May 29, 2025 - News
Texas daycare costs about $21,600 a year for two kids
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The average Texan spends more on child care for two children than on rent every year.
The big picture: The cost of child care in the U.S. rose 29% from 2020 to 2024, outpacing overall inflation, Axios' Emily Peck reports.
- The average annual cost of daycare tuition nationwide for two children — one toddler and one infant — rose to $28,168 last year, according to data from Child Care Aware, an advocacy group.
Zoom in: The average cost of child care in Texas is nearly $21,600 for an infant and a toddler, or about 27% of the median household annual income in the state.
- That's lower than the national average of 35%, based on Census Bureau data released in 2024.
By the numbers: The average annual cost of daycare for two children is about $5,500 more than the average cost of rent in Texas, per Child Care Aware data.
- Daycare costs about $2,570 less a year than the average Texan's mortgage payments.