Data · checked November 12, 2026
Licensed child care seats by county in New York
For each New York county: the licensed capacity of child care centers and school-age programs, compared with the number of children ages 0 to 13. Statewide there are 22.9 seats for every 100 children. Among the 35 counties with at least 10,000 children, Oswego County has the fewest (9.1) and New York County the most (43.6).
22.9
licensed seats per 100 children ages 0 to 13 in New York (centers and school-age programs)
9.1
in Oswego County, the fewest among 35 counties with 10,000+ children
681,425
licensed seats in 7,588 centers and school-age programs
28.5
seats per 100 children when family child care homes are added
Findings
What the data shows
- Oswego County has 1,630 licensed seats in centers and school-age programs for 18,002 children ages 0 to 13: 9.1 per 100, the fewest among the 35 New York counties with at least 10,000 children. With family day care homes it is 11.1, still the lowest. Statewide: 22.9 (28.5 with homes).
- Among all 62 counties, Herkimer County has the lowest rate once homes are counted: 709 for 8,901 children, 8.0 per 100.
- In the Bronx, a year of infant care in a center cost 27.6% of the median family income in 2022, the highest share of any New York county and almost four times the 7% of income that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services uses as its affordability benchmark.
Compare
Fewest and most seats per child, counties with 10,000+ children
- Oswego9.1
- Oneida9.7
- Rockland10.8
- Orange10.9
- Sullivan10.9
- Wayne11.5
- St. Lawrence12.2
- Chemung12.5
- Chautauqua12.6
- Clinton12.6
Seats per 100 children ages 0 to 13. The thin line marks the statewide figure (22.9).
- New York43.6
- Kings31.4
- Queens29.5
- Bronx28.2
- Jefferson27.4
- Albany26.1
- Westchester24.8
- Richmond22.8
- Nassau21.3
- Putnam19.8
Seats per 100 children ages 0 to 13. The thin line marks the statewide figure (22.9).
All the numbers
Every New York county
| County | Children 0 to 13 | Centers and school-age programs | Center and school-age seats | Per 100 children | Per 100, with family homes | Infant center care, 2022 (week / share of income) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albany County | 42,395 | 130 | 11,084 | 26.1 | 29.0 | $285 / 13.4% |
| Allegany County | 6,919 | 17 | 1,151 | 16.6 | 18.9 | $247 / 16.9% |
| Bronx County | 252,592 | 666 | 71,206 | 28.2 | 47.6 | $300 / 27.6% |
| Broome County | 26,648 | 59 | 4,100 | 15.4 | 17.3 | $247 / 16.3% |
| Cattaraugus County | 11,804 | 20 | 1,621 | 13.7 | 15.4 | $247 / 18.1% |
| Cayuga County | 10,297 | 24 | 1,747 | 17.0 | 19.6 | $247 / 15.0% |
| Chautauqua County | 18,720 | 30 | 2,362 | 12.6 | 15.0 | $247 / 17.4% |
| Chemung County | 12,009 | 24 | 1,501 | 12.5 | 17.4 | $247 / 16.5% |
| Chenango County | 6,952 | 12 | 385 | 5.5 | 10.2 | $247 / 17.1% |
| Clinton County | 10,230 | 26 | 1,285 | 12.6 | 19.7 | $247 / 14.8% |
| Columbia County | 6,451 | 14 | 921 | 14.3 | 16.1 | $289 / 15.0% |
| Cortland County | 6,103 | 18 | 921 | 15.1 | 18.2 | $247 / 15.9% |
| Delaware County | 5,055 | 16 | 716 | 14.2 | 19.2 | $247 / 17.1% |
| Dutchess County | 40,091 | 106 | 6,537 | 16.3 | 19.6 | $285 / 12.5% |
| Erie County | 139,820 | 285 | 23,442 | 16.8 | 18.5 | $289 / 16.3% |
| Essex County | 3,871 | 16 | 634 | 16.4 | 20.7 | $247 / 15.8% |
| Franklin County | 6,700 | 13 | 632 | 9.4 | 13.6 | $247 / 17.5% |
| Fulton County | 7,226 | 14 | 1,066 | 14.8 | 16.3 | $247 / 17.5% |
| Genesee County | 8,168 | 14 | 878 | 10.7 | 12.5 | $247 / 14.8% |
| Greene County | 5,694 | 8 | 446 | 7.8 | 10.3 | $247 / 14.1% |
| Hamilton County | 441 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 10.9 | $247 / 15.8% |
| Herkimer County | 8,901 | 9 | 371 | 4.2 | 8.0 | $247 / 14.6% |
| Jefferson County | 20,373 | 43 | 5,589 | 27.4 | 30.3 | $247 / 16.7% |
| Kings County | 427,185 | 1,680 | 134,162 | 31.4 | 36.9 | $300 / 18.5% |
| Lewis County | 4,494 | 12 | 888 | 19.8 | 21.4 | $247 / 17.3% |
| Livingston County | 7,988 | 18 | 1,518 | 19.0 | 21.6 | $247 / 14.4% |
| Madison County | 9,204 | 14 | 965 | 10.5 | 12.7 | $247 / 14.4% |
| Monroe County | 109,992 | 177 | 17,945 | 16.3 | 21.9 | $289 / 15.8% |
| Montgomery County | 9,008 | 12 | 1,160 | 12.9 | 15.3 | $247 / 17.0% |
| Nassau County | 215,883 | 393 | 45,958 | 21.3 | 27.3 | $325 / 10.6% |
| New York County | 165,865 | 845 | 72,396 | 43.6 | 49.2 | $300 / 11.9% |
| Niagara County | 30,115 | 62 | 4,690 | 15.6 | 17.2 | $247 / 14.9% |
| Oneida County | 35,479 | 54 | 3,433 | 9.7 | 13.7 | $247 / 15.2% |
| Onondaga County | 70,622 | 123 | 10,415 | 14.7 | 19.4 | $289 / 15.9% |
| Ontario County | 15,623 | 29 | 2,750 | 17.6 | 20.1 | $289 / 15.4% |
| Orange County | 79,614 | 116 | 8,688 | 10.9 | 13.2 | $285 / 13.5% |
| Orleans County | 5,627 | 9 | 493 | 8.8 | 10.5 | $247 / 16.4% |
| Oswego County | 18,002 | 28 | 1,630 | 9.1 | 11.1 | $247 / 15.9% |
| Otsego County | 7,261 | 13 | 771 | 10.6 | 13.3 | $247 / 15.6% |
| Putnam County | 14,120 | 36 | 2,796 | 19.8 | 22.0 | $325 / 12.3% |
| Queens County | 331,256 | 929 | 97,795 | 29.5 | 35.1 | $300 / 16.8% |
| Rensselaer County | 21,757 | 52 | 3,697 | 17.0 | 19.5 | $289 / 14.3% |
| Richmond County | 77,131 | 213 | 17,610 | 22.8 | 26.8 | $300 / 13.4% |
| Rockland County | 87,297 | 86 | 9,448 | 10.8 | 13.7 | $325 / 13.5% |
| Saratoga County | 33,084 | 82 | 6,414 | 19.4 | 21.8 | $285 / 12.2% |
| Schenectady County | 25,883 | 58 | 4,135 | 16.0 | 20.8 | $289 / 15.2% |
| Schoharie County | 3,818 | 7 | 492 | 12.9 | 16.4 | $247 / 15.2% |
| Schuyler County | 2,266 | 2 | 189 | 8.3 | 11.1 | $247 / 15.8% |
| Seneca County | 5,039 | 8 | 454 | 9.0 | 11.7 | $247 / 15.7% |
| St. Lawrence County | 15,306 | 19 | 1,873 | 12.2 | 16.2 | $247 / 17.1% |
| Steuben County | 14,646 | 40 | 2,774 | 18.9 | 24.4 | $247 / 15.7% |
| Suffolk County | 231,774 | 354 | 37,104 | 16.0 | 19.6 | $325 / 11.9% |
| Sullivan County | 13,235 | 19 | 1,442 | 10.9 | 13.1 | $247 / 15.6% |
| Tioga County | 7,059 | 9 | 551 | 7.8 | 10.6 | $247 / 15.4% |
| Tompkins County | 9,997 | 33 | 2,703 | 27.0 | 31.1 | $289 / 14.2% |
| Ulster County | 21,747 | 57 | 3,016 | 13.9 | 17.3 | $285 / 14.2% |
| Warren County | 8,056 | 20 | 1,252 | 15.5 | 17.2 | $289 / 15.3% |
| Washington County | 8,260 | 8 | 420 | 5.1 | 10.1 | $247 / 15.8% |
| Wayne County | 13,818 | 23 | 1,583 | 11.5 | 12.9 | $247 / 14.1% |
| Westchester County | 154,757 | 371 | 38,390 | 24.8 | 29.8 | $325 / 11.5% |
| Wyoming County | 5,307 | 10 | 511 | 9.6 | 12.8 | $247 / 15.7% |
| Yates County | 4,304 | 3 | 319 | 7.4 | 9.2 | $247 / 16.2% |
Method
How we counted
- Seats are licensed capacity: the most children a program may care for at once. They are not openings, and they are not enrollment.
- The main count covers licensed child care centers and school-age programs as listed in the BackPR program finder, from November 12, 2026. Family child care homes are not in the finder; the "Per 100, with family homes" column adds their licensed capacity from the same OCFS dataset (family and group family day care homes, statewide), as of November 12, 2026.
- Outside New York City, centers and school-age programs come from OCFS. In the city, group child care centers and school-based programs come from the NYC Health Department.
- Children are ages 0 to 13 (Census "under 5" plus "5 to 13"), July 1, 2025. Many seats are in school-age programs, so we compare seats with all children 0 to 13.
- Rankings use counties with at least 10,000 children, so very small counties don't swing the list. Every county is in the CSV.
- Only state-licensed care is counted. Public school pre-K, programs the state exempts from licensing, and care by relatives or nannies are not in these numbers.
- Families often use care outside their home county, so a low county number doesn't mean no care is within reach.
- Infant care prices and income shares are 2022 figures from the U.S. Department of Labor's National Database of Childcare Prices, in 2022 dollars. Income share = weekly median price × 52 / county median family income.
- BackPR began tracking listings on October 20, 2026. That is too recent to measure openings and closings from our own records, so this page reports a single snapshot.
Download: CSV, every county · free under CC BY 4.0.
Sources:
- New York State Office of Children and Family Services, regulated programs (data.ny.gov cb42-qumz)
- NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, regulated child care programs (gy3q-4tzp)
- U.S. Census Bureau, Vintage 2025 county population estimates (July 1, 2025)
- U.S. Department of Labor, National Database of Childcare Prices (2022)
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Child Care and Development Fund rule (2016), 7% affordability benchmark
About BackPR: BackPR makes registration and payment software for youth programs, camps and child care providers, and runs a free directory of state-licensed programs. This page uses only public government data. Questions: support@backpr.com.
To cite: BackPR analysis of New York child care licensing data and U.S. Census Bureau estimates, November 12, 2026. https://backpr.com/resources/child-care-seats-by-county/new-york
FAQ
Common questions
Which New York county has the fewest child care seats per child?
Among counties with at least 10,000 children ages 0 to 13, Oswego County: 1,630 licensed seats in centers and school-age programs for 18,002 children, or 9.1 per 100. The statewide figure is 22.9.
Are family child care homes included?
Not in the main count. A second column adds the licensed capacity of family child care homes from the same OCFS dataset (family and group family day care homes, statewide), dated November 12, 2026. With homes, New York has 28.5 seats per 100 children.
Can I use this data?
Yes. The CSV is free under CC BY 4.0. Please cite "BackPR analysis of New York licensing data and U.S. Census Bureau estimates" and link to this page.