Child Care Devours 20% of Family Income—Forcing Parents to Drain Savings and Delay Major Purchases

Child care costs are gutting household budgets, forcing families into financial triage.

The 20% Bite

Forget avocado toast—the real budget killer is daycare. A full fifth of the average family's income now vanishes into child care, a figure that doesn't just pinch, it paralyzes. This isn't discretionary spending; it's a mandatory line item with the force of a mortgage, but without the asset to show for it.

Savings on Life Support

Emergency funds aren't for emergencies anymore. They're being systematically liquidated to cover the weekly invoice. The safety net becomes operating capital, leaving families one unexpected bill away from a fiscal cliff. Retirement contributions? Often the first casualty.

The Great Delay

Major life purchases—the car, the home renovation, the family vacation—are being pushed into a hazy future. Financial planning shifts from growth to survival, from investment to sustenance. The economic ripple effect is real, as consumer spending in other sectors flatlines.

It's a brutal calculus that highlights a system where paying for the privilege of going to work can itself become a losing proposition. A cynic might note it's the one 'investment' where you're guaranteed zero financial return—unless you count keeping your job as the dividend.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• A recent survey shows that last year, the average family spent about 20% of their annual income on child care.
• Some families had additional costs as well, such as senior care, pet care and house care, which combined could add up to thousands of dollars a month.
• To cope with increasing costs, many families are reducing spending on entertainment and vacations and dipping into their savings.

Some families are spending more on caring for children and other family members than they do on their mortgage, forcing them to cut back on things like entertainment and vacations and to dip into their savings.

Day care and preschool prices have increased by 4.8% over the past year, outpacing overall inflation, which ROSE 2.7% year-over-year in December. In a recent survey by Care.com, an online platform to find child, senior, pet, and home care, the average parent said they spent about 20% of their annual income on child care.

"Parents are being pushed well beyond their limits by the demands of caregiving," said CEO of Care.com, Brad Wilson, in the press release. “If this continues, care pressures risk pushing more parents to cut back or step away from their careers. That will only deepen financial strain and emotional stress."

Why This Matters

Rising child care costs are taking a growing share of household income, leaving families with less money to spend elsewhere. That drag on consumer spending can slow economic growth. High costs also push some parents—often women—out of the workforce, tightening labor supply and limiting economic output.

For one infant, the average family spent about $1,328 a month on daycare in 2025. If the family had two children in daycare, they WOULD spend about $2,340 a month. That is more than the $2,225 monthly payment for the average homeowner who moved in 2024, according to the most recent Census data.

Other costs, such as $169 a week for a babysitter for two children, $147 for pet care, and $184 for housekeeping, add to a household's financial responsibilities.

In particular, the "sandwich generation," who are financially supporting and caring for both their children and their parents, are struggling. On top of child care expenses, the average weekly cost of senior care was $795 in 2025, according to the survey. Juggling all of those financial responsibilities has pushed this generation to make big spending cuts to stay afloat.

How Families Manage Child Care Costs

Balancing child care and a career is difficult for many, with 84% of parents who earn income saying they would have a more fulfilling career if child care were free, according to the Care.com survey. Some families find it better for one parent, particularly a woman, to drop out of the labor force to save money on child care.

RELATED EDUCATION

These are some of the biggest costs that families are trimming to make ends meet:

• 34% of parents reduced spending on entertainment and leisure
• 32% relied on family or friends for child care
• 31% dipped into their savings
• 30% delayed major purchases, like vacations