Cost of Raising a Child Calculator

In many middle-income US scenarios, the 0-to-18 total often lands around the low-to-mid six figures for one child, but can vary significantly by state, childcare plan, and inflation. Regional differences and childcare strategy are usually the biggest drivers.

Childcare and education are often the largest category in early years, especially for daycare center and nanny plans. Housing is also a major long-run cost contributor across nearly all scenarios.

A common planning assumption is that the second child costs less than the first because many costs are shared (housing, some clothing, household goods). This calculator models the second child at roughly 27% lower cost than the first and third+ at about 24% lower.

USDA-style cost studies are often used as a baseline for household child-expense modeling. This calculator uses USDA-inspired category shares and then applies location, childcare scenario, and inflation assumptions for planning estimates.