Where Child Care Is More Expensive Than College: States Ranked

Nov. 5, 2013 — -- intro:While the ever-rising cost of college grabs all the headlines, many families are finding that child care can be even more costly than higher education.

In fact, while the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services considers 10 percent of family income for child care as a benchmark for affordability, the average cost of full-time care for one infant ranges from 7 to 19 percent of state median income for a married couple with kids, according to a report released this week by Child Care Aware of America, a nonprofit whose mission is to help families access quality, affordable childcare.

The financial picture is grimmer for single parents. In all 50 states, the average cost of center-based infant care exceeds 25 percent of median income for single parents.

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To rank states by child care affordability, the report, "Parents and the High Cost of Child Care 2013," used Census Bureau data and survey data from the Child Care Resource and Referral State Networks.

Oregon is the least-affordable state for center-based infant care, in which its average cost is 18.6 percent of the state's median income for married couples with kids, which is $72,226. Meanwhile, the dollar cost of center-based infant care is highest in Massachusetts, where the average annual cost of center-based infant care is $16,500.

Using states' median income levels, see how your state ranks according to the affordability of infant care. And check out your state's average for tuition and fees at a public college, average child care center costs for four-year olds and school-age children.

quicklist:1category: Public College: $8,303.00title: Oregon text: Center-Based Infant Care: $13,452.00

4-Year-Old Child: $10,200.00

School-Age Child: $5,028.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $72,226.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 18.60%

quicklist:2category: Public College: $6,560.00title: New York text: Center-Based Infant Care: $14,939.00

4-Year-Old Child: $12,355.00

School-Age Child: $11,690.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $90,725.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 16.50%

quicklist:category: Public College: $10,388.00title: Minnesota text: Center-Based Infant Care: $13,876.00

4-Year-Old Child: $10,664.00

School-Age Child: Minnesota did not report cost data for some categories of care, or the number of programs reporting rates was too small to be valid for reporting.

State Median Income for Married Couple: $89,608.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 15.50%

quicklist:category: Public College: $10,619.00title: Massachusettstext: Center-Based Infant Care: $16,430.00

4-Year-Old Child: $12,176.00

School-Age Child: $4,378.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $109,090.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 15.10%

quicklist:category: Public College: $8,416.00title: Colorado text: Center-Based Infant Care: $12,736.00

4-Year-Old Child: $9,619.00

School-Age Child: $5,177.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $85,137.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 15.00%

quicklist:category: Public College: $9,368.00title: California text: Center-Based Infant Care: $12,068.00

4-Year-Old Child: $8,407.00

School-Age Child: $2,792.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $81,484.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 14.80%

quicklist:category: Public College: $12,118.00title: Illinoistext: Center-Based Infant Care: $12,697.00

4-Year-Old Child: $9,261.00

School-Age Child: $5,877.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $85,715.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 14.80%

quicklist:category: Public College: $8,665.00title: Hawaii text: Center-Based Infant Care: $12,473.00

4-Year-Old Child: $8,172.00

School-Age Child: $8,904.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $86,699.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 14.40%

quicklist:category: Public College: $10,774.00title: Washington text: Center-Based Infant Care: $12,108.00

4-Year-Old Child: $9,240.00

School-Age Child: $5,412.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $84,464.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 14.30%

quicklist:category: Public College: $7,277.00title: Kansastext: Center-Based Infant Care: $10,518.00

4-Year-Old Child: $7,499.00

School-Age Child: $6,741.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $77,034.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 13.70%

quicklist:category: Public College: $6,371.00title: Nevada text: Center-Based Infant Care: $9,608.00

4-Year-Old Child: $7,687.00

School-Age Child: $4,980.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $71,934.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 13.40%

quicklist:category: Public College: $11,172.00title: Michigan text: Center-Based Infant Care: $10,114.00

4-Year-Old Child: $7,930.00

School-Age Child: $4,576.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $77,996.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 13.00%

quicklist:category: Public College: $10,849.00title: Rhode Island text: Center-Based Infant Care: $12,075.00

4-Year-Old Child: $10,138.00

School-Age Child: $5,971.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $93,540.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 12.90%

quicklist:category: Public College: $13,582.00title: Vermonttext: Center-Based Infant Care: $9,958.00

4-Year-Old Child: $9,223.00

School-Age Child: $3,998.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $79,259.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 12.60%

quicklist:category: Public College: $9,471.00title: Mainetext: Center-Based Infant Care: $9,360.00

4-Year-Old Child: $8,320.00

School-Age Child: $4,368.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $74,554.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 12.60%

quicklist:category: Public College: $9,729.00title: Arizona text: Center-Based Infant Care: $8,671.00

4-Year-Old Child: $7,398.00

School-Age Child: $6,198.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $70,149.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 12.40%

quicklist:category: Public College: $8,690.00title: Wisconsin text: Center-Based Infant Care: $9,939.00

4-Year-Old Child: $8,413.00

School-Age Child: $7,893.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $81,050.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 12.30%

quicklist:category: Public College: $12,330.00title: Pennsylvania text: Center-Based Infant Care: $10,319.00

4-Year-Old Child: $8,601.00

School-Age Child: $5,520.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $84,427.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 12.20%

quicklist:category: Public College: $14,576.00title: New Hampshire text: Center-Based Infant Care: $11,730.00

4-Year-Old Child: $9,484.00

School-Age Child: $4,172.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $95,814.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 12.20%

quicklist:category: Public College: $6,220.00title: North Carolina text: Center-Based Infant Care: $8,868.00

4-Year-Old Child: $7,501.00

School-Age Child: $4,298.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $73,366.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 12.10%

quicklist:category: Public College: $6,139.00title: Montana text: Center-Based Infant Care: $8,475.00

4-Year-Old Child: $7,518.00

School-Age Child: $5,301.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $70,089.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 12.10%

quicklist:category: Public College: $9,630.00title: Connecticut text: Center-Based Infant Care: $12,973.00

4-Year-Old Child: $10,692.00

School-Age Child: $5,421.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $108,355.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 12.00%

quicklist:category: Public College: $5,883.00title: West Virginia text: Center-Based Infant Care: $7,961.00

4-Year-Old Child: $6,900.00

School-Age Child: $6,635.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $66,649.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 11.90%

quicklist:category: Public College: $6,232.00title: Florida text: Center-Based Infant Care: $8,299.00

4-Year-Old Child: $6,571.00

School-Age Child: $3,822.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $71,202.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 11.70%

quicklist:category: Public College: $8,354.00title: Texastext: Center-Based Infant Care: $8,495.00

4-Year-Old Child: $6,547.00

School-Age Child: $3,119.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $72,685.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 11.70%

quicklist:category: Public College: $9,471.00title: Maryland text: Center-Based Infant Care: $9,360.00

4-Year-Old Child: $8,320.00

School-Age Child: $4,368.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $111,875.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 11.70%

quicklist:category: Public College: $7,830.00title: Iowa text: Center-Based Infant Care: $9,053.00

4-Year-Old Child: $9,053.00

School-Age Child: $4,325.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $78,042.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 11.60%

quicklist:category: Public College: $4,278.00title: Wyoming text: Center-Based Infant Care: $9,100.00

4-Year-Old Child: $7,800.00

School-Age Child: $7,800.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $78,187.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 11.60%

quicklist:category: Public College: $5,687.00title: New Mexico text: Center-Based Infant Care: $7,360.00

4-Year-Old Child: $6,475.00

School-Age Child: $3,261.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $65,204.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 11.30%

quicklist:category: Public College: $5,818.00title: Alaska text: Center-Based Infant Care: $10,338.00

4-Year-Old Child: $7,655.00

School-Age Child: $5,636.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $91,360.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 11.30%

quicklist:category: Public College: $6,350.00title: Oklahoma text: Center-Based Infant Care: $7,480.00

4-Year-Old Child: $5,610.00

School-Age Child: $3,195.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $67,110.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 11.10%

quicklist:category: Public College: $5,991.00title: Idahotext: Center-Based Infant Care: $6,969.00

4-Year-Old Child: $6,134.00

School-Age Child: $3,969.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $62,819.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 11.10%

quicklist:category: Public College: $5,595.00title: Utah text: Center-Based Infant Care: $7,860.00

4-Year-Old Child: $6,024.00

School-Age Child: $5,280.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $70,862.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 11.10%

quicklist:category: Public College: $7,917.00title: Missouri text: Center-Based Infant Care: $8,320.00

4-Year-Old Child: $5,772.00

School-Age Child: $3,654.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $75,425.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 11.00%

quicklist:category: Public College: $8,704.00title: Indiana text: Center-Based Infant Care: $8,073.00

4-Year-Old Child: $6,448.00

School-Age Child: $5,759.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $74,258.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 10.90%

quicklist:category: Public College: $9,190.00title: Ohio text: Center-Based Infant Care: $8,482.00

4-Year-Old Child: $6,919.00

School-Age Child: $4,664.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $78,699.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 10.80%

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quicklist:category: Public College: $9,907.00title: Virginia text: Center-Based Infant Care: $10,028.00

4-Year-Old Child: $7,855.00

School-Age Child: $5,614.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $94,798.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 10.60%

quicklist:category: Public College: $7,199.00title: Nebraskatext: Center-Based Infant Care: $7,797.00

4-Year-Old Child: $6,518.00

School-Age Child: $4,417.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $77,168.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 10.10%

quicklist:category: Public College: $12,399.00title: New Jersey text: Center-Based Infant Care: $10,949.00

4-Year-Old Child: $9,170.00

School-Age Child: $4,007.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $110,101.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 9.90%

quicklist:category: Public College: title: North Dakota text: Center-Based Infant Care: $8,021.00

4-Year-Old Child: $7,109.00

School-Age Child: North Dakota did not report cost data for some categories of care, or the number of programs reporting rates was too small to be valid for reporting.

State Median Income for Married Couple: $80,746.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 9.90%

quicklist:category: Public College: $10,890.00title: Delawaretext: Center-Based Infant Care: $8,928.00

4-Year-Old Child: $7,104.00

School-Age Child: $6,447.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $91,022.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 9.80%

quicklist:category: Public College: $7,504.00title: Georgiatext: Center-Based Infant Care: $7,228.00

4-Year-Old Child: $6,234.00

School-Age Child: $5,742.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $75,466.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 9.60%

quicklist:category: Public College: $6,968.00title: Arkansastext: Center-Based Infant Care: $5,894.00

4-Year-Old Child: $5,011.00

School-Age Child: $5,909.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $63,561.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 9.30%

quicklist:category: Public College: $10,698.00title: South Carolina text: Center-Based Infant Care: $6,280.00

4-Year-Old Child: $5,308.00

School-Age Child: $2,189.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $71,755.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 8.80%

quicklist:category: Public College: $8,455.00title: Kentucky text: Center-Based Infant Care: $6,105.00

4-Year-Old Child: $6,007.00

School-Age Child: $5,389.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $70,677.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 8.60%

quicklist:category: Public College: $7,676.00title: Tennessee text: Center-Based Infant Care: $5,857.00

4-Year-Old Child: $4,515.00

School-Age Child: $2,451.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $69,211.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 8.50%

quicklist:category: Public College: $7,082.00title: South Dakota text: Center-Based Infant Care: $6,071.00

4-Year-Old Child: $5,781.00

School-Age Child: $3,744.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $74,799.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 8.10%

quicklist: category: Public College: $8,741title: Alabama text:

Center-Based Infant Care: $5,467.00

4-Year-Old Child: $5,785.00

School-Age Child: $5,148.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $71,895.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 7.60%

quicklist:category: Public College: $6,147.00title: Mississippitext: Center-Based Infant Care: $4,863.00

4-Year-Old Child: $4,312.00

School-Age Child: $3,026.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $65,855.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 7.40%

quicklist:category: Public College: $5,812.00title: Louisianatext: Center-Based Infant Care: $5,574.00

4-Year-Old Child: $4,812.00

School-Age Child: $1,070.00

State Median Income for Married Couple: $80,034.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 7.00%

quicklist:category: Public College: $7,255.28title: District of Columbiatext: Center-Based Infant Care: $21,948.00

4-Year-Old Child: $16,908.00

School-Age Child: $13,211.00

District of Columbia was not ranked on percentage of state median income for a married couple.

State Median Income for Married Couple: $155,327.00

Cost of Care as Percentage of Married Couple's State Median Income: 14.10%

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