Child care · Small-town market · Wisconsin
Child care centers and preschools in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson, WI area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for child care centers and preschools in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson, WI area, set against other small-town markets and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 52 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #218 of 454 scored small-town markets
#10 of 13 scored small-town markets based in Wisconsin
- Listings
- 22
- 2 chain locations (9%)
- Official establishments
- 16
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $14.3M
- On child care and other personal services · $411 a household
- Spending per listing
- $652K
- 35% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 6.3
- 9% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 86,505
- +0.3% since 2020
See the child care centers and preschools around any address in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson 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 Watertown-Fort Atkinson 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
As of September 2026, map listings count 22 child care centers and preschools in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area. Chain locations make up 9% of them, against 12% across the U.S. That comes to 6.3 for every 10,000 households, 9% above the U.S. rate of 5.8.
Households in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area spend about $14.3M a year on child care and other personal services, or $411 per household, 29% below the U.S. average. That works out to $652K per center, 35% below the U.S. figure of $1M.
Official counts show 16 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area in 2023. That is one for every 2,180 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. Official counts also show 76 one-person businesses without payroll.
Population estimates show the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area grew 0.3% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). For child care centers and preschools, the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area has a Groundwork market score of 52 (upper middle): #218 of 454 scored small-town markets and #10 of 13 scored small-town markets based in Wisconsin.
How the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area 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.
| Measure | Watertown-Fort Atkinson area | Wisconsin | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 6.3 | 5.1 | 5.8 |
| Spending per listing | $652K | $832K | $1M |
| Households per official establishment | 2,180 | 1,561 | 1,573 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +0.3% | +5.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +0.3% | +1.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on child care and other personal services | $411 | $422 | $581 |
| Median household income | $83,750 | $77,485 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 52 | 35 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 16
- Employees, 2023
- 161
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $3.9M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 76Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 222 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 14The 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 the Watertown-Fort Atkinson 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 Watertown-Fort Atkinson area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 86,505+0.3% since 2020
- Households
- 34,873
- Median age
- 42.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 73%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 557 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 155
- Median household income
- $83,750+26.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $100,082
- Median home value
- $274,100
- Jobs located here
- 34,853
- Daytime population
- 76,557Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson 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 Watertown-Fort Atkinson 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 Wisconsin
Every Wisconsin market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Wisconsin for child care centers and preschools, numbered among those based in Wisconsin, with the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area marked.
Top small-town markets in Wisconsin
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Baraboo, WI | 75 | 7 | 2.5 | $1.6M | +1.3% | #40 of 454 |
| 2Manitowoc, WI | 75 | 8 | 2.3 | $1.6M | +0.4% | #41 of 454 |
| 3Whitewater-Elkhorn, WI | 75 | 13 | 3.0 | $1.5M | +0.8% | #43 of 454 |
| 4Stevens Point-Plover, WI | 72 | 12 | 4.0 | $962K | +2.2% | #63 of 454 |
| 5Menomonie, WI | 58 | 10 | 5.7 | $677K | +1.7% | #168 of 454 |
| 6Shawano, WI | 56 | 9 | 4.8 | $696K | +1.4% | #183 of 454 |
| 7Wisconsin Rapids-Marshfield, WI | 55 | 13 | 4.0 | $869K | −0.2% | #187 of 454 |
| 8Beaver Dam, WI | 55 | 16 | 4.5 | $829K | −0.3% | #188 of 454 |
| 9Marinette, WI-MI | 53 | 10 | 3.4 | $917K | +0.3% | #205 of 454 |
| 10Watertown-Fort Atkinson, WI | 52 | 22 | 6.3 | $652K | +0.3% | #218 of 454 |
Other business types in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson 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 preschools52
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many child care centers and preschools are in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson, WI area?
The Watertown-Fort Atkinson area has 22 child care centers and preschools on map listings as of September 2026. 2 of them (9%) are chain locations. The listings count day care centers and preschools. Official counts show 16 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in 2023. Another 76 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson, WI area spend on child care and other personal services?
About $14.3M a year, or $411 per household. That is 29% below the U.S. average (an index of 71, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 22 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $652K per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 34,873 households in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Watertown-Fort Atkinson, WI area compare with the U.S. for child care centers and preschools?
The Watertown-Fort Atkinson area has 6.3 child care centers and preschools per 10,000 households, 9% above the U.S. rate of 5.8. Spending per center is $652K, 35% below the U.S. figure of $1M. At the national ratio of child care centers and preschools to household spending, the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area would have about 14, against 22 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,180 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S.
How fast is the Watertown-Fort Atkinson, WI area growing?
Population estimates put the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area at 86,505 people in 2025, up 0.3% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 34,873 households. The median household income in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson area is $83,750 a year, 4% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 26.3% 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. 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 Watertown-Fort Atkinson area scores 52 for child care centers and preschools (upper middle), #218 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 Watertown-Fort Atkinson 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 Watertown-Fort Atkinson area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson 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 Watertown-Fort Atkinson 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.