I explore low-income citizens’ access to early education centers in the urban poverty setting in Istanbul to understand why Islamic preschools (sibyan mektebi) emerged and prevailed in Turkey. A decade ago, these informal preschools for three to six-year-old children became popular in disadvantaged neighborhoods as women started preschools in their apartments to serve their communities. The state and the local government later created their versions of Islamic preschools. Furthermore, policymakers strategically enabled different versions of these preschools’ accreditation by utilizing the UNICEF discourse on community-based education models. The preschools’ naming also parallels the current Neo-Ottomanist conservative politics: it alludes to the traditional schools that were shut down during the 1920s modernization, secularization, and nationalization reforms that brought about the Republic of Turkey. Through an analysis of fifty interviews that include mothers of children attending these preschools, the teachers of the preschools, policymakers at the local and national level, and NGO representatives, I shed light on how low-income citizens tackle urban inequalities to access early education within the context of cultural conservatism, and market-oriented education policy. In addition, I scrutinize policy documents, laws, regulations, and statistics on access to early education and SES in different neighborhoods of Istanbul. I conclude that what seems like a locally empowering solution to structural inequality causes further deeply ingrained inequalities. These preschools create a necessary, important, yet limited space for the needs of mothers and children for early education and socialization. Even though previous research on early education emphasizes its emancipatory potential for women, in the case of Islamic preschools, the culturally conservative framework shapes gender roles within and beyond these institutions. My research highlights the constraints faced by women who get together because of Islamic preschools in their neighborhoods in contrast to the literature that emphasizes women’s agency in religious spaces in the Middle East. Moreover, as these institutions serve Sunni Muslim populations, they endanger the rights of religious minorities at the neighborhood level. Even in the cases when sibyan mektebi is the only form of early education available, because of the quality of facilities and the credentials of the staff, the benefits children may receive from these forms of early education are arguable, too. Overall, my findings point out the potential and pitfalls of a community-based early education model when access to education and state capacity are limited.