Childcare expenses are rising across the United States, forcing families to make difficult decisions about work, finances and how they care for their children.
For Jennifer Williams, the decision became unavoidable after the birth of her second son, Skyler. With her older son, SJ, not yet eligible for free public pre-K, paying for two children in daycare at the same time was beyond what the family could afford. Williams ultimately left her school counseling job in Oklahoma City to stay home with her children.
Today, she works a few days a week at a childcare program while spending the rest of her time caring for her two sons, ages 2 and 4.
“I guess now, I just, I can’t imagine anything different,” Williams said. “But it is hard to know that the choice is kind of made for me because of finances.”
Childcare Costs Continue to Rise Across the U.S.
Williams’ experience reflects a broader affordability problem facing families nationwide. According to Child Care Aware of America, the average annual cost of childcare increased by more than 20% between 2022 and 2025, reaching approximately $13,184 per year.
The increases have affected both infant care and care for older preschool-age children, although the magnitude varies significantly from state to state.
In Oklahoma, one of the more affordable states in the country, childcare costs for 4-year-olds increased by 9% between 2022 and 2025, while infant care rose by 20%. State data indicates that infant-care prices increased even more sharply, climbing 36% since 2022.
Louisiana experienced similarly significant increases, with childcare for 4-year-olds rising 21% and infant care increasing 30%.
Washington saw some of the steepest increases. Childcare costs for both 4-year-olds and infants rose by approximately 41% during the same period.
Why Is Daycare Becoming More Expensive?
Anne Hedgepeth, former senior vice president of policy and research at Child Care Aware of America, said there is no single explanation for the increase.
One important factor is how states determine subsidies for families with lower incomes. States typically use market-rate surveys to establish childcare subsidy levels, with payments then going directly to childcare providers.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, however, many states delayed those surveys. As a result, subsidy rates did not always keep pace with inflation and the rapidly increasing costs faced by childcare providers.
Childcare centers themselves are dealing with many of the same inflationary pressures affecting families.
Providers must pay for food, educational supplies, rent or mortgages, utilities, staffing and other operating expenses. When those costs increase, maintaining affordable prices for parents becomes increasingly difficult.
Families Are Paying the Price
For parents like Williams, rising childcare costs can transform what once seemed like a straightforward decision about employment into a difficult financial calculation.
The cost of daycare can consume a substantial portion of household income, particularly for families with multiple young children. In some cases, parents may determine that leaving the workforce is financially preferable to paying for full-time childcare.
That decision, however, can carry long-term consequences for household income, professional development and career advancement.
The growing cost of childcare therefore represents more than an increase in a monthly bill. For millions of families, it is influencing where parents work, whether they remain employed and how they organize their children’s early years.
As childcare prices continue to rise across states with very different costs of living, families are increasingly confronting the same question: How can they afford to work when childcare itself costs so much?
