Licensed Daycares in Santa Barbara, CA

Daycare & Childcare in Santa Barbara

As of August 2026

Centers make up the majority of Santa Barbara's 93 CCLD-licensed providers: 68 centers versus 25 family child care homes, a 73%-to-27% split. Combined licensed capacity is about 3,795 children, averaging roughly 41 per site. Preschool coverage is the strongest age category at 77%, while school-age coverage is comparatively lower at 32%. CloverMap organizes all 93 verified Santa Barbara listings for easy comparison. Families searching for school-age care in particular should expect a narrower set of options here than families searching for preschool-age placements.

What to know about childcare in Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara's 93 providers are heavily center-weighted: 68 operate as centers, about 73%, while only 25 are family child care homes, 27%. Parish and faith-affiliated programs such as ALL SAINTS BY THE SEA PARISH SCHOOL are among the centers here, reflecting the larger-scale, classroom-based model that dominates this city's roster nearly three to one over home-based care.

That center-heavy composition is reflected in capacity: Santa Barbara's 93 providers report combined licensed capacity of about 3,795 children, an average of roughly 41 per site, among the higher averages in this batch of cities.

Preschool leads Santa Barbara's age coverage, served by 72 of the 93 providers, about 77%. Infants and toddlers are each covered by 40 providers, roughly 43%, and school-age children by just 30 providers, or 32%, the lowest school-age coverage rate among the cities in this dataset. Families searching for school-age care in Santa Barbara should expect a comparatively narrower set of options.

All of Santa Barbara's providers are licensed through the Department of Social Services' Community Care Licensing Division (CCLD), the agency responsible for both centers and family child care homes statewide. Licensing standards for staffing, ratios, and facility standards apply the same way regardless of setting, so a license confirms baseline compliance rather than program quality or style.

Given that 73% of Santa Barbara's roster is center-based, families here are more likely to be comparing larger, classroom-organized programs than the smaller home settings common elsewhere. That's especially true for school-age care, where only 32% of providers report coverage, making it worth confirming that specific age group directly with a provider before ruling anything in or out. Preschool searches, by contrast, have the deepest pool at 77% of the 93 providers.

For Santa Barbara families, the practical takeaway is that centers will dominate most searches by sheer numbers, while the 25 family child care homes remain a smaller but still viable option for parents who prefer that setting. Because school-age coverage is comparatively limited here, families with older children may want to begin contacting providers earlier than families searching for infant, toddler, or preschool placements. All 93 of Santa Barbara's listed providers reported a capacity figure, so the 41-per-site average reflects the full roster rather than a partial sample, which makes it a reasonably reliable benchmark for parents sizing up a specific listing against the citywide picture in a city this heavily weighted toward centers.