How to check a daycare’s license and inspection history

Everything on this site starts from official state license records — but the state's own lookup goes deeper than any directory: it's where you read a specific program's history. Do this for every program on your shortlist. It takes five minutes and it's free.

Step 1 — Find the program in Child Care Check

Washington's official lookup is Child Care Check, run by DCYF (about the tool). Every provider page here has a State license record button that opens that program's own record; for anyone else, search the provider's license name. Confirm the license is active, and that the ages and capacity match what the program told you.

Step 2 — Read the monitoring history

The profile lists licensing visits, facility checks and investigations. Expect to see something — programs are inspected regularly, and minor findings (paperwork gaps, a fence latch) are part of normal operation, fixed on a state-tracked timeline.

Step 3 — Know what a real flag looks like

• Patterns beat incidents: the same finding across multiple visits means it isn't getting fixed.
• Category matters: supervision, ratio and safe-sleep findings are more serious than administrative ones.
• Recent valid complaints deserve a direct, specific question on your tour — a good director will answer plainly (question 2). If you want to report a concern yourself, DCYF takes complaints here.

What a license does and doesn't mean

Licensed means legal minimums and real inspections — background checks, training, ratios, safety rules. It is a floor, not a rating: quality lives in the room, which is what Early Achievers tries to measure and your tour confirms. This site's records come from the state's monthly published data (last refresh: 2026-09-25) — a license that changed since then may not be reflected here, which is exactly why the verify button exists.

Quick answers

How do I verify a daycare’s license in Washington?

Use Washington’s official lookup, Child Care Check (findchildcarewa.org, run by DCYF). It shows the license status, what ages the program is licensed for, and its monitoring history. Every provider page on Daycare Atlas links straight to that provider’s own record.

Can I see a daycare’s inspection reports?

Yes — licensing checks and investigation records are public in Washington and appear in the provider’s Child Care Check profile. You can also ask the program to show you its most recent report on a tour; sharing it readily is a good sign.

Are violations at a daycare always a deal-breaker?

No. Minor findings during routine checks are common and usually fixed on a timeline the state tracks. What deserves attention is a pattern: repeated findings of the same problem, supervision or safe-sleep violations, or a recent valid complaint investigation.

What does being licensed actually guarantee?

That legal minimums are met and inspections happen: background-checked staff, required training, ratio and safety rules. It is a floor, not a quality rating — pair the license record with a tour and, where present, the Early Achievers rating.