Licensed child care by state
124,532 licensed programs across 20 states: how many are centers, home daycares, licensed preschools and before-and-after-school programs, and how much of each state's care is home-based.
Share of licensed programs that are home daycares
A home daycare is a licensed or registered provider caring for children in their own home. Washington publishes no home file, so it shows none.
Source: state child care licence registers, program websites and Google business profiles as held by Preschool Index, synced September 2026. Statistics use every licensed program on record, including listings not yet released.
Every state in the index
| State | Programs | Centers | Home daycares | Preschool licences | School-age | Montessori | Head Start | Licensing data |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | 25,426 | 10,041 | 14,599 | in centers | 786 | 812 | 706 | licence + violations |
| New York | 18,303 | 4,295 | 11,430 | in centers | 2,578 | 144 | 78 | licence record |
| Massachusetts | 8,261 | 2,648 | 5,613 | in centers | in centers | 109 | 54 | licence record |
| Minnesota | 7,775 | 2,364 | 5,411 | in centers | in centers | 103 | 139 | licence record |
| Florida | 7,766 | 6,041 | 1,149 | in centers | 576 | 12 | 543 | licence record |
| Michigan | 7,629 | 4,480 | 3,149 | in centers | in centers | 127 | 204 | licence record |
| Pennsylvania | 7,359 | 5,858 | 1,501 | in centers | in centers | 5 | 878 | licence record |
| Ohio | 7,074 | 5,878 | 1,081 | in centers | 115 | 64 | 210 | licence record |
| Maryland | 6,954 | 3,056 | 3,898 | in centers | in centers | 17 | 81 | licence record |
| Illinois | 6,820 | 2,624 | 4,196 | in centers | in centers | 25 | 95 | licence record |
| Colorado | 4,300 | 1,644 | 1,283 | 459 | 914 | 44 | 24 | licence record |
| Connecticut | 3,127 | 1,348 | 1,779 | in centers | in centers | 36 | 17 | licence + violations |
| Nebraska | 2,690 | 845 | 1,573 | in centers | 272 | 19 | 7 | licence record |
| Arizona | 2,514 | 2,236 | 278 | in centers | in centers | 75 | 212 | licence record |
| Washington | 2,492 | 1,870 | 0 | in centers | 622 | 115 | 29 | licence record |
| Tennessee | 2,296 | 1,879 | 417 | in centers | in centers | 2 | 172 | licence record |
| Delaware | 1,209 | 598 | 611 | in centers | in centers | 16 | 22 | licence + violations |
| Texas | 1,049 | 551 | 314 | in centers | 184 | 103 | 6 | licence + violations |
| Vermont | 1,039 | 501 | 399 | in centers | 139 | 4 | 6 | licence record |
| District of Columbia | 449 | 365 | 84 | in centers | in centers | 23 | 0 | licence record |
"In centers" means the state licenses preschools or school-age programs under its center licence rather than a separate type. Montessori counts programs that state a Montessori approach on their own website.
Notes on reading these numbers
Why do home daycare counts vary so much between states?
States license home care differently. California's file covers only homes licensed for more than eight children, Washington publishes no home file, and some states register small homes without a licence. The count reflects each state's register, not the number of homes operating.
Does a program count once per licence?
Several licences at one address, such as a center licence and a separate infant or school-age licence, are merged into one program. Separate sites run by one operator count separately.