Licensed Preschool in Los Angeles, CA

Preschool in Los Angeles

As of August 2026

Los Angeles carries 1,434 providers in the California Department of Social Services' Community Care Licensing Division's licensing data, an almost even split between 719 child care centers and 715 family child care homes. That balance gives parents two genuinely different options at scale rather than one dominant model, with center capacity across the roster totaling 50,877 slots — an average of about 35 children per provider. CloverMap lets parents browse this full roster of verified Los Angeles listings by type, size, and the ages a provider serves.

What to know about childcare in Los Angeles

Los Angeles's child care roster includes 1,434 providers in CCLD's licensing data, made up of 719 licensed child care centers and 715 family child care homes — a near 50/50 split that is unusual at this scale. Centers typically operate from a dedicated facility with multiple staff members and separate classrooms organized by age group, which tends to suit families looking for structured group settings and predictable hours. Family child care homes operate out of a provider's residence, usually with a smaller number of children across mixed ages, and appeal to families wanting a more intimate, home-based setting or non-standard scheduling. With both models represented in nearly equal numbers, Los Angeles parents are not funneled toward one format by default — the choice comes down to what works for the family rather than what's available.

Reported licensed capacity across Los Angeles providers totals 50,877 children, averaging about 35 slots per provider. That average sits above what a single family child care home can typically hold on its own, reflecting the presence of larger centers pulling the citywide figure upward. For parents, capacity numbers are a starting point for gauging whether a provider runs a larger group program or a smaller, closer-knit one — worth confirming directly with any provider before enrolling, since actual open slots change constantly.

Age-group coverage in the Los Angeles roster is broad. Of the 1,434 providers, 830 report serving infants and 830 report serving toddlers, 1,239 report serving preschool-age children, and 754 report serving school-age children. Preschool coverage is the deepest, appearing in about 86% of providers, while infant and toddler care — usually the hardest ages to place, since it requires the lowest staff-to-child ratios — is reported by 58% of the roster. School-age coverage, often relevant for before- and after-school care, sits at 53%.

Every provider on this list operates under a license issued by the California Department of Social Services' Community Care Licensing Division. CCLD licenses centers and family child care homes under separate sets of standards covering staff-to-child ratios, health and safety practices, and the physical facility, and a current license means the state reviewed the operator against those standards before it could legally open its doors. The roster itself reflects licensing status, not day-to-day performance.

For a Los Angeles family starting a search, the near-even center/home split means it's worth deciding early which format fits — a center for a structured multi-classroom environment, or a family child care home for a smaller group and potentially more flexible hours. One example from the roster, 24TH STREET EARLY ED. CENTER, illustrates the kind of center-based listing parents will find alongside hundreds of family child care homes across the city. Given the size of the roster, filtering by the age of the child and the provider type is the fastest way to narrow 1,434 listings down to a manageable shortlist.