Data · November 8, 2026
Child care capacity by state: seats per 100 children
How many licensed child care seats does each state have for its children? We added up the licensed capacity in each state's public licensing data and divided it by the number of children aged 0 to 12. Across the 14 states and DC with comparable data, there are 20.2 seats for every 100 children.
20.2
Licensed seats per 100 children aged 0 to 12, across 14 states and DC
5,091,427
Licensed seats in those 14 states and DC
43.3
Seats per 100 children in Delaware, the most
12.1
Seats per 100 children in Utah, the fewest
Compare
Compare two states
| Measure | Delaware | Texas |
|---|---|---|
| Seats per 100 children (0 to 12) | 43.3 | 20.9 |
| Licensed seats | 64,970 | 1,130,582 |
| Licensed programs | 628 | 9,596 |
| Programs per 10,000 children | 41.9 | 17.8 |
| Average seats per program | 103 | 118 |
| Most 4-year-olds per staff member | 12 | 18 |
| Most school-age children per staff member | 15 | 26 |
Each point on the chart is a score from 0 to 100: how the state ranks against the other states on this page.
State by state
14 states and DC, one chart each
Each chart shows five scores from 0 to 100: seats per child, programs per child, average program size and two staff ratios. A bigger shape means the state ranks higher than the others here. Most seats per child first.
Delaware
43.3 seats per 100 children
Vermont
33.7 seats per 100 children
Nebraska
32.5 seats per 100 children
Colorado
29.6 seats per 100 children
New Jersey
28.4 seats per 100 children
District of Columbia
26.3 seats per 100 children
Kentucky
24.5 seats per 100 children
New York
24.1 seats per 100 children
Florida
24.0 seats per 100 children
Massachusetts
21.8 seats per 100 children
Texas
20.9 seats per 100 children
Michigan
16.1 seats per 100 children
Washington
15.4 seats per 100 children
California
12.9 seats per 100 children
Utah
12.1 seats per 100 children
All the numbers
Licensed seats and programs by state
- Capacity is the most children a licensed program may care for at one time. It is not enrollment or open slots, and a seat can serve a child part-time or before and after school.
- Seats are in licensed child care centers and school-age programs. Home-based family child care isn't included, so states that rely more on family child care homes rank lower. States also license and name program types differently; check each state's source.
- Children are ages 0 to 12, from the U.S. Census Bureau's Vintage 2024 estimates (July 1, 2024). Seats are from our finder on November 8, 2026, so the two dates differ.
- Where fewer than 95% of a state's listings publish a capacity, the seat count is a minimum, and the state is left out of the per-child figures, the totals and the charts (Pennsylvania).
- Ratios are the most children of that age one staff member may supervise in a licensed center under state rules.
- The chart scores (0 to 100) rank a state against the other states with a per-child figure. For ratios, fewer children per staff member scores higher.
- General information, not legal advice or a measure of quality.
Download: CSV · JSON · free under CC BY 4.0. Children: U.S. Census Bureau.
To cite: BackPR (2026). Licensed child care capacity by state: seats per 100 children (snapshot 2026-11-08). https://backpr.com/data/child-care-capacity-by-state.json. CC BY 4.0.
FAQ
Common questions
Which state has the most child care seats per child?
Among the 14 states and DC with comparable data, Delaware has the most: 43.3 licensed seats for every 100 children aged 0 to 12. Utah has the fewest, at 12.1.
How many child care seats are there per child in the U.S.?
Across the 14 states and DC with comparable data, there are 20.2 licensed seats for every 100 children aged 0 to 12 (5,091,427 seats for 25,157,676 children). Not every state publishes capacity, so this isn't a national total.
What is a child care desert?
The Center for American Progress defines a child care desert as a census tract with more than 50 children under 5 and either no licensed child care or more than three children under 5 for every licensed slot. This page measures whole states and children aged 0 to 12, so it doesn't label any state a desert.
Why are some states missing?
We include only states whose public licensing data is in our finder. Connecticut, Maryland, Minnesota, Tennessee and Virginia publish programs but not their licensed capacity, so they have no per-child figure. In Pennsylvania, too few listings publish a capacity to compare. Alaska's list covers Anchorage only, so it isn't compared either.
Can I use this data?
Yes. The dataset is free under CC BY 4.0. Download the CSV or JSON from this page and credit BackPR with a link.