The OneOrBoth Childcare Cost Dataset (2026)
Every number behind this site in one place: full-time childcare fees, median household income, rent, commute costs and the break-even salary for 50 cities and all 51 US states and territories, across the US, UK, Canada, Australia and South Africa. Free to cite with attribution.
Methodology
- Childcare fees. Full-time centre-based fees for an infant aged 0–2 and a preschooler aged 3–4, taken from each country's official or benchmark fee survey. Subsidies are not deducted — those are covered in the childcare subsidy guides. The exact derivation differs by country:
- United States: State average annual price of full-time centre-based care (Child Care Aware of America, Price of Care 2023, Table I), converted to monthly and scaled to the city by the ratio of local to state median two-bedroom rent.
- United Kingdom: Coram Family and Childcare's 2024 survey price for a 50-hour nursery place, taken at nation level (Scotland, Wales) or scaled from the England average by the published regional 25-hour price, then converted to a monthly figure.
- Canada: Median daily parent fee from the CCPA's 2026 report, multiplied by 21.7 care days a month. Most provinces now cap fees, so these are the capped rates rather than market prices; British Columbia fees vary widely by city.
- Australia: The national average Centre Based Day Care hourly fee from the Department of Education's Child Care Subsidy data report, at 11 hours a day and 21.7 days a month, scaled by local rents. This is the fee before Child Care Subsidy is applied.
- South Africa: Estimate for a private urban centre. Published national data (DBE ECD Census 2021, mean R509/month; Ilifa Labantwana 2024) covers mostly subsidised and community programmes, where about 80% of centres charge under R500/month, so it understates private city fees.
- US state figures. The average annual price of full-time centre-based care published in Child Care Aware of America — Price of Care: 2023 Affordability Analysis, Table I (2023 survey), converted to monthly. Average annual price of full-time center-based care. States that did not respond to the 2024 CCR&R survey are represented by their most recent official state Market Rate Survey.
- Household income. Median gross household income from the relevant national statistics office, at metro level where published and national level otherwise.
- Rent. Median monthly rent for a two-bedroom home from official rent indices or fair-market-rent tables.
- Commute and groceries. Country-level typicals for one working parent and a family of four respectively; they are deliberately conservative starting points you should overwrite with your own figures.
- Break-even salary. Annual childcare plus commute costs are grossed up using the country's published income-tax bands: it is the lowest gross salary whose after-tax value covers those costs, assuming the returning parent's income is taxed on its own and no subsidy applies.
- Rounding and vintage. Childcare prices carry the survey year of the source they came from; income and rent are estimates for 2026. All figures are rounded for readability and reviewed when the underlying sources publish new releases.
Sources by country
The full table
United States
| City | Infant / mo | Preschool / mo | Rent 2br / mo | Median income | Break-even |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York, NY | $2,365 | $1,985 | $3,600 | $79,000 | $31,500 |
| Los Angeles, CA | $1,900 | $1,400 | $2,800 | $80,000 | $25,500 |
| Chicago, IL | $1,790 | $1,310 | $2,100 | $71,000 | $24,500 |
| Houston, TX | $950 | $855 | $1,600 | $63,000 | $14,500 |
| Phoenix, AZ | $1,205 | $940 | $1,700 | $76,000 | $17,500 |
| Philadelphia, PA | $1,505 | $1,260 | $1,750 | $60,000 | $21,000 |
| San Antonio, TX | $830 | $750 | $1,400 | $60,000 | $13,000 |
| San Diego, CA | $1,970 | $1,450 | $2,900 | $98,000 | $26,500 |
| Dallas, TX | $1,010 | $910 | $1,700 | $68,000 | $15,000 |
| Austin, TX | $1,100 | $990 | $1,850 | $90,000 | $16,000 |
| San Francisco, CA | $2,365 | $1,740 | $3,600 | $137,000 | $31,500 |
| Seattle, WA | $2,090 | $1,610 | $2,400 | $116,000 | $28,000 |
| Denver, CO | $1,715 | $1,210 | $2,000 | $91,000 | $23,500 |
| Boston, MA | $2,870 | $2,245 | $3,300 | $94,000 | $38,500 |
| Atlanta, GA | $1,060 | $925 | $1,900 | $79,000 | $15,500 |
| Miami, FL | $1,500 | $1,080 | $2,700 | $65,000 | $21,000 |
| Washington, DC | $2,390 | $1,910 | $2,700 | $106,000 | $32,000 |
| Minneapolis, MN | $1,915 | $1,480 | $1,600 | $78,000 | $26,000 |
| Portland, OR | $1,520 | $1,190 | $1,750 | $85,000 | $21,000 |
| Charlotte, NC | $1,160 | $965 | $1,650 | $76,000 | $17,000 |
| Nashville, TN | $1,170 | $1,015 | $1,700 | $74,000 | $17,000 |
| Columbus, OH | $1,160 | $900 | $1,350 | $68,000 | $17,000 |
| Detroit, MI | $1,015 | $835 | $1,200 | $40,000 | $15,000 |
| Las Vegas, NV | $1,085 | $910 | $1,550 | $70,000 | $16,000 |
| Salt Lake City, UT | $935 | $690 | $1,600 | $80,000 | $14,000 |
United Kingdom
| City | Infant / mo | Preschool / mo | Rent 2br / mo | Median income | Break-even |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| London | £1,680 | £1,600 | £2,200 | £47,000 | £22,500 |
| Manchester | £1,250 | £1,190 | £1,150 | £38,000 | £17,500 |
| Birmingham | £1,235 | £1,175 | £1,050 | £36,000 | £17,000 |
| Leeds | £1,120 | £1,070 | £1,100 | £37,000 | £16,000 |
| Bristol | £1,265 | £1,205 | £1,500 | £41,000 | £17,500 |
| Glasgow | £1,180 | £1,125 | £1,000 | £37,000 | £16,500 |
| Edinburgh | £1,180 | £1,125 | £1,400 | £44,000 | £16,500 |
| Cardiff | £1,130 | £1,080 | £1,000 | £35,000 | £16,000 |
Canada
| City | Infant / mo | Preschool / mo | Rent 2br / mo | Median income | Break-even |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toronto | C$475 | C$475 | C$2,900 | C$90,000 | C$8,500 |
| Ottawa | C$475 | C$475 | C$2,100 | C$96,000 | C$8,500 |
| Vancouver | C$870 | C$695 | C$3,200 | C$88,000 | C$13,000 |
| Montreal | C$210 | C$210 | C$1,900 | C$75,000 | C$5,000 |
| Calgary | C$325 | C$325 | C$1,900 | C$98,000 | C$6,500 |
| Edmonton | C$325 | C$325 | C$1,600 | C$92,000 | C$6,500 |
Australia
| City | Infant / mo | Preschool / mo | Rent 2br / mo | Median income | Break-even |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sydney | A$3,940 | A$3,625 | A$3,000 | A$100,000 | A$54,000 |
| Melbourne | A$3,145 | A$2,895 | A$2,300 | A$92,000 | A$42,000 |
| Brisbane | A$3,280 | A$3,020 | A$2,400 | A$90,000 | A$44,000 |
| Perth | A$3,010 | A$2,770 | A$2,200 | A$95,000 | A$40,000 |
| Adelaide | A$2,790 | A$2,565 | A$1,900 | A$82,000 | A$36,500 |
| Canberra | A$3,555 | A$3,270 | A$2,600 | A$120,000 | A$48,000 |
South Africa
| City | Infant / mo | Preschool / mo | Rent 2br / mo | Median income | Break-even |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Johannesburg | R4,500 | R3,800 | R12,000 | R350,000 | R102,500 |
| Pretoria | R4,000 | R3,400 | R11,000 | R330,000 | R95,500 |
| Cape Town | R5,000 | R4,200 | R14,000 | R340,000 | R110,000 |
| Durban | R3,500 | R3,000 | R10,000 | R280,000 | R88,000 |
| Gqeberha | R3,000 | R2,600 | R8,500 | R250,000 | R80,500 |
Citing this dataset
Licensed under CC BY 4.0. Suggested citation:
OneOrBoth (2026). Childcare costs, household income and break-even salary by city. https://oneorboth.com/data
Questions about the data
Can I cite or reuse this childcare cost data?
Yes. The dataset is free to cite and reuse with attribution to OneOrBoth and a link to https://oneorboth.com/data. Every figure is an estimate compiled from the public sources listed on the page.
How often is the dataset updated?
Figures are reviewed whenever the underlying sources publish new releases — childcare fee surveys, national household income statistics and official rent indices — and the year label on each page reflects the vintage in use.
How is the break-even salary calculated?
We total annual childcare and commuting costs for the returning parent, then find the lowest gross salary whose after-tax value covers that total using the country's published income-tax bands, with no subsidies applied.
Browse childcare costs by city · Living wage for a family with kids