Groundwork

Child care · County · Pennsylvania

Child care centers and preschools in Bedford County, PA

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

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 45 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #949 of 1,611 scored counties
#40 of 59 scored counties in Pennsylvania

Listings
8
0 chain locations (0%)
Official establishments
14
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$8M
On child care and other personal services · $407 a household
Spending per listing
$1M
In line with the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
4.1
29% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
47,480
−0.2% since 2020

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

As of September 2026, map listings count 8 child care centers and preschools in Bedford County. None of them are chain locations, against 12% across the U.S. That is 4.1 per 10,000 households, 29% below the U.S. rate of 5.8.

At $407 per household (30% below the U.S. average), households in Bedford County spend about $8M a year on child care and other personal services. That works out to $1M per center, in line with the U.S. figure of $1M.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as child care services in Bedford County was 14 in 2023. That is one for every 1,411 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. Official counts list 19 one-person businesses without payroll.

Population estimates put the population change in Bedford County from 2020 to 2025 at −0.2%, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Groundwork market score for child care centers and preschools in Bedford County is 45 (lower middle), #949 of 1,611 scored counties and #40 of 59 scored counties in Pennsylvania.

How Bedford 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 Bedford County, PA compared with Pennsylvania and the U.S.
MeasureBedford CountyPennsylvaniaU.S.
Listings per 10k households4.16.25.8
Spending per listing$1M$941K$1M
Households per official establishment1,4111,3801,573
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a−0.3%+5.7%
Population growth, 2020–2025−0.2%+0.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on child care and other personal services$407$584$581
Median household income$59,992$77,971$80,734
Groundwork market score4542

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
14 → 14
Employees, 2023
171
Annual payroll, 2023
$3.8M
One-person businesses, 2023
19Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
80 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
8The 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 Bedford 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 Bedford County

Population, 2025 estimate
47,480−0.2% since 2020
Households
19,750
Median age
46.3
Homes lived in by their owners
78%
Vehicles per household
2.0
Land area
1,012 sq. mi.
People per square mile
47
Median household income
$59,992+18.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$77,365
Median home value
$179,000
Jobs located here
16,104
Daytime population
42,273Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Bedford 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 Bedford 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 Bedford 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
40Bedford County, PA4584.1$1M−0.2%#949 of 1,611

Other business types in Bedford 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 Bedford County, PA?

Bedford County has 8 child care centers and preschools on map listings as of September 2026. None of them are chain locations. The listings count day care centers and preschools. Official counts show 14 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in 2023. Official counts also show 19 one-person businesses without payroll.

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

About $8M a year, or $407 per household. That is 30% below the U.S. average (an index of 70, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 8 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $1M per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 19,750 households in Bedford County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Bedford County has 4.1 child care centers and preschools per 10,000 households, 29% below the U.S. rate of 5.8. Spending per center is $1M, in line with the U.S. figure of $1M. 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 1,411 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S.

How fast is Bedford County, PA growing?

Population estimates put Bedford County at 47,480 people in 2025, down 0.2% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 19,750 households. The median household income in Bedford County is $59,992 a year, 26% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 18.8% 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. Bedford County scores 45 for child care centers and preschools (lower middle), #949 of 1,611 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Bedford 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 Bedford 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.