How much does daycare cost in Texas?
The typical licensed child care center in Texas charges $41.80 a day for full-day infant care, about $209 a week, and $38.60 a day for 3-year-olds. Prices vary widely by area: infant care costs $53.60 a day in the Capital Area and $27.20 in the Golden Crescent area.
Typical full-day prices at Texas daycare centers
| Age | Median per day | About per week | 1 in 4 centers charge more than |
|---|---|---|---|
| Infants (0–11 months) | $41.80 | $209 | $46.60 |
| 12–17 months | $41.20 | $206 | $45.80 |
| Toddlers (18–23 months) | $40.20 | $201 | $44.80 |
| 2-year-olds | $39.40 | $197 | $44.00 |
| 3-year-olds | $38.60 | $193 | $43.20 |
| 4-year-olds | $37.60 | $188 | $42.00 |
| 5-year-olds | $36.40 | $182 | $40.80 |
| School age (6–13) | $36.20 | $181 | $40.60 |
Full-day care means six or more hours a day. Weekly figures are the daily rate × 5 and are estimates; centers usually quote weekly or monthly tuition. Source: 2025 Texas Child Care Market Rate Survey.
Daycare prices by area
Median full-day price per day at licensed centers in each of Texas’s 28 workforce areas, most expensive first, with the largest towns in each.
| Area | Infants | Toddlers | 3-year-olds | School age |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Capital Area Austin, Pflugerville, Manor | $53.60 | $51.60 | $49.80 | $47.00 |
| North Central Texas Frisco, Plano, McKinney | $51.00 | $48.80 | $47.00 | $44.00 |
| Greater Dallas Dallas, Irving, Garland | $45.80 | $44.00 | $42.40 | $39.80 |
| Tarrant County Fort Worth, Arlington, Mansfield | $45.60 | $44.00 | $42.60 | $40.40 |
| Rural Capital Round Rock, Austin, Cedar Park | $45.60 | $43.80 | $42.20 | $39.80 |
| Gulf Coast Houston, Katy, Spring | $42.60 | $40.80 | $39.40 | $37.20 |
| Alamo San Antonio, New Braunfels, Boerne | $42.00 | $40.40 | $39.20 | $37.00 |
| Cameron Brownsville, Harlingen, San Benito | $41.00 | $39.80 | $38.80 | $37.20 |
| Lower Rio Grande Valley Edinburg, Mission, McAllen | $35.60 | $34.40 | $33.40 | $31.80 |
| Brazos Valley Bryan, College Station, Brenham | $35.40 | $34.20 | $33.20 | $31.40 |
| Coastal Bend Corpus Christi, Kingsville, Alice | $35.20 | $34.20 | $33.00 | $31.40 |
| South Plains Lubbock, Plainview, Levelland | $33.80 | $32.80 | $31.80 | $30.20 |
| Permian Basin Midland, Odessa, Big Spring | $32.40 | $31.40 | $30.40 | $29.00 |
| Panhandle Amarillo, Pampa, Dumas | $32.20 | $31.20 | $30.20 | $28.80 |
| Middle Rio Grande Eagle Pass, Del Rio, Uvalde | $32.20 | $31.20 | $30.20 | $28.80 |
| Texoma Sherman, Denison, Gainesville | $31.80 | $30.80 | $29.80 | $28.20 |
| Borderplex El Paso, Socorro, Horizon City | $31.60 | $30.60 | $29.60 | $28.00 |
| Heart of Texas Waco, Mexia, Robinson | $31.60 | $30.60 | $29.80 | $28.40 |
| South Texas Laredo, Zapata, Hebbronville | $31.00 | $30.20 | $29.40 | $28.00 |
| West Central Texas Abilene, Brownwood, Sweetwater | $30.80 | $29.60 | $28.60 | $27.00 |
| Central Texas Killeen, Temple, Copperas Cove | $30.80 | $29.80 | $29.00 | $27.60 |
| East Texas Tyler, Longview, Marshall | $28.80 | $28.00 | $27.40 | $26.20 |
| Southeast Texas Beaumont, Nederland, Orange | $28.60 | $27.80 | $27.00 | $25.80 |
| Deep East Texas Lufkin, Nacogdoches, Livingston | $28.40 | $27.60 | $26.80 | $25.40 |
| North Texas Wichita Falls, Graham, Vernon | $28.00 | $27.00 | $26.20 | $24.80 |
| Northeast Texas Texarkana, Paris, Mount Pleasant | $28.00 | $27.00 | $26.20 | $25.00 |
| Concho Valley San Angelo, Ozona, Mason | $27.80 | $27.00 | $26.20 | $24.80 |
| Golden Crescent Victoria, Port Lavaca, Cuero | $27.20 | $26.60 | $25.80 | $24.80 |
Daycare costs in Texas’s biggest cities
| City | Area | Infants / day | 3-year-olds / day | Infants / week |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Houston | Gulf Coast | $42.60 | $39.40 | $213 |
| San Antonio | Alamo | $42.00 | $39.20 | $210 |
| Austin | Capital Area | $53.60 | $49.80 | $268 |
| Dallas | Greater Dallas | $45.80 | $42.40 | $229 |
| Fort Worth | Tarrant County | $45.60 | $42.60 | $228 |
| El Paso | Borderplex | $31.60 | $29.60 | $158 |
| Katy | Gulf Coast | $42.60 | $39.40 | $213 |
| Spring | Gulf Coast | $42.60 | $39.40 | $213 |
| Corpus Christi | Coastal Bend | $35.20 | $33.00 | $176 |
| Arlington | Tarrant County | $45.60 | $42.60 | $228 |
| Frisco | North Central Texas | $51.00 | $47.00 | $255 |
| Brownsville | Cameron | $41.00 | $38.80 | $205 |
| Plano | North Central Texas | $51.00 | $47.00 | $255 |
| Lubbock | South Plains | $33.80 | $31.80 | $169 |
| Laredo | South Texas | $31.00 | $29.40 | $155 |
Each city uses its workforce area’s survey figures. Open a city to compare every center’s inspection record.
Why infant care costs the most
Infant care costs more partly because Texas requires more staff for babies: one caregiver may look after at most 4 infants under 12 months, but up to 15 three-year-olds (see Texas daycare ratios).
Help paying for child care
Texas’s Child Care Services program helps eligible families pay for care through the local Workforce Solutions boards. Of the 9,598 licensed centers in Texas, 5,047 (53%) say in their state licensing record that they accept child care subsidies. Each center’s page on Daycare Record shows whether it does.
Common questions
What is the average cost of daycare in Texas?
The median full-day price at Texas licensed child care centers is $41.80 a day for infants, $40.20 for toddlers 18 to 23 months, $38.60 for 3-year-olds and $36.20 for school-age children, according to the 2025 Texas Child Care Market Rate Survey.
How much is daycare per month in Texas?
At the median infant rate of $41.80 a day, five days a week comes to about $905 a month (daily rate × 5 days × 4.33 weeks). For a 3-year-old it is about $836 a month. Centers set their own tuition, so ask each one for its current rates.
Where is daycare most expensive in Texas?
Among Texas’s 28 workforce areas, full-day infant care at licensed centers costs the most in the Capital Area ($53.60 a day, around Austin) and the least in the Golden Crescent area ($27.20 a day).
Is home daycare cheaper than a center in Texas?
Usually a little. The statewide median for full-day infant care is $38.60 a day at licensed child care homes and $36.40 at registered homes, compared with $41.80 at licensed centers.
How do I find out what a specific daycare charges?
Texas does not publish individual centers’ prices. Call or visit the center and ask for its weekly or monthly tuition, registration fee and any supply or meal fees. While you are comparing, check each center’s inspection record on Daycare Record.
Prices: 2025 Texas Child Care Market Rate Survey, Supplemental Report: Tables by Area. The survey was conducted for the Texas Workforce Commission by the Ray Marshall Center and the Texas Institute for Child & Family Wellbeing at the University of Texas at Austin between September 2024 and May 2025; 532 licensed centers responded (a 44.7% response rate). Figures are for licensed child care centers unless noted. Counties are matched to workforce areas using the Texas Workforce Commission’s Workforce Development Board Directory. Subsidy figures come from Texas HHS licensing data.