Child care · County · Virginia
Child care centers and preschools in Harrisonburg city, VA
How Harrisonburg city, VA 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 40 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,097 of 1,611 scored counties
#48 of 61 scored counties in Virginia
- Listings
- 9
- 1 chain location (11%)
- Official establishments
- 9
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $6.8M
- On child care and other personal services · $394 a household
- Spending per listing
- $761K
- 24% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 5.2
- 10% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 50,839
- −1.7% since 2020
See the child care centers and preschools around any address in Harrisonburg city
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 Harrisonburg city. 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
At $394 per household (32% below the U.S. average), households in Harrisonburg city spend about $6.8M a year on child care and other personal services. That is about $761K of household spending for each center on map listings, 24% below the U.S. figure of $1M.
Harrisonburg city has 9 child care centers and preschools on map listings as of September 2026. One of them (11%) 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.
Official counts show 9 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in Harrisonburg city in 2023. That is one for every 1,929 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. Official counts list 53 one-person businesses without payroll.
Population estimates show Harrisonburg city declined 1.7% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S. For child care centers and preschools, Harrisonburg city has a Groundwork market score of 40 (lower middle): #1,097 of 1,611 scored counties and #48 of 61 scored counties in Virginia.
How Harrisonburg city compares
The same measures for Virginia 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 | Harrisonburg city | Virginia | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 5.2 | 5.9 | 5.8 |
| Spending per listing | $761K | $1M | $1M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,929 | 1,702 | 1,573 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +0.4% | +5.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −1.7% | +2.8% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on child care and other personal services | $394 | $602 | $581 |
| Median household income | $62,254 | $93,170 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 40 | 62 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 10 → 9
- Employees, 2023
- 117
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $3.1M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 53Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 91 chain location
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 7The 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 Harrisonburg city, 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 Harrisonburg city
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 50,839−1.7% since 2020
- Households
- 17,360
- Median age
- 31.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 39%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 17 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 2,964
- Median household income
- $62,254+33.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $82,014
- Median home value
- $299,100
- Jobs located here
- 34,193
- Daytime population
- 64,079Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Harrisonburg city?
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 Harrisonburg city. 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 Virginia
Every Virginia market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Virginia for child care centers and preschools, numbered among those based in Virginia, with Harrisonburg city marked.
Top counties in Virginia
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Frederick County, VA | 93 | 12 | 3.4 | $1.7M | +8.8% | #4 of 1,611 |
| 2Culpeper County, VA | 91 | 7 | 3.7 | $1.5M | +9.3% | #12 of 1,611 |
| 3Louisa County, VA | 87 | 5 | 3.2 | $1.6M | +13.6% | #25 of 1,611 |
| 4Suffolk city, VA | 86 | 15 | 4.0 | $1.4M | +10.4% | #34 of 1,611 |
| 5Bedford County, VA | 85 | 5 | 1.5 | $3.1M | +4.4% | #36 of 1,611 |
| 6Orange County, VA | 85 | 7 | 4.7 | $1.2M | +10.1% | #42 of 1,611 |
| 7Fauquier County, VA | 82 | 15 | 5.6 | $1.4M | +4.8% | #64 of 1,611 |
| 8James City County, VA | 78 | 15 | 4.7 | $1.4M | +6.2% | #114 of 1,611 |
| 9Richmond city, VA | 78 | 41 | 3.9 | $1.1M | +4.6% | #120 of 1,611 |
| 10Franklin County, VA | 77 | 6 | 2.6 | $1.6M | +1.9% | #127 of 1,611 |
| 48Harrisonburg city, VA | 40 | 9 | 5.2 | $761K | −1.7% | #1,097 of 1,611 |
Other business types in Harrisonburg city
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 preschools40
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many child care centers and preschools are in Harrisonburg city, VA?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 9 child care centers and preschools in Harrisonburg city. One of them (11%) is a chain location. The listings count day care centers and preschools. Official counts show 9 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in 2023. Official counts also show 53 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Harrisonburg city, VA spend on child care and other personal services?
About $6.8M a year, or $394 per household. That is 32% below the U.S. average (an index of 68, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 9 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $761K per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 17,360 households in Harrisonburg city and national spending patterns by income.
How does Harrisonburg city, VA compare with the U.S. for child care centers and preschools?
Harrisonburg city 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 $761K, 24% below the U.S. figure of $1M. At the U.S. ratio of child care centers and preschools to household spending, Harrisonburg city would have about 7, against 9 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,929 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S.
How fast is Harrisonburg city, VA growing?
Population estimates put Harrisonburg city at 50,839 people in 2025, down 1.7% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 17,360 households. Median household income in Harrisonburg city is $62,254, 23% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 33.4%, 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. Harrisonburg city scores 40 for child care centers and preschools (lower middle), #1,097 of 1,611 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Harrisonburg city. 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 Harrisonburg city
Screening a site or an acquisition in Harrisonburg city?
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 Harrisonburg city. 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.