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The Top 30 Franchises in the Business of Caring Use our list of 30 child-, health- and senior-care franchises to find the right opportunity for you.

By Tracy Stapp Herold

Care-service franchises run the whole spectrum -- from child care to senior care, to health care for everyone in between. To find the top care franchises in these three categories, look no further than the following list, based on our 2011 Franchise 500 rankings.

This list is not intended to endorse any particular company; it's just a jumping-off point for those interested in care-service franchises. It's vital that you conduct your own extensive research to find out if an opportunity is right for you. That means reading the company's FDD, consulting with attorneys and accountants and talking to existing franchisees.

Child Care
Goddard Systems Inc.
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 87
Preschool/educational child care
(800) 272-4901
Total startup cost: $694.5K-713.5K
Total franchises/co.-owned: 371/0

Primrose School Franchising Co.
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 158
Educational child-care facility
primroseschools.com
(800) 774-6767
Total startup cost: $567.5K-3.9M
Total franchises/co.-owned: 212/1

The Learning Experience
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 205
Child care
(888) 278-0820
Total startup cost: $465.3K-3.5M
Total franchises/co.-owned: 88/19

According to the National Association of Child Care Resource & Referral Agencies (NACCRRA), more than 11 million children in the U.S. under age 5 receive some sort of child care weekly.

Kiddie Academy Child Care
Learning Centers
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 211
Child-care learning center
(800) 554-3343
Total startup cost: $342.6K-3.4M
Total franchises/co.-owned: 100/2

Discovery Point Franchising Inc.
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 290
Child-care center
(770) 622-2112
Total startup cost: $365.2K-419.6K
Total franchises/co.-owned: 58/0

SeekingSitters Franchise System Inc.
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 303
Babysitting referral service
(918) 749-3588
Total startup cost: $44.2K-70K
Total franchises/co.-owned: 45/6

Preschool-age children of working mothers spend an average of 36 hours per week in child care, according to NACCRRA.

Childrens Lighthouse Franchising Co.
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 314
Child-care services
(888) 338-4466
Total startup cost: $429.5K-3M
Total franchises/co.-owned: 19/9

Health Care
HealthSource Chiropractic and Progressive Rehab
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 111
Chiropractic, nutrition &
weight-loss services
(440) 967-5458
Total startup cost: $52.95K-249.8K
Total franchises/co.-owned: 298/0

Hungry Heart Franchise LLC
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 344
Nutritional counseling & hypnotherapy
(877) 486-4797
Total startup cost: $43.2K-58K
Total franchises/co.-owned: 10/1

Medi-Weightloss Franchising USA LLC
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 356
Physician-supervised weight-loss program
(813) 228-6334
Total startup cost: $224.5K-468.5K
Total franchises/co.-owned: 66/0

Child-care centers are the second most popular child-care option--just behind grandparents, according to NACCRRA.

Senior Care
Home Instead Senior Care
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 59
Nonmedical senior-care services
(888) 484-5759
Total startup cost: $50.6K-63.6K
Total franchises/co.-owned: 910/1

Comfort Keepers
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 62
Nonmedical in-home care
(888) 329-1368
Total startup cost: $61.9K-88.8K
Total franchises/co.-owned: 661/0

Visiting Angels
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 88
Nonmedical in-home care services for seniors
(800) 365-4189
Total startup cost: $55.3K-87K
Total franchises/co.-owned: 391/0

The America Chiropractic Association reports that back pain is the second most common reason for doctor's office visits, and Americans spend at least $50 billion annually trying to alleviate it.

Home Helpers/Direct Link
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 96
Nonmedical care services
(866) 708-8921
Total startup cost: $47.2K-86.4K
Total franchises/co.-owned: 658/0

Senior Helpers
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 97
In-home care for seniors
(800) 760-6389
Total startup cost: $74.8K-98.8K
Total franchises/co.-owned: 284/1

BrightStar Care
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 152
Medical/nonmedical home care & medical staffing
(877) 689-6898
Total startup cost: $95.1K-162.2K
Total franchises/co.-owned: 163/1

According to the CDC, 34 percent of U.S. adults are obese; another 34 percent are overweight.

ComForcare Senior Services Inc.
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 164
Nonmedical home care services
(800) 886-4044
Total startup cost: $105K-155K
Total franchises/co.-owned: 152/1

Right at Home Inc.
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 165
Senior home care & medical staffing
(877) 697-7537
Total startup cost: $70.2K-118.4K
Total franchises/co.-owned: 224/0

Always Best Care Senior Services
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 174
In-home care & assisted living placement
(888) 430-2273
Total startup cost: $50.1K-90.7K
Total franchises/co.-owned: 110/0

Synergy HomeCare
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 182
Nonmedical home care services
(480) 659-7771
Total startup cost: $53.3K-115.3K
Total franchises/co.-owned: 111/0

The SBA recently honored Comfort Keepers franchisee Kathryn Vercruyssen and The Senior's Choice franchisee Kathleen Devlin as the 2011 Small Business Persons of the Year for Idaho and Rhode Island, respectively.

Homewatch CareGivers
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 183
Medical & nonmedical home care, temporary medical staffing, transportation services
(800) 472-2290
Total startup cost: $58.5K-90K
Total franchises/co.-owned: 178/3

Senior's Choice Inc., The
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 195
Assisted living & healthcare staffing services
(888) 725-3655
Total startup cost: $54K-72K
Total franchises/co.-owned: 187/0

According to the CDC, 34 percent of U.S. adults are obese; another 34 percent are overweight.

Accessible Home Health Care
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 196
Medical & nonmedical home care & staffing
(954) 341-5600
Total startup cost: $55K-95K
Total franchises/co.-owned: 101/1

Griswold Special Care
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 222
Nonmedical home care services
(215) 402-0200
Total startup cost: $72.3K-95.3K
Total franchises/co.-owned: 104/9

The first baby boomers are turning 65 this year.

Home Care Assistance
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 251
Nonmedical in-home senior-care services
(650) 462-9501
Total startup cost: $51K-159.5K
Total franchises/co.-owned: 54/3

Preferred Care at Home
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 373
Senior home care
(866) 690-7733
Total startup cost: $57.5K-79.5K
Total franchises/co.-owned: 47/1

U.S. Census Data projects that by 2030, the senior population will number 72 million and represent nearly 20 percent of the total U.S. population.

Acti-Kare Inc.
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 407
Nonmedical in-home senior care
(888) 451-5273
Total startup cost: $25.7K-41.6K
Total franchises/co.-owned: 21/0

Touching Hearts At Home
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 410
Nonmedical home care for seniors & disabled people
(877) 870-8750
Total startup cost: $41.8K-62.4K
Total franchises/co.-owned: 31/0

Americans over 65 have a more than 70 percent chance of needing help with daily activities, according to the American Society on Aging.

Assisting Hands Home Care LLC
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 436
Nonmedical in-home care
(208) 442-7426
Total startup cost: $66.5K-135K
Total franchises/co.-owned: 29/0

HomeWell Senior Care
2011 Franchise 500 ranking: 482
In-home senior care
(800) 354-7553
Total startup cost: $48.5K-67.5K
Total franchises/co.-owned: 36/1
Tracy Stapp Herold

Entrepreneur Staff

Tracy Stapp Herold is the special projects editor at Entrepreneur magazine. She works on franchise and business opportunity stories and listings, including the annual Franchise 500.

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