How Much Does It Cost to Raise a Child in 2026?

The cost of raising a child, year by year

LendingTree’s 2026 study estimates the bare-bones cost of raising one child from birth to age 18 at $303,418. That averages $16,857 a year, but the money is not spread evenly. The early years are far more expensive because of full-time child care.

Source: LendingTree, Apr 2026, mostly 2024 data. Monthly costs and period totals are our calculation.

The study assumes a married, two-earner couple with one child and the US median family income of $99,999. It counts only the extra spending a child adds compared with a household without one, and it subtracts the federal child tax credit. Figures are not adjusted for future inflation, so the real total for a baby born today will likely be higher.

Where the money goes

Here is LendingTree’s yearly breakdown for a child under 5. Child care is by far the biggest line.

Source: LendingTree, Apr 2026.

Take day care out and the yearly cost drops to $12,061, which is exactly the figure LendingTree uses for ages 5 to 18 (our calculation). That is why many parents feel a real raise once a child starts public school.

The older USDA estimate splits costs differently. For a child born in 2015, a middle-income married couple was expected to spend $233,610 through age 17, or $284,570 with projected inflation. Housing was the largest share at 29%, followed by food at 18% and child care and education at 16% for families who pay for it.

For a closer look at the biggest line, see our guide to child care cost, which compares day care, nannies and family care homes.

Cost of raising a child by state

Where you live can swing the total by more than $200,000. Rent and day care prices drive most of the gap.

Source: LendingTree, Apr 2026.

As a share of income, families spend 21.9% on a child on average, down slightly from 22.6% in the prior year’s study. Hawaii is highest at 27.4%. The District of Columbia is lowest at 13.9%, largely because incomes there are high.

Costs the estimate leaves out

The LendingTree number is deliberately lean. Budget separately for:

• Birth itself. Hospital and prenatal bills come before year one. Our guide to the cost of having a baby covers what families with insurance actually pay.
• College. Neither LendingTree nor the USDA includes it.
• Activities and extras. Sports, lessons, camps, phones, birthday parties and school trips are not in the bare-bones figure.
• Lost income. If a parent cuts hours or leaves work to care for a child, that cost can dwarf any line in the table.

Child care is also a big expense on a national level. Child Care Aware of America put the average annual price of care at $13,184 in 2025, about 10% of median income for two-parent households and 33% for single parents.

How to lower the cost

1. Claim the child care credit. For 2026 the IRS lets you count up to $3,000 of care costs for one child or $6,000 for two or more, with a credit of 20% to 50% depending on income. That means a credit of up to $1,500 or $3,000.
2. Use a dependent care FSA if your employer offers one. The 2026 limit is $7,500 per household ($3,750 if married filing separately), paid with pre-tax money. Benefits you exclude this way reduce the expenses you can use for the credit.
3. Buy used where safety allows. Clothes, toys and furniture are the classic hand-me-down items. The USDA’s finding that per-child costs fall 24% in larger families comes partly from reuse.
4. Build a cushion before the baby arrives. Kids bring surprise costs. Our emergency fund calculator can help you size a safety net, and the 50/30/20 budget calculator shows how a new monthly cost fits your income.

Is the $300,000 figure realistic for you?

Use it as a planning anchor, not a bill. The real cost depends on your state, whether you pay for full-time care, how many children you have and how you live. A family with a grandparent providing free care in a low-cost state could spend far less. A family paying for a nanny in a high-cost city could spend much more.

The most useful step is to price the first five years for your own situation, since that is when the budget is tightest. Start with the biggest line: call two or three local day care centers, or price a nanny, and replace LendingTree’s $17,264 with your real number. Then adjust food and housing for your own home.

If the monthly number looks out of reach, remember that it changes over time. Using LendingTree’s figures, the cost drops by more than half, from about $2,444 a month to about $1,005, once full-time care ends (our calculation). Planning for the first five years as a separate, temporary phase makes the whole 18 years easier to budget.

See how we research every number on our method page, or browse more family life costs.