Original data study
What does full-time center-based infant care cost across every state we've verified?
How this was collected
We pull each state's average annual center-based infant childcare price directly from Child Care Aware of America's 2024 Price of Care Affordability Analysis (a survey of state Child Care Resource and Referral networks, fielded January 2025, published May 2025), cite the report by name, and record the date we checked it. A jurisdiction ships here only once its figure is confirmed against that primary source; New Mexico is the one state CCAoA does not survey, so it is omitted rather than estimated. See the full per-state, per-age-band breakdown, plus family child care prices, at /states/.
Newest row in this dataset verified .
What the data shows
Rows analyzed
50
Lowest
$7,696
Median
$14,995
Highest
$26,343
Average
$15,611
Notable outlier: Massachusetts, center-based infant care (annual) ($26,343).
Full data table
| Item | Cost | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama, center-based infant care (annual) | $8,632 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Alaska, center-based infant care (annual) | $12,107 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Arizona, center-based infant care (annual) | $15,964 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Arkansas, center-based infant care (annual) | $9,178 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| California, center-based infant care (annual) | $22,628 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Colorado, center-based infant care (annual) | $20,978 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Connecticut, center-based infant care (annual) | $18,492 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Delaware, center-based infant care (annual) | $16,617 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| District of Columbia, center-based infant care (annual) | $26,193 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Florida, center-based infant care (annual) | $13,011 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Georgia, center-based infant care (annual) | $11,066 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Hawaii, center-based infant care (annual) | $24,115 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Idaho, center-based infant care (annual) | $10,608 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Illinois, center-based infant care (annual) | $19,807 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Indiana, center-based infant care (annual) | $16,478 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Iowa, center-based infant care (annual) | $12,694 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Kansas, center-based infant care (annual) | $15,156 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Kentucky, center-based infant care (annual) | $12,740 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Louisiana, center-based infant care (annual) | $10,847 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Maine, center-based infant care (annual) | $15,730 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Maryland, center-based infant care (annual) | $25,321 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Massachusetts, center-based infant care (annual) | $26,343 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Michigan, center-based infant care (annual) | $13,454 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Minnesota, center-based infant care (annual) | $20,421 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Mississippi, center-based infant care (annual) | $7,696 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Missouri, center-based infant care (annual) | $13,780 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Montana, center-based infant care (annual) | $15,080 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Nebraska, center-based infant care (annual) | $18,147 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Nevada, center-based infant care (annual) | $12,659 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| New Hampshire, center-based infant care (annual) | $16,040 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| New Jersey, center-based infant care (annual) | $20,213 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| New York, center-based infant care (annual) | $20,439 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| North Carolina, center-based infant care (annual) | $12,370 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| North Dakota, center-based infant care (annual) | $12,299 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Ohio, center-based infant care (annual) | $13,780 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Oklahoma, center-based infant care (annual) | $10,809 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Oregon, center-based infant care (annual) | $19,500 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Pennsylvania, center-based infant care (annual) | $14,910 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Rhode Island, center-based infant care (annual) | $18,486 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| South Carolina, center-based infant care (annual) | $10,474 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| South Dakota, center-based infant care (annual) | $8,632 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Tennessee, center-based infant care (annual) | $13,126 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Texas, center-based infant care (annual) | $11,349 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Utah, center-based infant care (annual) | $14,160 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Vermont, center-based infant care (annual) | $18,710 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Virginia, center-based infant care (annual) | $16,796 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Washington, center-based infant care (annual) | $21,348 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| West Virginia, center-based infant care (annual) | $10,439 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Wisconsin, center-based infant care (annual) | $17,963 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
| Wyoming, center-based infant care (annual) | $12,784 | Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025) |
Limitations
- Figures are prices reported to a state survey, not what any individual family actually paid, so real out-of-pocket cost varies with the specific provider, sibling discounts, and subsidies.
- A jurisdiction only appears once its figure is confirmed against Child Care Aware of America's own published tables; New Mexico is omitted rather than estimated, since no market rate survey exists for it.
Update history
- - Alabama, center-based infant care (annual) re-verified against Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025)
- - Alaska, center-based infant care (annual) re-verified against Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025)
- - Arizona, center-based infant care (annual) re-verified against Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025)
- - Arkansas, center-based infant care (annual) re-verified against Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025)
- - California, center-based infant care (annual) re-verified against Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025)
- - Colorado, center-based infant care (annual) re-verified against Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025)
- - Connecticut, center-based infant care (annual) re-verified against Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025)
- - Delaware, center-based infant care (annual) re-verified against Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025)
- - District of Columbia, center-based infant care (annual) re-verified against Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025)
- - Florida, center-based infant care (annual) re-verified against Child Care Aware of America, "Child Care in America: 2024 Price & Supply, Affordability Analysis" (survey fielded January 2025, published May 2025)
Read the methodology behind this data, or go to the Daycarecostmap tool this study supports.