Infant Child Care Affordability in United States

United States

The expense of child care can be staggering, with the annual price of infant care surpassing the cost of rent or mortgage payments in most regions of the United States. Child care ? both formal and informal (with the help of family, friends or neighbors) ? allows parents to work and contribute to the economy. Many rely on center-based child care, which comes in many forms, including day nurseries, nursery schools and preschools. 

The demand for child care is rising as the number of women in the workforce increases. Parents in dual-income households are often faced with the high costs of outsourcing child care, and many households must become dual-earning in order to afford quality child care for their children. Parents who work nontraditional hours (weekends, night shifts or “on-call scheduling”) are more likely to face challenges accessing child care. Accessible and affordable child care is critical to support full-time working parents. Parents with difficulty accessing child care most frequently cite high costs, limited availability and quality concerns as the primary reasons. 

A study of working parents found that inadequate child care had serious negative effects on work performance and career opportunities. Roughly 25% of these working parents had to reduce work hours, decline additional training or turn down new positions due to problems accessing child care. 

Child care costs an average of 8% to 19% of a family’s income annually for one child. Yearly child care costs for infants were higher than those for toddler, preschool and school-age children and ranged from $8,000 to $17,000 in 2022 dollars. Lack of access to affordable child care costs the U.S. economy $122 billion annually in lost earnings, worker productivity and revenue.

Populations most affected by high child care costs include: 

• Low-income families.
• Parents with more than one child.
• Parents of children with special needs.
• Households led by divorced or single parents.
• Hispanic/Latino households compared with non-Hispanic/Latino households.
• Counties with a majority Black population compared with counties with a majority white population.

One approach to improving access to child care is through public funding. The largest source of public funding for child care is the Child Care and Development Block Grant. This federal grant program helps 1.4 million children in the U.S. annually by providing child care subsidies for low-income working families and funding child care quality initiatives. 

Many strategies at state and local levels have been used to increase access to child care for low- and middle-income families. Recommendations at the federal level include increasing investments in child care assistance, such as preschool subsidies, and connecting families to early learning programs like Head Start and Early Head Start. 

There is great need for federal policy action as well. Currently under review by Congress, the proposed Child Care for Working Families Act would improve access to affordable child care for families with children ages 0-5. If passed, this legislation will cap costs for working families, improve the quality of child care and support higher wages for child care workers.

Statewide policies that provide families with access to paid parental leave is another way to help caregivers save money on costly infant care. Research shows that 1 in 4 mothers return to work just two weeks after delivery, and the majority report wishing they could take longer leave if they could afford it. Paid leave also reduces the demand for infant care immediately after birth and offers parents more choices for balancing family and work following delivery. 

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Child Care Aware of America. “Parents and the High Cost of Child Care.” 2016 Report. Arlington, VA, January 17, 2017. https://www.childcareaware.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/CCA_High_Cost_Report_01-17-17_final.pdf.

Child Care Aware of America. “The US and the High Price of Child Care: An Examination of a Broken System.” 2019 Report. Arlington, VA, 2019. https://info.childcareaware.org/hubfs/2019%20Price%20of%20Care%20State%20Sheets/Final-TheUSandtheHighPriceofChildCare-AnExaminationofaBrokenSystem.pdf.

Giannarelli, Linda, Gina Adams, Sarah Minton, and Kelly Dwyer. “What If We Expanded Child Care Subsidies?: A National and State Perspective.” Washington, D.C.: Urban Institute, June 2019. https://www.urban.org/sites/default/files/publication/100284/what_if_we_expanded_child_care_subsidies_6.pdf.

Haynie, Kristina, Clare Waterman, and Jillian Ritter. “The Year in Child Care: 2021 Data, Analysis and Recommendations.” Catalyzing Growth: Using Data to Change Child Care. Arlington, VA: Child Care Aware of America, 2023. https://info.childcareaware.org/hubfs/Fall%20Report%2023%20-%20Catalyzing%20Growth%20-%20Using%20Data%20to%20Change%20Child%20Care%20(FINAL).pdf.

Landivar, Liana Christin, Nikki L. Graf, and Giorleny Altamirano Rayo. “Childcare Prices in Local Areas: Initial Findings from the National Database of Child Care Prices.” Issue Brief. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Labor, Women’s Bureau, January 2023. https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WB/NDCP/508_WB_IssueBrief-NDCP-20230213.pdf.

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Matthews, Hannah, Karen Schulman, Julie Vogtman, Christine Johnson-Staub, and Helen Blank. “Implementing the Child Care and Development Block Grant Reauthorization: A Guide for States.” Washington, D.C.: The Center for Law and Social Policy and the National Women’s Law Center, 2015. https://www.clasp.org/sites/default/files/public/resources-and-publications/publication-1/ccdbg-guide-for-states-final.pdf.

“Piecing Together Solutions: The Importance of Childcare to U.S. Families and Businesses.” Vol. 06. U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, Center for Education and Workforce, December 2020. https://www.uschamberfoundation.org/sites/default/files/EarlyEd_Minis_Report6_121420_Final.pdf.

Prenatal-to-3 Policy Impact Center. “Paid Family Leave and Affordable Child Care Are Integral to a Strong Prenatal-to-3 System of Care.” Research Brief. Austin, TX: The University of Texas at Austin, LBJ School of Public Affairs, February 2021. https://pn3policy.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/PN3PolicyImpactCenter_B004202102_PaidFamilyLeaveandChildCare.pdf.

Schochet, Leila. “The Child Care Crisis Is Keeping Women Out of the Workforce.” Center for American Progress, March 28, 2019. https://www.americanprogress.org/article/child-care-crisis-keeping-women-workforce/.

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