Note: Figure represents the average of costs for annual care of an infant and a 4-year-old.
In urban areas the cost is for care at a child care center and for home care in rural areas.
BestPlaces data for child care expenses is the annual cost of child care for both home-based care and at larger child care centers. The average child care cost includes costs for both center-based child care facilities and home-based care for infants and toddlers. (Toddlers are defined to be children one to four years old.)
In determining the average child care cost for each county, we used the costs for center-based child care in counties which are part of a major metropolitan area. For rural counties which are not part of a major metro area, we used the costs for home-based child care because these providers are more likely to be available than the larger child care centers.
The expense of infant child care is greater than toddler care because babies require more attention and care. Infant care needs a lower ratio of caregivers to children, so costs are higher. Our analysis finds that in child care centers, infant care is on the average 25% more expensive than toddler care. For home-based child care, the difference is only 11% since home care generally already has a lower child-caregiver ratio.
Our BestPlaces child care statistics are based on our research of child care providers across the United States and reports published by Child Care Aware of America, Care.com and the Economic Policy Institute. For some counties, child care expenses were not directly available. Using the available data at the national, state and county level, we used linear regression to identify the most significant predictor variables and create equations to provide values for the missing data.
Child care centers are usually associated with:
Larger facilities, with many children (from 20100 or more)
Separate areas for different age groups
Larger staff, often with some professionals and certified caregivers
Professional administrators
Child care centers are likely to have these benefits:
Caregivers with professional or specialized training
More children and teachers for your child to socialize and bond with
A more structured environment and a professional infrastructure
More teachers, which means substitutes are readily available
Supervision of caregivers by managers
In-home childcare providers often have:
- Smaller facilities, such as a home or church
- Few children, often 3-10
- Mixed ages
- Fewer caregivers, usually 1-4
In-home childcare usually has these advantages:
- Less expensive
- Mixed age groups for diverse interactions
- Lower risk for communicative illnesses (fewer children)
- More home-like, less institutional
- Fewer children per teacher
Our BestPlaces childcare statistics are based on our research of childcare providers across the United States and reports published by Child Care Aware of America. Care.com and the Economic Policy Institute. For some counties, childcare expenses were not directly available. Using the available data at the national, state and county level, we used linear regression to identify the most significant predictor variables and create equations to provide values for the missing data.