Editorial corrections verified September 15, 2026. Fixed 2026 edition: CBP 2023, population 2024, NES 2023, and business applications Aug-2025 through Jul-2026.
How big is the US child care industry? As of Census County Business Patterns 2023, the United States has 82,162 employer establishments in this category employing 1,045,052 people, with combined annual payroll of $31.0 billion. This page compiles market size, state distribution, payroll measures, nonemployer activity where published, and broader-sector business applications — every number sourced to federal data, with the limits below.
Census County Business Patterns counts employer establishments in NAICS 624410 — Child Care Services (Census label: child day care services). An establishment is a business location with paid employees; one firm can operate more than one. CBP does not report licensed capacity, ages served, or whether a site is a center versus a home-based employer.
Figures in the market-size tables cover employer establishments in Child Care Services (NAICS 624410) — locations with at least one paid employee, including some home-based employers. They are not a state licensing registry, licensed-center count, or seat/capacity inventory. Owner-run home daycares without payroll are counted separately in the solo operators section below.
Key Child Care Industry Statistics
- There are 82,162 employer establishments in this Census category in the United States (County Business Patterns, 2023).
- Employer establishments are the minority form: 533,596 owner-run home daycares operate as nonemployer businesses (2023 Census Nonemployer Statistics) — 6.5 for every employer establishment.
- Those establishments employ 1,045,052 people with combined annual payroll of $31.0 billion.
- Annual payroll divided by March employment averages $29,695 per employee per year (includes part-time staff and all occupations in the category — not an occupational wage or FTE salary). The average establishment has 12.7 employees and $378k in annual payroll.
- California has the most establishments of any state — 9,670, or 11.8% of the national total.
- Relative to population, Maine has the highest employer-establishment density (48.0 per 100,000 residents) and Nevada the lowest (12.2). Density is not the same as local opportunity or saturation of every competitor.
- Payroll per March employee is highest in District of Columbia ($41,669) and lowest in Iowa ($21,205).
- The category accounts for 0.98% of all US employer establishments.
- Americans filed 386,004 business applications in the broader Health Care and Social Assistance sector (NAICS62) in the twelve months from Aug-2025 through Jul-2026 — a +16.2% change year over year (Census Business Formation Statistics). Those are sector-wide applications, not completed employer formations and not counts limited to this 6-digit industry.
- sole prop net profit by state
- employer ownership mix (ABS)
Market Size
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Employer establishments | 82,162 |
| Employees (March employment) | 1,045,052 |
| Annual payroll | $31.0 billion |
| Annual payroll / March employment | $29,695/year |
| Average employees per establishment | 12.7 |
| Average payroll per establishment | $378k/year |
| Share of all US employer establishments | 0.98% |
The Biggest States
| State | Establishments | Employees |
|---|---|---|
| California | 9,670 | 89,288 |
| New York | 6,702 | 84,613 |
| Texas | 6,242 | 91,240 |
| Florida | 4,651 | 64,646 |
| Pennsylvania | 3,823 | 46,742 |
Market size is not the same as local opportunity. Relative to population, Maine has the highest employer-establishment density (48.0 per 100,000 residents) while Nevada has the lowest (12.2). Density omits nonemployers and does not measure contracts, service radius, or competitors serving the same customers. We publish a separate screening index with its own methodology caveats: Best States to Start a Daycare.
Payroll by State
These figures are annual industry payroll divided by March employment for employer establishments in the category. They include part-time employees and all occupations on the payroll. They are not BLS occupational wage quotes, technician/stylist pay rates, or complete hiring costs.
| Highest payroll / March employment | Annual |
|---|---|
| District of Columbia | $41,669 |
| California | $37,322 |
| Massachusetts | $36,239 |
| Washington | $35,223 |
| New York | $34,560 |
| Lowest payroll / March employment | Annual |
|---|---|
| Iowa | $21,205 |
| South Dakota | $22,216 |
| Mississippi | $22,890 |
| Louisiana | $23,077 |
| North Dakota | $23,282 |
Solo Operators: The Nonemployer Side of the Industry
For state-level nonemployer establishment shares in child day care and peer services (2023 NES + CBP), see nonemployer share by state.
For private QCEW average annual pay and employees per establishment by state (2024), see employer pay and location size by state.
For a same-year business-count comparison, compare child care with other service industries. The study uses 2022 nonemployer businesses and employer firms, explains the effect of tax-exempt employers, and distinguishes having no paid employees from operating alone or at home.
The employer figures above are only part of the picture. The Census Bureau counts businesses with no paid employees separately, as nonemployers — and in this industry they are the majority: 533,596 owner-run home daycares filed as nonemployer businesses in 2023, about 6.5 for every employer establishment. Together they took in $11.1 billion in receipts — an average of $20,886 per solo business per year.
States With the Most Owner-Run Home Daycares
| State | Nonemployer businesses | Avg annual receipts | Solo per employer establishment |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | 89,457 | $25,368 | 9.3 |
| Texas | 50,317 | $14,484 | 8.1 |
| New York | 43,004 | $21,458 | 6.4 |
| Florida | 32,708 | $16,977 | 7.0 |
| Illinois | 27,456 | $21,053 | 8.7 |
Solo operation is highest relative to employers in Nevada (13.3 nonemployers per employer establishment) and lowest in New Hampshire (2.2), where a larger share of the industry runs on payroll.
How Much Do Daycares Make?
Revenue planning also depends on authorization and payment timing. Compare childcare subsidy funding and enrollment restrictions, including Indiana voucher trends and clearly labeled provider scenarios.
Operators exploring employer contracts can review employer-supported childcare cost benchmarks for selected counties. The analysis separates historical parent prices from hypothetical federal credit calculations; neither is a provider-profit measure or proof of demand.
The honest federal answer comes in two parts. For solo operators, the Census reports actual revenue: the average nonemployer daycare grossed $20,886 in annual receipts in 2023 — gross revenue before expenses, not take-home income. For employer establishments, the Census does not publish revenue at the state level, but payroll gives the scale: the average establishment carries $378k in annual payroll across 12.7 employees.
Where Owner-Run Home Daycares Gross the Most
| State | Avg annual receipts (solo) | Solo businesses |
|---|---|---|
| Washington | $42,672 | 7,641 |
| Massachusetts | $39,453 | 8,307 |
| Minnesota | $35,371 | 9,845 |
| South Dakota | $32,575 | 2,019 |
| North Dakota | $29,392 | 1,978 |
States with fewer than 1,000 nonemployer businesses excluded to avoid small-sample noise. Receipts are gross revenue as reported to the IRS, before any expenses.
New Business Formation
The Census Bureau tracks new business applications (Business Formation Statistics). In the twelve months from Aug-2025 through Jul-2026, Americans filed 386,004 applications in the Health Care and Social Assistance sector (NAICS62 — the broader 2-digit sector that contains this industry) — a +16.2% change from the prior twelve months. Applications are not completed employer formations, state LLC registrations, or measured growth in this 6-digit industry alone. State-by-state application counts, per-capita rates, and trends are on our business formation statistics page. For how new ventures fare once launched — 1-, 5-, and 10-year odds in every state — see business survival rates by state; for what they borrow to get started, SBA loan statistics. For insurance requirements state by state, see the daycare insurance guide.
Considering an LLC for your business?
An LLC is one business-structure option; it is not a universal requirement for starting a daycare. Many of the nonemployer businesses in these statistics operate without an LLC. Choose the structure that fits your circumstances and check operating licenses separately. If you choose an LLC, compare ZenBusiness filing services and current pricing.
Affiliate link — we earn a commission at no cost to you.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many daycare businesses are there in the US?
There are 82,162 employer establishments in this Census category in the United States as of the 2023 County Business Patterns, employing 1,045,052 people. Figures in the market-size tables cover employer establishments in Child Care Services (NAICS 624410) — locations with at least one paid employee, including some home-based employers. They are not a state licensing registry, licensed-center count, or seat/capacity inventory. Owner-run home daycares without payroll are counted separately in the solo operators section below.
How big is the US child care industry?
Measured by payroll, employer establishments in the category pay $31.0 billion in annual payroll across 1,045,052 employees — $29,695 when annual payroll is divided by March employment. That ratio is not an occupational wage quote or full-time-equivalent salary.
Which state has the most daycare businesses?
California leads with 9,670 employer establishments (11.8% of the US total), followed by New York (6,702) and Texas (6,242).
How many self-employed owner-run home daycares are there in the US?
The Census Bureau’s 2023 Nonemployer Statistics count 533,596 operations with no paid employees in this category — owner-run home daycares operating alone — averaging $20,886 in annual receipts. That is about 6.5 solo businesses for every employer establishment.
How much does a daycare make?
For solo operators the Census reports actual revenue: the average nonemployer daycare grossed $20,886 in 2023 — gross receipts before expenses, not profit. Employer establishments are larger on payroll: the average establishment carries $378k in annual payroll across 12.7 employees; the Census does not publish their revenue at the state level.
Sources & Citation
| Data | Source | Vintage |
|---|---|---|
| Establishments, employment, payroll (NAICS 624410, Child Care Services) | U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns | 2023 |
| Business applications (broader sector NAICS62, not 6-digit industry formations) | U.S. Census Bureau, Business Formation Statistics | Aug-2025 through Jul-2026 |
| Solo operators (nonemployer businesses, NAICS 62441, Child Care Services) | U.S. Census Bureau, Nonemployer Statistics | 2023 |
| State population (per-capita rates) | U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates | 2024 |
Definitions: CBP establishments, employment and payroll; BFS applications versus formations; NAICS industry scope. Business structures: SBA business-structure guidance.
You are welcome to cite these statistics with attribution and a link to this page. The editorial correction date does not mean the Census inputs were advanced past the fixed edition above.
Related research: daycare worker wages vs parent prices by state (NDCP prices paired with OEWS childcare wages).
Related: unemployment vs service hiring by state — daycare payroll employment change vs FRED state unemployment (correlation, not causation).
Related: personal income vs business formation — BEA income growth vs Census applications by state (correlation, not causation).
Related: regional price parities vs wages and daycare — BEA SARPP price levels vs OEWS wages and NDCP daycare prices (purchasing-power check, not a ranking).
Related: home-services demand by state — ACS young-child households and working-parent structure (daycare demand layers that are not kids-per-provider).
Related: service business openings, closings, and churn — education & health services BED openings/closings and job churn by state (sector grain; not daycare-only NAICS).