TL;DR
Get the little things that make your day delivered free with Prime
- Fast, free delivery on millions of items
- Prime Video, Amazon Music and more included
- Member-only deals all year
Child Care Aware of America put average U.S. child care costs at $13,184 per child in 2025, including $15,636 for infant care in a center. A 2026 increase in the federal dependent care assistance limit may let eligible workers set aside more pre-tax income, but the best options depend on a family’s care arrangement, taxes and state programs.
U.S. child care averaged $13,184 per child in 2025, while infant care in a center averaged $15,636 a year, according to Child Care Aware of America. A 2026 increase in the federal dependent care assistance limit creates a potential tax-saving option for some working families, but actual savings vary with income, care costs, employer benefits and eligibility.
The national average rose from $13,128 in 2024 to $13,184 in 2025, Child Care Aware of America reported. The organization also said child care prices increased 23% between 2021 and 2025, compared with a 24% rise in overall prices over that period. These are national estimates, not a quote for a particular family: local prices and provider rates can differ substantially.
Costs vary by a child’s age and the type of care. In the organization’s 2025 figures, infant care averaged $15,636 a year at a center and $11,673 in a family child care home. For a 4-year-old, the corresponding averages were $12,555 and $10,572. Those figures suggest families may face lower costs as children grow, but they do not guarantee that a particular provider will reduce its rate or that a less expensive opening is available.
One specific change for 2026 is the federal dependent care assistance limit. The report says employees may set aside up to $7,500 through an eligible dependent care assistance program, up from $5,000; the limit for married employees filing separately is $3,750, up from $2,500. Contributions are made before income tax, so the value depends on an employee’s tax circumstances and plan. The report’s supplied material does not provide enough detail to calculate an individual household’s savings.
How the Bill Affects Work Decisions
Child care expenses can affect whether a parent takes a job, reduces hours or remains in the workforce. The report cites a study of U.S. households from April to July 2021: among adults with children who said disrupted child care affected their employment, 26.9% cut their work hours and 15.9% left a job. That study concerned pandemic-related disruptions, not the effect of prices alone, so it cannot show how many parents leave work because care is unaffordable.
The figures still point to a practical issue for families weighing a job against a child care bill: leaving work can have effects beyond the immediate monthly budget. Earnings, career progression and future access to work may also be affected. Those trade-offs are personal and cannot be resolved by a national average. Comparing the household’s expected take-home pay and work-related costs with the actual care quote can clarify the short-term numbers, while the longer-term consequences remain uncertain.
Costs may ease when a child moves into a less expensive age group or starts public pre-K or kindergarten, but those changes depend on local availability and eligibility. Treating the current rate as permanent could distort a work decision; treating a future reduction as certain could be just as misleading.
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
The 7% Benchmark Has Changed
The report describes the 7% affordability figure as a policy benchmark for families receiving assistance, not a cap on private child care bills. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services introduced it in a 2016 rule as an optional benchmark for state co-payments under the Child Care and Development Fund. A March 2024 rule made a co-payment cap mandatory for families receiving assistance, according to the report.
The report says a May 2026 final rule removed that mandate and returned co-payment decisions to states. This change concerns the rules for assistance co-payments; it does not set or lower the prices charged by private providers. Families seeking help need to check current state program rules rather than assume the former benchmark applies everywhere.
Care.com’s 2026 report offers a different measure: surveyed parents reported spending an average of 20% of household income on child care, and 78% said the share was at least 10%. Those are self-reported survey results, not a government estimate or a price measure from the same source as Child Care Aware of America’s national averages. They illustrate what surveyed households said they spend, but should not be treated as a universal household budget figure.
“The average child care price was $13,184 per child in 2025.”
— Child Care Aware of America
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
What Families Still Need to Check
National averages do not reveal what a family will pay in its city, for its child’s age or under a specific provider’s contract. The supplied report material does not give state-by-state prices, local wait times, eligibility details for assistance, or the tax rates needed to estimate the value of pre-tax contributions. Provider availability and part-week pricing also need to be confirmed directly.
The report says families can compare centers, family child care homes and other arrangements, and ask about part-week schedules, sibling rates, operating hours and future age-group rates. Those are useful questions, not guarantees of a lower bill. Whether an employer offers a dependent care plan, and how a household should coordinate available tax benefits, also requires checking plan and tax rules. The source material notes that certain benefits cannot be applied to the same expenses, but does not provide enough information here to determine an individual family’s allowable combination.
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
Check Benefits Before Choosing Care
Families can start by getting written quotes from licensed providers that match their child’s age and required schedule, then compare the full cost—not just the weekly rate. Ask whether part-week care is available, whether discounts apply to siblings and when the rate changes as a child ages. A state child care licensing or referral agency may provide information about licensed local providers.
Workers should ask their employer whether a dependent care assistance program is available for 2026, what enrollment deadlines apply and how contributions affect pay. Families considering public assistance should check their state’s current eligibility and co-payment rules, which may differ following the federal rule change described in the report. The next useful step is a household-specific comparison based on confirmed provider quotes, available benefits and the family’s tax situation.
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
Key Questions
What was the average U.S. child care cost in 2025?
Child Care Aware of America reported an average of $13,184 per child in 2025. The national figure is not a quote for an individual location or provider.
How much did infant care cost in a center?
The organization’s 2025 figures put average infant care in a center at $15,636 a year. Its reported average for a family child care home was $11,673 a year.
What changed for dependent care benefits in 2026?
The report says the federal dependent care assistance limit increased to $7,500 for eligible employees, or $3,750 for married employees filing separately. Check your employer’s plan and tax circumstances before estimating savings.
Does the 7% figure limit what private providers can charge?
No. In the report, 7% refers to a benchmark for co-payments under child care assistance rules, not a cap on private provider prices. The report says a May 2026 rule returned co-payment decisions to states.
What should parents ask providers before enrolling?
Ask about part-week rates, sibling discounts, operating hours and when rates change as a child moves to another age group. Confirm the terms in writing and compare them with your actual care schedule.
Source: rss
Evergreen bestsellers Picks
bestsellers
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
