Child Care is More Expensive Than Rent

Excerpted from:
Child Care Is Now More Expensive Than Rent in Many U.S. Cities
By Nadia Tamez-Robledo
Dec 15, 2025

Published by EdSurge, this article explores how child care costs across the U.S. now rival, or even surpass, rent prices in major metropolitan areas, highlighting the difficult trade-offs families face in affording care without sacrificing other basic needs. The article points to workforce shortages, rising operating costs, and systemic underinvestment as key factors keeping prices high, even as wages for early educators remain stagnant.

The EdSurge analysis reveals that families, especially those with more than one child, are increasingly forced to choose between paying for essential needs and accessing quality care. Rising operating expenses and persistently low wages for early educators have driven tuition far beyond the rate of inflation. Together, these factors highlight a widening national affordability crisis and point to the urgent need for sustainable solutions that support both parents and providers.

Key finding:

• A LendingTree analysis shows that the monthly cost of child care for two children now exceeds average rent for a two-bedroom unit in 85 out of 100 largest U.S. metropolitan areas.

What the data shows

• Child care cost for two children: Average about $2,252 per month.
• Typical two-bedroom rent: About $1,716 per month.
• In many cities, especially in the Midwest and Northeast (e.g., Omaha, Milwaukee, Buffalo), the cost for two kids can be more than double rent.
• In 11 metro areas, even infant care alone costs more than typical rent for a two-bedroom unit.

Why it matters

• Many families are caught in a financial squeeze: employment income increasingly goes toward child care rather than savings or debt reduction. A finance analyst noted that parents often find themselves paying as much to child care as they earn in disposable income — leaving little room for savings.
• Experts warn this dynamic can discourage labor force participation — especially for secondary earners and single parents — because the net benefit of working can be minimal once child care costs are subtracted.

Broader affordability context

• National estimates show child care costs averaging over $13,000 per child annually — rising faster than inflation and household income in many states.
• In multiple states, child care costs now exceed other major household bills such as college tuition or housing.

In short, child care has become one of the single largest household expenses for working families in the U.S., often matching or even surpassing the cost of rent, a clear sign of the nation’s deepening affordability crisis.

Read the full article:
https://www.edsurge.com/news/2025-12-15-child-care-costs-more-than-rent-in-most-metro-areas-why-can-t-we-fix-that

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