
One-person businesses, 2023
59Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
81 chain location
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
5The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
2
Amount
$1.7M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as child care services in Defiance 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 Defiance County

Population, 2025 estimate
38,292+0.1% since 2020
Households
15,327
Median age
40.9
Homes lived in by their owners
79%
Vehicles per household
2.0
Land area
411 sq. mi.
People per square mile
93
Median household income
$73,064+21.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$88,073
Median home value
$163,200
Jobs located here
14,922
Daytime population
36,059Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Defiance 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 Defiance 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 Ohio

Every Ohio market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Ohio for child care centers and preschools, numbered among those based in Ohio, with Defiance County marked.

Top counties in Ohio

Counties in Ohio ranked for child care centers and preschools by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Union County, OH88114.5$1.3M+16.5%#24 of 1,611
2Greene County, OH74304.4$1.1M+3.7%#181 of 1,611
3Clermont County, OH72313.6$1.3M+3.9%#213 of 1,611
4Geauga County, OH70195.3$1.1M+0.3%#259 of 1,611
5Wood County, OH69193.5$1.2M+1.5%#282 of 1,611
6Warren County, OH68616.6$923K+5.7%#323 of 1,611
7Miami County, OH66194.2$963K+3.4%#371 of 1,611
8Erie County, OH6582.5$1.5M−2.9%#383 of 1,611
9Fairfield County, OH64325.3$906K+6.5%#435 of 1,611
10Hancock County, OH63113.5$1.1M+0.1%#451 of 1,611
51Defiance County, OH3585.2$660K+0.1%#1,215 of 1,611

Other business types in Defiance County

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many child care centers and preschools are in Defiance County, OH?

As of September 2026, map listings count 8 child care centers and preschools in Defiance County. One of them (13%) is a chain location. The listings count day care centers and preschools. Official counts show 8 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in 2023. Another 59 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

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

About $5.3M a year, or $344 per household. That is 41% below the U.S. average (an index of 59, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 8 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $660K per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 15,327 households in Defiance County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Defiance County has 5.2 child care centers and preschools per 10,000 households, 10% below the U.S. rate of 5.8. Spending per center is $660K, 34% below the U.S. figure of $1M. At the U.S. ratio of child care centers and preschools to household spending, Defiance County would have about 5, against 8 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,916 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S.

How fast is Defiance County, OH growing?

Population estimates put Defiance County at 38,292 people in 2025, up 0.1% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 15,327 households. Median household income in Defiance County is $73,064, 10% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 21.9%, 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. Defiance County scores 35 for child care centers and preschools (lower middle), #1,215 of 1,611 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Defiance 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 Defiance County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Defiance 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 Defiance 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.