National Childcare Price Search

County-level childcare prices from the DOL Women's Bureau National Database of Childcare Prices (NDCP) with affordability analysis.

What does this actor do?

This actor searches the most comprehensive federal source of childcare prices at the county level. The NDCP covers over 3,000 US counties from 2008 to 2022 with prices broken down by:

• Provider type: Center-based vs. family-based care
• Age group: Infant, toddler, preschool, school-age
• County demographics: Population, median income, poverty rate, unemployment rate, labor force participation

Each record includes an affordability analysis based on the HHS benchmark (childcare should cost no more than 7% of household income).

Input parameters

Parameter	Type	Description
apiKey	string	DOL API key (free at https://dataportal.dol.gov/registration)
dryRun	boolean	Return sample data (default: true unless apiKey provided)
state	string	Two-letter state abbreviation
countyName	string	County name (partial match)
year	integer	Specific year (2008–2022)
yearFrom	integer	Filter from year
yearTo	integer	Filter to year
maxResults	integer	Max records (1–5000, default: 500)

Output format

{
    "records": [
        {
            "countyFips": "36061",
            "countyName": "New York",
            "stateAbbr": "NY",
            "year": 2022,
            "centerBased": {
                "infant": 450,
                "toddler": 400,
                "preschool": 375,
                "schoolAge": 280
            },
            "familyBased": {
                "infant": 320,
                "toddler": 290,
                "preschool": 270,
                "schoolAge": 210
            },
            "demographics": {
                "medianIncome": 93651,
                "povertyRate": 15.2,
                "unemploymentRate": 5.8
            },
            "affordability": {
                "centerCostAsPercentOfIncome": 24.98,
                "affordabilityRating": "Very Expensive"
            }
        }
    ],
    "summary": {
        "totalRecords": 3,
        "avgCenterInfant": 363,
        "topExpensiveCounties": [...],
        "topAffordableCounties": [...],
        "byState": [...]
    }
}

Affordability ratings

Based on the HHS benchmark (childcare < 7% of household income):

Rating	Center infant cost as % of income
Affordable	<= 7%
Moderate	7–14%
Expensive	14–21%
Very Expensive	> 21%

Use cases

• Policy researchers: Analyze childcare affordability trends across counties and years
• Employers: Understand childcare costs for workforce planning and benefits
• Real estate: Factor childcare costs into cost-of-living analyses
• Journalists: Report on childcare affordability by region
• Nonprofits: Identify childcare desert areas and high-cost counties

Data source

DOL Women's Bureau National Database of Childcare Prices:

• WB/ndcp — County-level childcare prices (2008–2022), 3,000+ counties