(News Nation) — A new study from LendingTree found that sending two children to daycare in the 100 largest metropolitan areas of the U.S. costs about 40% more than rent.
of analysis Decided The average monthly cost of full-time child care for an infant and four-year-old is $2,182, 39.4 percent more than the average rent of $1,566 for a two-bedroom unit.
In some cities, families can expect to pay more than double the average rent for child care.
Springfield, Massachusetts, has the highest child care-to-rent ratio, with a family paying 136% more per month ($3,241) for two children in child care compared to rent ($1,375).
The next largest gaps were in Syracuse (131 percent) and Buffalo, New York (125 percent), followed by Spokane, Washington (116 percent) and Bakersfield, California (109 percent).
“For many parents in these metro areas, expenses are likely forcing them to make difficult choices, such as whether to return to work after the birth of their child or whether to have another child,” Matt Schultz, principal credit analyst at LendingTree, said in the report.
But parents in a handful of cities aren't the only ones facing tough choices: In 91 of the 100 cities surveyed, the report found that providing full-time child care for two children costs more than a month's rent.
Washington, DC, was the most expensive city to put two young children in child care at $3,773 per month. Boston came in second at $3,648 per month, and Worcester, Massachusetts, came in third at $3,424.
Families in nine metropolitan areas (fewer than 10% of those surveyed) are slightly better off, paying less for child care than the average rent.
Miami had the lowest child care costs, at $1,982 for two children, about 15 percent lower than the $2,324 rent. San Francisco (-12 percent), Austin (-8 percent), and San Jose (-7 percent) also had lower child care costs relative to rent.
One reason is that rents in these cities are much higher than the national average: In San Francisco, the average monthly rent for a two-bedroom apartment is $3,359, compared to $3,132 in San Jose, according to the analysis.
Dollar-wise, families in the South pay the least for child care: In Jackson, Mississippi, full-time child care for two children costs $1,337 a month, the lowest in the country, but still $178 more than the average rent for a two-bedroom apartment.
Only four other cities had monthly child care costs below $1,500: Greenville ($1,433) and Columbia ($1,439), South Carolina; Little Rock, Arkansas ($1,467) and Birmingham, Alabama ($1,468).
The rent and child care outlook is slightly better for families with just one child, where full-time child care for an infant costs $1,218 per month, 22 percent less than the average two-bedroom unit.
Yet in 16 metropolitan areas, the cost of putting one child in full-time child care exceeds the average rent.
“No matter how you look at it, securing child care for a second child is going to be expensive unless you have a trusted friend or relative pitching in,” Schultz says.
2023 Ministry of Labor report They found that in large counties, center-based care for infants currently costs $17,171 per child per year.
LendingTree's report is based on an analysis of data from Child Care Aware of America and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
The 10 largest US metropolitan areas with the highest monthly child care costs for two children, according to LendingTree
- Washington DC: $3,773
- Boston, Massachusetts: $3,648
- Worcester, Massachusetts: $3,424
- Springfield, Massachusetts: $3,241
- New York, NY: $3,151
- Minneapolis, Minnesota: $3,131
- Seattle, Washington: $3,114
- Poughkeepsie, New York: $3,067
- Honolulu, HI: $3,035
- San Francisco, California: $2,964
The 10 U.S. metropolitan areas with the cheapest monthly child care costs for two children, according to LendingTree
- Jackson, Mississippi: $1,337
- Greenville, South Carolina: $1,433
- Columbia, South Carolina: $1,439
- Little Rock, Arkansas: $1,467
- Birmingham, Alabama: $1,468
- Charleston, South Carolina: $1,523
- McAllen, Texas: $1,557
- Louisville, Kentucky: $1,567
- Tulsa, Oklahoma: $1,571
- Oklahoma City, OK: $1,587
