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Study: Full-time infant day care averages almost $1,200 a month

Care for one infant costs at least 10% of a family’s annual income in 48 states.

INDIANAPOLIS — Preparing for a baby means preparing for child care costs.

Child Care Aware of America estimates the average cost of full-time center-based care for one infant in the U.S. was $14,070 in 2023.

A study by Bankrate found that in Indiana, full-time day care for one infant costs 15.7% of a family's median income of nearly $88,000. That comes to $13,736 annually, or $1,145 per month.

Experts say if you can, start saving early to avoid a scramble.

That means updating your budget now to make room for what feels like a second rent or mortgage.

Alex Gailey, with Bankrate, said it is also important to explore the financial assistance programs.

"Do some homework and figure out what services, what financial assistance you qualify for. Because I think a lot of families immediately write it off and think that they don't qualify it for it because of their income, but that might not be the case," Gailey said.

Resources can be explored through Child Care Aware.

Gailey said it is also important to explore employer benefits.

"You may have access to a dependent care flexible spending account, which can help offset child care costs as well. So just make sure that you know what's available to you," Gailey said.

So why is child care so expensive? 

Gailey said child care providers have very thin profit margins, and they've had to pass off a lot of the costs to families who are paying for these services. 

"So many child care providers, the workers who work in this industry, are getting paid very low wages and so, that's the dilemma is child care providers are really struggling to pay their workers fair wages and keep their doors open. At the same time, parents can't afford to pay more," Gailey said.

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