Childcare in Butte County, by the numbers.

Butte County has 68 licensed center programs with 3,512 licensed spots, and 46 large home daycares.

Source: Child Care Licensing facility search, California Department of Social Services, Community Care Licensing Division. Read November 3, 2026.

  • 68

    Licensed center programs

    89 center licenses

  • 3,512

    Licensed spots in centers

    About 52 per program

  • 46

    Large home daycares

    642 spots

  • 3

    New center programs

    8 closed in the same months

Spots for young children in Butte County

38

licensed spots for every 100 children under 5

California as a whole has 42.

Butte County has about 10,410 children under 5, by the Census Bureau's estimate.

Center programs opened, November 2025 to October 2026

3 opened at a new address. 8 addresses closed their last center license.

  • November 20250
  • December 20250
  • January 20260
  • February 20260
  • March 20260
  • April 20261
  • May 20260
  • June 20260
  • July 20260
  • August 20261
  • September 20260
  • October 20261

Kinds of center license in Butte County

1 programs hold only a school-age license: before and after school care.

  • Day care center46
  • Infant center20
  • Single licensed child care center15
  • School-age day care center8

Cities with the most center programs

By the city written on each license.

  • Chico39
  • Oroville19
  • Gridley3
  • Magalia2
  • Paradise2

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Getting licensed in California

California licenses child care centers and family child care homes separately. See the ratios, trainings and checklist the state asks for in our California licensing guide.

Opening one? Read how to start a daycare in California or how to start a home daycare, step by step.

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Questions, answered

How many licensed childcare centers are in Butte County?

68 center programs, holding 89 center licenses and 3,512 licensed spots, as of November 3, 2026.

How many large home daycares are in Butte County?

46 large home daycares, with 642 spots, as of November 3, 2026.

How many childcare centers opened in Butte County in the last year?

3 center programs opened at a new address from November 2025 to October 2026. In the same months, 8 addresses closed their last center license.

How many licensed childcare spots are there per child in Butte County?

38 licensed spots for every 100 children under 5. The child count is the Census Bureau's estimate for July 1, 2025.

Where can I check a childcare program's license in California?

On California Department of Social Services, Community Care Licensing Division's public facility search. Search by the program's name, address or license number.

About these numbers

Every license count here comes from the state's license file, read November 3, 2026.

A center program is the active center licenses one licensee holds at one address. A day care center and its infant center count as one program.

Openings and closings cover November 2025 to October 2026.

An opening is a program first licensed then, at an address with no earlier center license.

A closing is an address whose last center license closed in that time.

Home daycares are large family child care homes, for up to 14 children. Small homes are not in the state's file.

Children under 5 are the Census Bureau's estimates for July 1, 2025.

Spots for young children leave out school-age licenses and add home daycare spots. Some serve older children.

This page is a summary of public records. It is not legal advice, and licenses change every week.

To check one program, search the state's own lookup.

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