Comparing the price of child care with college tuition

In a July 29 press conference, Rep. Linda Sánchez of California joined House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other Democrats to show support for child care legislation to help businesses and families during the COVID-19 pandemic.

"The average cost of child care in this country is more than what it costs to send a child to college for one year," Sánchez said at the press conference. Later that day, the House passed two bills to provide funding to child care providers.

Sánchez did not specify what timespan she was referring to for child care spending, and her spokesperson did not respond for comment. 

We found that child care certainly isn’t cheap, and depending on how you count it, it can cost nearly as much as a year of college. But, in most cases, in a year-to-year comparison, a year of college costs more.

Like many things during the pandemic, the already complicated landscape of child care has become even more difficult for families amid shutdowns. 

At some point during the pandemic, half of child care programs closed, and, according to a July National Association for the Education of Young Children survey, about 40% of child care providers say they will close permanently if they don’t receive additional assistance from the government.

Half of infants and toddlers and 63% of 3- to 5-year-olds were in nonparental child care in 2012, according to a 2016 survey by the Health and Human Services Department and the University of Chicago.

The Cares Act, a congressional COVID-19 relief package passed in March, provided the child care industry with $3.5 billion. The Child Care Is Essential Act, which Sánchez co-sponsored, would allocate $50 billion in grants to child care providers. 

A 2019 report by Child Care Aware of America, an advocacy group that provides families with child care resources, found the average price of center-based infant, toddler and 4-year-old care in each state and D.C. 

PolitiFact’s analysis of the group’s numbers found that the nationwide median price of infant care is $11,107 annually. That figure falls to $10,267 for toddlers and $8,834 for 4-year-olds.

By comparison, in 2017-18, the average price of tuition, fees, room and board for all four-year colleges — including public and private institutions — was $27,357, according to the U.S. Department of Education. Clearly, that’s more than what families nationwide average for one year of child care for an infant, toddler or a 4-year-old.

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If you look only at four-year public colleges, the total cost drops to $20,050 for a year on average, according to Education Department figures. That’s still more than the median price of one year of center-based infant, toddler or 4-year-old child care. 

We should note that these college and child care figures don’t take financial assistance into account. In addition, many families depend on child care outside of centers, including through a family member or trusted friend.

To be sure, there are instances when a year of child care can cost more than a year of college tuition, particularly in-state tuition for public universities. But Sánchez wasn’t that precise in her claim. 

"The average cost of child care in this country is more than what it costs to send a child to college for one year," Sánchez said.

The nationwide median annual price of infant, toddler and 4-year-old care is much less expensive than the nationwide average of a year at a four-year college. However, a year of center-based child care is more expensive than a year of in-state public college tuition in many states.

Sánchez did not specify a timeframe for her comparison. If she meant to compare the annual price of a four-year college to the amount families pay for a year of infant, toddler or 4-year-old center-based care, then her statement is incorrect. However, comparing the price of college to the price of child care over the course of a child’s lifetime would show a different picture.

We rate Sánchez’s statement Mostly False.