Texas ranks in top 10 most affordable states for child care: Study

TEXAS - Texas is among the most affordable states to receive child care in the U.S., a nonprofit advocacy group found in a nationwide study of 2024 numbers.

According to ChildCare Aware of America, the average price of child care in the U.S. last year was $13,128. They found that Texas beat that number by nearly 14 percent.

Texas Child Care Affordability

With an average annual cost of $11,349 for an infant in center-based child care, Texas ranks at number 10 in the nation for affordability.

The placement is within the lower range of the study's findings, showing that married couples in Texas making the median household income of $116,166 spend around 10 percent of their annual earnings on receiving child care for an infant. 

By the numbers:

The study goes further in depth for the state, giving numbers and percentages for infants, toddlers, types of service and different sizes of families.

• An infant in family child care has an annual cost of $10,010.
• A toddler in family child care has an annual cost of $9,957.
• An infant in center-based child care has an annual cost of $11,349.
• A toddler in center-based child care has an annual cost of $10,921.

Texas Child Care Ranking

Big picture view:

By the study's barometer of a married couple with an infant in center-based care making the median salary for their state, Texas falls in the top 20 percent with regard to affordability. 

The least affordable state is California, the study finds, with an annual price tag of $22,628, or 16 percent of median income.

The most affordable state is Mississippi, with an annual price tag of $7,696, or 7 percent of median income.

Child Care vs. Housing Costs

States on the more expensive end tend to spend more on child care than housing, the study found. 

Three of the nation's four regions, namely the Midwest, Northeast and South, spend the most on child care of the six measured areas. Housing, college tuition, transportation, food and healthcare all fall below child care in those regions.

In the West, the higher average cost of housing barely edges out child care, with a gap of $215.

Local perspective:

In comparison, an infographic in the study shows the average annual housing cost in Texas is $24,144. Even a family raising two children (an infant and a toddler) tends to pay less for child care than housing, with $21,574, the study found.

Texas Child Care Solutions

In 2024, the Dallas City Council voted in favor of a proposal that would make it easier to open daycare within neighborhoods, potentially increasing the options for those seeking child care in the area.

Sen. Royce West (D-Dallas) filed a bill earlier this session that would give tax breaks to daycare centers, potentially raising workers' salaries and hoping to benefit child care conditions overall. The bill was referred to the Senate committee on finance in February.

What they're saying:

The study ends by addressing an apparent child care crisis in the U.S.

"For most families across the country, such care remains out of reach due to high prices and limited availability," the study says. "America’s fragmented child care system is failing everyone: children, families, the child care workforce, communities, and even our military. Solving America’s child care challenges requires a combination of policy levers and public investment that leads to the viability of the system long-term. To address this crisis, Congress must prioritize child care and early learning in its tax policies and federal funding decisions this year. In addition, states must step up and make child care investments and policy improvements."

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