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Washington Child Care Licensing: A Parent's Guide
A plain-English guide to how child care licensing works in Washington — who regulates it, how to check any provider's license and public record, and where to find the official state information. Childcare Alerts indexes 2,501 licensed Washington providers, free.
Who licenses child care in Washington?
Child care in Washington is licensed and monitored by the Washington State Department of Children, Youth & Families. Washington licenses providers through the Department of Children, Youth & Families. Child Care Check shows the license, Early Achievers rating, and inspection and enforcement history.
How to check a provider's license and record
- Search on Childcare Alerts. Look up any Washington provider by name, city, or ZIP — free. Each page shows what's on the public record in plain English and links to the official state file.
- Read the record. Check the license status and any licensing actions. Not sure what a term means? See violations explained.
- Confirm on the state's own site. Washington Child Care Check ↗ is the system of record — always the final word.
What Childcare Alerts shows for Washington
For Washington, we surface the provider directory plus each provider's Early Achievers quality rating.
See the Washington child care report and the Washington deserts map for the statewide picture.
Washington's quality rating: Early Achievers
Washington runs a voluntary quality-rating system called Early Achievers. A higher rating reflects more of the state's program-quality standards met — but participation is voluntary, so an unrated provider is not necessarily lower quality. We show the rating on a provider's page when the state publishes it.
Before you choose care
The record is one input, not the whole story. See 10 questions to ask on a tour and what accreditation means. A provider with no action on record has not necessarily had a clean history — always open the official record.
Worried a provider is operating without a license, or seen something unsafe? Here's how to report it in Washington.
Childcare Alerts is an independent service — not affiliated with the Washington State Department of Children, Youth & Families. We surface public records from official state sources; the official government record always controls, and the absence of a record is not a guarantee of safety.