Child care · Small-town market · South Carolina
Child care centers and preschools in the Murrells Inlet, SC area
The child care centers and preschools in the Murrells Inlet, SC area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other small-town markets.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 71 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #68 of 454 scored small-town markets
#2 of 6 scored small-town markets based in South Carolina
- Listings
- 11
- 1 chain location (9%)
- Official establishments
- 15
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $12.1M
- On child care and other personal services · $446 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.1M
- 10% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 4.1
- 29% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 65,912
- +3.8% since 2020
See the child care centers and preschools around any address in the Murrells Inlet area
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 the Murrells Inlet area. 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
Households in the Murrells Inlet area spend about $12.1M a year on child care and other personal services, or $446 per household, 23% below the U.S. average. Spread across 11 child care centers and preschools, that is $1.1M per center, 10% above the U.S. figure of $1M.
There are 11 child care centers and preschools on map listings in the Murrells Inlet area as of September 2026. One of them (9%) is a chain location, against 12% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 4.1, 29% below the U.S. rate of 5.8.
In 2023, official counts showed 15 businesses with payroll in the Murrells Inlet area classed as child care services. That is one for every 1,809 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. Another 88 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $5,000 has gone to businesses classed as child care services in the Murrells Inlet area.
Population estimates show the Murrells Inlet area grew 3.8% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Murrells Inlet area scores 71 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for child care centers and preschools, ranking #68 of 454 scored small-town markets and #2 of 6 scored small-town markets based in South Carolina. That puts it in the top quarter of small-town markets.
How the Murrells Inlet area compares
The same measures for South Carolina 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 | Murrells Inlet area | South Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 4.1 | 4.3 | 5.8 |
| Spending per listing | $1.1M | $1M | $1M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,809 | 2,033 | 1,573 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +13.6% | +5.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +3.8% | +8.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on child care and other personal services | $446 | $438 | $581 |
| Median household income | $68,713 | $69,324 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 71 | 72 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 15
- Employees, 2023
- 136
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $3.6M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 88Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 111 chain location
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 12The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $5,000
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as child care services in the Murrells Inlet area, 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 the Murrells Inlet area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 65,912+3.8% since 2020
- Households
- 27,129
- Median age
- 50.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 84%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 814 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 80
- Median household income
- $68,713
- Average household income
- $100,202
- Median home value
- $289,500
- Jobs located here
- 25,133
- Daytime population
- 61,754Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Murrells Inlet area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. 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 the Murrells Inlet area. 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 South Carolina
Every South Carolina market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in South Carolina for child care centers and preschools, numbered among those based in South Carolina, with the Murrells Inlet area marked.
Top small-town markets in South Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Seneca, SC | 77 | 15 | 4.3 | $938K | +6.3% | #34 of 454 |
| 2Murrells Inlet, SC | 71 | 11 | 4.1 | $1.1M | +3.8% | #68 of 454 |
| 3Newberry, SC | 62 | 5 | 3.3 | $1.1M | +4.8% | #128 of 454 |
| 4Greenwood, SC | 57 | 15 | 4.0 | $860K | +1.7% | #173 of 454 |
| 5Gaffney, SC | 45 | 9 | 4.1 | $768K | +3.7% | #275 of 454 |
| 6Orangeburg, SC | 22 | 19 | 5.7 | $557K | −0.9% | #417 of 454 |
Other business types in the Murrells Inlet area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
- Child care and preschools71
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many child care centers and preschools are in the Murrells Inlet, SC area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 11 child care centers and preschools in the Murrells Inlet area. One of them (9%) is a chain location. The listings count day care centers and preschools. Official counts show 15 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in 2023. Official counts list 88 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Murrells Inlet, SC area spend on child care and other personal services?
About $12.1M a year, or $446 per household. That is 23% below the U.S. average (an index of 77, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 11 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $1.1M per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 27,129 households in the Murrells Inlet area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Murrells Inlet, SC area compare with the U.S. for child care centers and preschools?
The Murrells Inlet area 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 $1.1M, 10% above the U.S. figure of $1M. At the U.S. ratio of child care centers and preschools to household spending, the Murrells Inlet area would have about 12, against 11 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,809 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S.
How fast is the Murrells Inlet, SC area growing?
Population estimates put the Murrells Inlet area at 65,912 people in 2025, up 3.8% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 27,129 households. Median household income in the Murrells Inlet area is $68,713, 15% 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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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 Murrells Inlet area scores 71 for child care centers and preschools (upper middle), #68 of 454 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Murrells Inlet area. 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 the Murrells Inlet area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Murrells Inlet area?
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 the Murrells Inlet area. 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.