Child Care Costs
This indicator reports the estimated median price of child care by setting. Child care prices are derived from each state’s child care Market Rate Survey and are based on data for years 2019-2022. Data are presented in 2022 real dollars.
Source
Source Description
The National Database of Childcare Prices (NDCP) was developed to fill a need for local-level childcare data providing information on the range in prices by care setting and children’s age. The NDCP draws data from state childcare market rate surveys (MRS), in addition to county-level demographic and economic data from the American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates. The NDCP standardizes and harmonizes data across years and geographies for about 200 previously-conducted MRS. The childcare price data were obtained from state Lead Agencies responsible for conducting MRS according to federal regulations.
The MRS collect data on regulated childcare centers, which are typically located in commercial buildings and serve multiple groups or classrooms of similarly-aged children. They also collect data on regulated home-based providers, which care for small groups of children in a residential building, such as a house, apartment, or condo unit. While some surveys may collect data on other segments of the market, such as publicly-subsidized preschool programs, Head Start, or informal care settings, these data are not typically included in the analysis of childcare prices and were not included in the database. A large share of children are cared for in unregulated and informal settings that are not represented here.
For more information, please see the National Database of Childcare Prices (NDCP) Issue Brief.
Data Breakouts Available
- Median Childcare Prices – Percentage of Household Income