Groundwork

Child care · County · Wisconsin

Child care centers and preschools in St. Croix County, WI

How St. Croix County, WI 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 67 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #342 of 1,611 scored counties
#10 of 45 scored counties in Wisconsin

Listings
21
1 chain location (5%)
Official establishments
20
−20.0% since 2019
Household spending a year
$20.7M
On child care and other personal services · $553 a household
Spending per listing
$987K
In line with the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
5.6
3% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
98,276
+4.7% since 2020

See the child care centers and preschools around any address in St. Croix 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 St. Croix 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

Household spending on child care and other personal services in St. Croix County comes to about $20.7M a year: $553 per household, 5% below the U.S. average. That is about $987K of household spending for each center on map listings, in line with the U.S. figure of $1M.

St. Croix County has 21 child care centers and preschools on map listings as of September 2026. One of them (5%) is a chain location, against 12% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 5.6, 3% below the U.S. rate of 5.8.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as child care services in St. Croix County was 20 in 2023, down 20.0% from 2019. That is one for every 1,876 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. Official counts also show 146 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 4 SBA-backed loans worth $3.1M have gone to businesses classed as child care services in St. Croix County.

Between 2020 and 2025, the population of St. Croix County grew 4.7%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for child care centers and preschools in St. Croix County is 67 (upper middle), #342 of 1,611 scored counties and #10 of 45 scored counties in Wisconsin. That puts it in the top quarter of counties.

How St. Croix County compares

The same measures for Wisconsin 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 St. Croix County, WI compared with Wisconsin and the U.S.
MeasureSt. Croix CountyWisconsinU.S.
Listings per 10k households5.65.15.8
Spending per listing$987K$832K$1M
Households per official establishment1,8761,5611,573
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−20.0%+0.3%+5.7%
Population growth, 2020–2025+4.7%+1.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on child care and other personal services$553$422$581
Median household income$103,046$77,485$80,734
Groundwork market score6735

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
25 → 20−20.0% over the period
Employees, 2023
276
Annual payroll, 2023
$7.7M
One-person businesses, 2023
146Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
211 chain location
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
21The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
4
Amount
$3.1M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as child care services in St. Croix 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 St. Croix County

Population, 2025 estimate
98,276+4.7% since 2020
Households
37,511
Median age
40.9
Homes lived in by their owners
78%
Vehicles per household
2.2
Land area
722 sq. mi.
People per square mile
133
Median household income
$103,046+21.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$126,955
Median home value
$377,700
Jobs located here
37,396
Daytime population
80,378Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in St. Croix 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 St. Croix 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 Wisconsin

Every Wisconsin market ranked →

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

Top counties in Wisconsin

Counties in Wisconsin ranked for child care centers and preschools by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Washington County, WI74183.2$1.6M+1.8%#169 of 1,611
2Door County, WI7153.3$1.2M+1.6%#232 of 1,611
3Fond du Lac County, WI70102.3$1.7M+0.5%#250 of 1,611
4Walworth County, WI70133.0$1.5M+0.8%#251 of 1,611
5Marathon County, WI69122.1$1.9M+1.0%#271 of 1,611
6Sauk County, WI6972.5$1.6M+1.3%#274 of 1,611
7Manitowoc County, WI6982.3$1.6M+0.4%#275 of 1,611
8Outagamie County, WI69303.8$1.2M+2.6%#287 of 1,611
9Pierce County, WI6774.4$1.1M+3.1%#340 of 1,611
10St. Croix County, WI67215.6$987K+4.7%#342 of 1,611

Other business types in St. Croix 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 St. Croix County, WI?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 21 child care centers and preschools in St. Croix County. One of them (5%) is a chain location. The listings count day care centers and preschools. Official counts show 20 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in 2023, down 20.0% from 2019. Another 146 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

How much do households in St. Croix County, WI spend on child care and other personal services?

About $20.7M a year, or $553 per household. That is 5% below the U.S. average (an index of 95, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 21 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $987K per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 37,511 households in St. Croix County and national spending patterns by income.

How does St. Croix County, WI compare with the U.S. for child care centers and preschools?

St. Croix County has 5.6 child care centers and preschools per 10,000 households, 3% below the U.S. rate of 5.8. Spending per center is $987K, 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 1,876 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. The official count fell 20.0% from 2019 to 2023, against +5.7% for the U.S.

How fast is St. Croix County, WI growing?

Population estimates put St. Croix County at 98,276 people in 2025, up 4.7% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 37,511 households. Median household income in St. Croix County is $103,046, 28% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 21.6%, 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. St. Croix County scores 67 for child care centers and preschools (upper middle), #342 of 1,611 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in St. Croix 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 St. Croix County

Screening a site or an acquisition in St. Croix 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 St. Croix 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.