How do Kansas child care costs compare to other states? See what report found
While child care costs in Kansas aren’t cheap, they are still some of the cheapest rates in the country, a new report found.
To determine the cheapest (and most expensive) states for child care, WalletHub evaluated the prices of full-time family-based and center-based child care, then adjusted for the median household income of married couples and single parents.
“It costs a lot of money to take care of a child’s needs, and many parents are left with the dilemma of whether to forgo one salary to do their own child care for the first few years or to shell out a significant chunk of their income for child care services,” WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo said in the June 30 report. “Married parents who both work can expect to spend as much as 14% of what they earn on child care, while single parents’ costs can amount to an astounding 59%.”
In Kansas, married parents spend 6.15% of the median household income on family-based child care and 9.78% on child care centers.
Single parents spend 19.61% of the median household income on family-based child care and 31.2% on child care centers.
These rates make Kansas the state with the 43rd highest child care costs, according to WalletHub.
States with highest and lowest child care costs
Using the same metrics, WalletHub found that the most expensive states for child care are Nebraska, California, New York, Oregon and Washington.
The cheapest states are Mississippi, South Dakota, Alabama, Georgia and Alaska.
