Home tiers, not center tables
Home daycare ratios by state
Verified September 5, 2026Most ratio tables online describe child care centers. Home daycare runs on different numbers: headcount ceilings per tier, caps on children under two, and assistant rules. This table shows each verified state’s home tiers at a glance; the state pages carry every cap with its citation.
| State | Home tiers | Verified |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Family Day Care Home: up to 6 · Family Nighttime Home: up to 6 · Group Day Care Home: 7 to 12 · Group Nighttime Home: 7 to 12 | 2026-09-05 |
| Arkansas | Child Care Family Home (Licensed Home): up to 16 · Registered Child Care Family Home: 1 to 5 · Relative Child Care Family Home: up to 5 · In-Home Child Care Provider: up to 5 | 2026-09-05 |
| Arizona | Child Care Group Home: 5 to 10 · Family Child Care Home Provider (provider in a home facility): up to 6 · In-Home Provider: up to 6 | 2026-09-05 |
| California | Small Family Child Care Home: up to 8 · Large Family Child Care Home: up to 14 | 2026-09-05 |
| Colorado | A Regular Family Child Care Home: up to 8 · A Three (3) Under Eighteen (18) Months Family Child Care Home: up to 6 · Infant/Toddler Family Child Care Home: up to 8 · Large Family Child Care Home: up to 12 · An Experienced Family Child Care Provider: up to 9 | 2026-09-05 |
| Connecticut | Family Child Care Home: up to 9 · Large family child care home endorsement (FY2026 to FY2029 pilot): up to 12 · Group Child Care Home: 7 to 12 | 2026-09-05 |
| District of Columbia | Child Development Home: up to 6 · Expanded Child Development Home: up to 12 | 2026-09-05 |
| Delaware | Level I family home (Family Child Care Home): up to 6 · Level II family home (Family Child Care Home): up to 9 · Large Family Child Care Home: up to 12 | 2026-09-05 |
| Florida | Family Child Care Home (registered): up to 10 · Family Child Care Home (licensed): up to 10 · Large Family Child Care Home: up to 12 | 2026-09-05 |
| Georgia | Family Child Care Learning Home: 3 to 6 | 2026-09-05 |
| Hawaii | Family Child Care Home: 3 to 6 · Group Child Care Home: 7 to 12 | 2026-09-05 |
| Iowa | Child care home (with child care assistance provider agreement): up to 5 · Child development home category A: up to 8 · Child development home category B: up to 12 · Child development home category C: up to 16 | 2026-09-05 |
| Idaho | Family Daycare Home: up to 6 · Group Daycare Facility: 7 to 12 | 2026-09-05 |
| Illinois | Day Care Home: 4 to 12 · Group Day Care Home: 4 to 16 | 2026-09-05 |
| Indiana | Class I Child Care Home: up to 15 · Class II Child Care Home: 13 to 16 | 2026-09-05 |
| Kansas | Family child care home (also 'day care home' or 'group day care home'): up to 12 | 2026-09-05 |
| Kentucky | Certified family child-care home: 4 to 10 · Type II child-care center (licensee primary residence): 7 to 12 | 2026-09-05 |
| Louisiana | Family Child Care Provider: up to 6 · In-Home Child Care Provider: up to 6 | 2026-09-05 |
| Massachusetts | Family child care home (license to care for six or fewer children): up to 6 · Large family child care home (license to care for seven or eight children): 7 to 8 · Large family child care home (license to care for nine or ten children): 9 to 10 | 2026-09-05 |
| Maryland | Family Child Care Home: up to 8 · Large Family Child Care Home: 9 to 12 | 2026-09-05 |
| Maine | Family Child Care Provider: 4 to 12 | 2026-09-05 |
| Michigan | Family Child Care Home: 1 to 6 · Group Child Care Home: 7 to 12 · Family Child Care Home with increased capacity: 1 to 7 · Group Child Care Home with increased capacity: 7 to 14 | 2026-09-05 |
| Minnesota | Family Day Care (item A): up to 10 · Specialized Infant and Toddler Family Day Care (item B): up to 6 · Group Family Day Care (item C): up to 14 · Specialized Infant and Toddler Group Family Day Care (item D): up to 9 | 2026-09-05 |
| Missouri | Family Child Care Home: up to 10 · Group Child Care Home: up to 20 | 2026-09-05 |
| Mississippi | Child Care Family Home: up to 5 · Child Care Facility for 12 or Fewer Children in the Operator's Home: up to 12 | 2026-09-05 |
| Montana | Relative Care Exempt (RCE) provider: up to null · Family, Friend, and Neighbor (FFN) provider: up to 6 · Family child care facility (family day-care home): 3 to 8 · Group child care facility (group day-care home): 9 to 15 | 2026-09-05 |
| North Carolina | Family Child Care Home: 3 to 10 | 2026-09-05 |
| North Dakota | Self-declaration: up to 5 · In-home provider (registered): up to 5 · Family child care: up to 9 · Group child care: 8 to 30 | 2026-09-05 |
| Nebraska | Family Child Care Home I: 4 to 10 · Family Child Care Home II: 4 to 12 | 2026-09-05 |
| New Hampshire | Family day care home (He-C 4002 term: family child care home): up to 6 · Family group day care home (He-C 4002 term: family group child care home): 7 to 12 | 2026-09-05 |
| New Jersey | Family child care home (registered family child care provider): 3 to 8 | 2026-09-05 |
| New Mexico | Registered family child care home: up to 4 · Family child care home: 5 to 6 · Group child care home: 7 to 12 | 2026-09-05 |
| Nevada | Small child care establishment: up to 4 · Family home: 5 to 6 · Group home: 7 to 12 | 2026-09-05 |
| New York | Family Day Care Home: 3 to 8 · Group Family Day Care Home: 7 to 16 | 2026-09-05 |
| Ohio | Type A family child care home: 8 to 14 · Type B family child care home: 1 to 7 · In-Home Aide: up to null | 2026-09-05 |
| Oklahoma | Family Child Care Home: up to 7 · Large Family Child Care Home: 8 to 12 | 2026-09-05 |
| Oregon | Registered Family Child Care Home: up to 10 · Certified Family Child Care Home: up to 16 | 2026-09-05 |
| Pennsylvania | Family Child Care Home: 4 to 6 · Group Child Care Home: 7 to 12 | 2026-09-05 |
| Rhode Island | Family Child Care Home: up to 8 · Group Family Child Care Home: 8 to 12 | 2026-09-05 |
| South Carolina | Family Childcare Home (registered): up to 6 · Family Childcare Home (licensed, optional): up to 6 · Group Childcare Home: 7 to 12 | 2026-09-05 |
| South Dakota | Family day care home (registration certificate): up to 12 · Group family day care home: 13 to 20 | 2026-09-05 |
| Tennessee | Family Child Care Home: 5 to 7 · Group Child Care Home: 8 to 15 | 2026-09-05 |
| Texas | Listed Family Home: up to 3 · Registered Child-Care Home: up to 12 · Licensed Child-Care Home: 7 to 12 | 2026-09-05 |
| Utah | Residential Certificate Child Care: up to 8 · Licensed Family Child Care: 9 to 16 · Exempt provider (residential child care for eight or fewer qualifying children): up to 8 | 2026-09-05 |
| Virginia | Registered home-based child care (regulatory term: registered family day home): 1 to 4 · Licensed family day home (statutory term: licensed home-based child care): 5 to 12 · Home-based child care provider that is a member of a licensed home-based child care system (regulatory term: family day system member): 1 to 12 | 2026-09-05 |
| Vermont | Registered Family Child Care Home: up to 12 · Licensed Family Child Care Home: up to 12 | 2026-09-05 |
| Washington | Family home licensee with less than one year of experience: up to 6 · Family home licensee with at least one year but less than two years of experience: up to 9 · Family home licensee with at least two years' experience: up to 12 · License for birth to 24 months of age (family home licensee with two years of experience): up to 8 | 2026-09-05 |
| Wisconsin | Certified family child care operator: 1 to 6 · Family child care center licensed to provide care and supervision for 4 to 8 children: 4 to 8 · Family child care center licensed to provide care and supervision for 4 to 12 children: 4 to 12 | 2026-09-05 |
| West Virginia | Relative Family Child Care: up to null · Informal Family Child Care: up to 3 · Family Child Care Home: 4 to 6 · Family Child Care Facility: 7 to 12 | 2026-09-05 |
| Wyoming | Family Child Care Home: up to 10 · Family Child Care Center in the Director's home: up to 15 · Family Child Care Center not in the Director's home: up to 15 | 2026-09-05 |
The same question, one age at a time
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DaycareRules is an informational reference about home child care licensing rules in the United States. It reprints thresholds, capacity limits, ratios and citations from state statutes and regulations, together with the date each state was last verified. Nothing on this site is legal advice, and rules change. Confirm with your state licensing agency before acting on any number printed here.