Groundwork

Child care · County · Pennsylvania

Child care centers and preschools in Allegheny County, PA

How Allegheny County, PA compares with other counties and the U.S. for child care centers and preschools: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 54 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #703 of 1,611 scored counties
#26 of 59 scored counties in Pennsylvania

Listings
274
36 chain locations (13%)
Official establishments
396
+9.1% since 2019
Household spending a year
$329M
On child care and other personal services · $603 a household
Spending per listing
$1.2M
20% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
5.0
14% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
1,225,035
−2.0% since 2020

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

Map listings as of September 2026 show 274 child care centers and preschools in Allegheny County. Of those, 36 are chain locations, or 13%, against 12% across the U.S. That comes to 5.0 for every 10,000 households, 14% below the U.S. rate of 5.8.

At $603 per household (4% above the U.S. average), households in Allegheny County spend about $329M a year on child care and other personal services. That works out to $1.2M per center, 20% above the U.S. figure of $1M.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as child care services in Allegheny County was 396 in 2023, up 9.1% from 2019. That is one for every 1,378 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. Official counts also show 933 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 25 SBA-backed loans worth $15.8M have gone to businesses classed as child care services in Allegheny County.

Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Allegheny County declined 2.0%, against +3.1% for the U.S. Allegheny County scores 54 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for child care centers and preschools, ranking #703 of 1,611 scored counties and #26 of 59 scored counties in Pennsylvania.

How Allegheny County compares

The same measures for Pennsylvania 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 Allegheny County, PA compared with Pennsylvania and the U.S.
MeasureAllegheny CountyPennsylvaniaU.S.
Listings per 10k households5.06.25.8
Spending per listing$1.2M$941K$1M
Households per official establishment1,3781,3801,573
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+9.1%−0.3%+5.7%
Population growth, 2020–2025−2.0%+0.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on child care and other personal services$603$584$581
Median household income$78,548$77,971$80,734
Groundwork market score5442

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
363 → 396+9.1% over the period
Employees, 2023
4,772
Annual payroll, 2023
$141.2M
One-person businesses, 2023
933Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
27436 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
328The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
25
Amount
$15.8M

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

Population, 2025 estimate
1,225,035−2.0% since 2020
Households
545,802
Median age
42.1
Homes lived in by their owners
65%
Vehicles per household
1.5
Land area
730 sq. mi.
People per square mile
1,696
Median household income
$78,548+28.7% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$110,072
Median home value
$227,600
Jobs located here
728,045
Daytime population
1,373,985Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Allegheny 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 Allegheny 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 Pennsylvania

Every Pennsylvania market ranked →

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

Top counties in Pennsylvania

Counties in Pennsylvania ranked for child care centers and preschools by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Pike County, PA81124.9$1.2M+7.2%#75 of 1,611
2Adams County, PA79102.4$2.3M+3.6%#90 of 1,611
3Lancaster County, PA74964.5$1.3M+1.9%#173 of 1,611
4Franklin County, PA72213.3$1.6M+3.0%#209 of 1,611
5Chester County, PA721477.2$1.3M+4.2%#211 of 1,611
6Perry County, PA7294.9$1.1M+2.1%#221 of 1,611
7York County, PA71915.0$1.1M+3.6%#235 of 1,611
8Butler County, PA70425.2$1.2M+3.2%#258 of 1,611
9Cumberland County, PA70686.4$963K+6.5%#266 of 1,611
10Lebanon County, PA69234.1$1.3M+2.2%#279 of 1,611
26Allegheny County, PA542745.0$1.2M−2.0%#703 of 1,611

Other business types in Allegheny 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 Allegheny County, PA?

There are 274 child care centers and preschools on map listings in Allegheny County as of September 2026. 36 of them (13%) are chain locations. The listings count day care centers and preschools. Official counts show 396 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in 2023, up 9.1% from 2019. Another 933 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

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

About $329M a year, or $603 per household. That is 4% above the U.S. average (an index of 104, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 274 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $1.2M per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 545,802 households in Allegheny County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Allegheny County 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 $1.2M, 20% above the U.S. figure of $1M. At the national ratio of child care centers and preschools to household spending, Allegheny County would have about 328, against 274 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,378 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. The official count rose 9.1% from 2019 to 2023, against +5.7% for the U.S.

How fast is Allegheny County, PA growing?

Population estimates put Allegheny County at 1,225,035 people in 2025, down 2.0% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 545,802 households. The median household income in Allegheny County is $78,548 a year, 3% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 28.7% from the 2015–2019 survey, 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. Allegheny County scores 54 for child care centers and preschools (upper middle), #703 of 1,611 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Allegheny 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 Allegheny 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.