About The Daycare Directory

The Daycare Directory is a ranked directory of licensed daycares and childcare centers across the United States. We index centers by program type, city, and accreditation, and we publish only what we can verify.

Guide Score Methodology

Our rankings are computed algorithmically from publicly available data including Google reviews, state licensing records, NAEYC accreditation, and web presence. We do not accept payment for rankings.

The Guide Score (0–100) is composed of seven weighted factors:

Google Rating (35%)

The center's Google Business rating on a 0–5 scale, normalized to 0–35 points.

Review Volume (20%)

Logarithmic scale based on total Google review count.

Web & Contact Presence (20%)

Points for website, Facebook, and email.

Profile Completeness (15%)

Points for description, director, tagline, featured image, and phone number.

Accreditation (5%)

Points for NAEYC, NECPA, NAFCC, and CDA credentials.

Press Recognition (3%)

Points per verified press mention.

Years of Operation (2%)

Based on the center's opening year, up to the cap for 20+ years.

Scores recalculate with every data update. Centers cannot pay to appear or rank higher.

No paid placement

Rankings on program and city pages reflect our algorithmic Guide Score. Centers cannot pay to appear or to rank higher. If you believe a ranking is inaccurate, please contact us with specifics.