SEATTLE — The average cost of center-based childcare for a toddler in Washington is $14,355. For perspective, the University of Washington estimates tuition for the 2023-2024 school year will be $11,524.
That price tag, from the 34th Annie E. Casey Foundation's KIDS COUNT® Data Book, doesn't come as a shock to Michelle Maury. She relishes the few weeks a year her family gets to come visit Seattle.
"I want my kids to know what this place is because it's so special to me," Maury said. It was special enough for her and her husband to move up to the Pacific Northwest from Albuquerque around 20 years ago. "I love Seattle more than anything in the world." But Seattle didn't love her family back.
"We couldn't convince the grandparents or any of our family to move up here from New Mexico, so we had to go home especially when I realized I was pregnant with number two."
In bigger cities, like Seattle, childcare costs are easily thousands of dollars more than the average listed in the KIDS COUNT report. A Reddit thread on the topic showed people in and around Seattle sharing what they pay and how they manage. Maury describes how much childcare during the summer would typically cost for her boys who are in elementary school.
"For most childcare camps, you're looking at about $200-$250 per kid, times two, times four weeks. That ends up being $2,000," she said. "And those camps usually only run from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. which isn't that helpful for people who have to work."
The KIDS COUNT report also encourages federal, state, and local governments to invest more money in childcare, something Maury believes is important for kids and the future of society.
"When we don't take care of our kids, they become broken grown-ups. That's not fair. If we want a society that is happy, we need to support and love the kids," she said.
Washington and several cities within the state offer up some form of childcare subsidies. The links below will take you to some of those resources.