ChildcareCost

MEDIAN · INFANT · CENTER-BASED

How much does childcare cost in the United States?

$244

per week · national median · 2022 (latest official data)

We measure every price against the 7%-of-income benchmark — the cap federal CCDF rules placed on subsidized families' childcare co-payments from 2024 until it was rescinded on July 13, 2026, and show the comparison with its source.

Data: U.S. DOL NDCP · 2022 (latest official data)

Where childcare costs the most and the least

Counties ranked by their median weekly price for infant, center-based care.

MOST EXPENSIVE · INFANT · CENTER-BASED

Highest weekly prices

  1. San Francisco CountyCA$607 /wk
  2. Suffolk CountyMA$590 /wk
  3. Arlington CountyVA$559 /wk
  4. Norfolk CountyMA$555 /wk
  5. San Mateo CountyCA$555 /wk
  6. Marin CountyCA$548 /wk
  7. Santa Clara CountyCA$527 /wk
  8. Alameda CountyCA$516 /wk
  9. District of ColumbiaDC$490 /wk
  10. Contra Costa CountyCA$482 /wk

LEAST EXPENSIVE · INFANT · CENTER-BASED

Lowest weekly prices

  1. Wayne CountyKY$90 /wk
  2. Barnwell CountySC$94 /wk
  3. Allen CountyKS$96 /wk
  4. Anderson CountyKS$96 /wk
  5. Atchison CountyKS$96 /wk
  6. Barber CountyKS$96 /wk
  7. Barton CountyKS$96 /wk
  8. Bourbon CountyKS$96 /wk
  9. Brown CountyKS$96 /wk
  10. Chase CountyKS$96 /wk

Browse by state

Pick a state to see its counties. New Mexico and Indiana are absent from the federal dataset, so they carry no official prices.