Preschool in the Republic of Croatia is defined as a mandatory part of the educational process that strongly encourages childrens' independence and contributes to socialization, development of skills and knowledge, preparation for learning in a school environment as well as empowerment for the challenges that further education presents to children. Preschool programs in early and preschool education institutions in the Republic of Croatia are diverse and as such, each in its own pedagogical and methodical approach and defined program frameworks, offer different opportunities for the upbringing and education of children, with a special emphasis on preparing children for further education. The research was focused on the comparison of pedagogical principles, approaches and methodologies that are applied in preschool in public and alternative programs of early and preschool education institutions and the satisfaction of managers, educators, professional teams and parents. The research was conducted on a sample of 100 respondents: 4 head-masters of kindergartens and elementary schools; 5 preschool teachers (including 3 preschool coordinators); 2 people from the professional team (1 speech therapist and 1 pedagogue) and with a total of 89 parents who expressed their opinion and gave their feedbacks on the effectiveness of the preschool and possibilities for the improvement. The results of research carried out in the form of interviews for stakeholders and surveys for parents, show similarities and differences among pedagogical approaches in the implementation of preschool, as well as differences in parents' satisfaction with the quality of preschool related to the achievements of child's school readiness.