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In-home daycare

In-Home Daycares in Iowa

An in-home daycare is a licensed family child care home: the provider looks after a small group of children in their own home. Full-time infant care at a home daycare costs a median of $106 a week in the middle Iowa county (2022).

in-home daycares listed
1,644
towns
314
towns have their own in-home daycares page
110
of all Iowa daycares
53%
In-home daycareIowa
What puts a daycare on this listThe state license record lists it as a family or group child care home (family child care), where the provider cares for a small group in their own home. Where no state license record is available, its business listing names it a family day care.Street addresses are not shown for home daycares. The provider shares the address with families, so call to arrange a visit.

In-home daycare

What in-home daycare looks like in Iowa

Infant care at a home daycare, per week, in the middle Iowa county (2022)
$106
The median of 99 county medians, from $100 in the lowest county to $125 in the highest.

County prices: U.S. Department of Labor, National Database of Childcare Prices, 2022 (median full-time weekly price).

Iowa

Largest towns for in-home daycares in Iowa

Des Moines274 in-home daycaresDavenport97 in-home daycaresWaterloo57 in-home daycaresCedar Rapids51 in-home daycaresAnkeny46 in-home daycaresSioux City41 in-home daycaresCouncil Bluffs35 in-home daycaresBurlington33 in-home daycaresIowa City27 in-home daycaresDubuque23 in-home daycaresAltoona21 in-home daycaresUrbandale21 in-home daycares

Programs

Programs in Iowa

Counts come from the state record and what each daycare says it offers. A daycare without a tag may still offer the program; ask.

ProgramListed
All daycares3,122
Take infants168
Child care centers1,478
Accept subsidy33
In-home daycares1,644
Christian & church daycares143
Montessori schools33
Preschools & pre-K345
Early morning daycare290
Part-time daycare74
Drop-in daycare17
Bilingual daycare13
Head Start118

The Iowa state record

Iowa Department of Health and Human Services licenses daycares in Iowa.

License list
The state's public list of licensed child care
Ages served
On some licenses only; elsewhere shown where the daycare gives them
Inspections
Every visit the state publishes back to 2021
Cited rules
Each cited rule, in the state's own wording
Search the Iowa state records

Before you enroll

Choosing an in-home daycare in Iowa

  1. 1

    Ask who else is in the home

    Ask who lives in the home and who helps with the children. Many states require background checks for adults living in a licensed home.

  2. 2

    Ask about backup care

    With one provider, a sick day or vacation closes the daycare. Ask how many days a year they close and what families do then.

  3. 3

    Ask about the group

    Ask how many children come each day and their ages. A home daycare often mixes babies and school-age children in one group.

  4. 4

    Check the license record

    Open the daycare's page here to see its license type, capacity and the state's inspection record, where we hold them.

Iowa

Cost, inspections and ratios in Iowa

Daycare cost in IowaWeekly prices by age and countyWhat Iowa inspectors citeThe rules cited most, and what they meanStaff-to-child ratios in IowaHow many children each adult may care forTour checklist for IowaQuestions to ask when you visit

A to Z

All 314 Iowa towns with in-home daycares, A to Z

A20 towns
B13 towns
C36 towns
D17 towns
E11 towns
F11 towns
G16 towns
H13 towns
I6 towns
J5 towns
K6 towns
L21 towns
M30 towns
N12 towns
O13 towns
P10 towns
R10 towns
S24 towns
T6 towns
U3 towns
V4 towns
W26 towns
Z1 town

Nearby

Nearby states

Illinois5,651 in-home daycaresMinnesota5,420 in-home daycaresWisconsin2,222 in-home daycaresNebraska1,508 in-home daycaresMissouri568 in-home daycaresSouth Dakota277 in-home daycares

Questions

Questions about in-home daycares in Iowa

How many in-home daycares are in Iowa?

1,644 in-home daycares are listed in 314 Iowa towns. Street addresses are not shown for home daycares. The provider shares the address with families, so call to arrange a visit.

Which Iowa town has the most in-home daycares?

Des Moines, with 274 listed. Next are Davenport (97) and Waterloo (57).

What is the difference between in-home daycare and family child care?

They are the same thing. State licenses call it a family child care home (or a group or large family home when there is an assistant): a provider caring for a small group of children in their own home.

Who licenses daycares in Iowa?

Iowa Department of Health and Human Services licenses daycares in Iowa. It publishes its inspections and the rules it cited, and we copy them onto each listing.