Childcare Costs in Connecticut

In Connecticut, the typical full-time price for infant care at a childcare center is $1,556 a month ($18,668 a year), based on the federal government's childcare price database (2023 estimates). That is about 103% above the national median of $765 a month. Here is the full picture for Connecticut by age and care type.

Median infant care at a center, Connecticut

$1,556/month

$18,668 a year. National median: $765/month. Federal data, 2023 estimates.

Median childcare prices in Connecticut

Age	Center / year	Center / month	Home-based / year	Home-based / month
Infant	$18,668	$1,556	$12,241	$1,020
Toddler	$18,668	$1,556	$11,874	$990
Preschool	$14,843	$1,237	$11,874	$990

Medians across Connecticut's 8 counties in the federal database. Home-based means a licensed family childcare home. Monthly is the annual price divided by 12.

Run your numbers with Connecticut prices

Child's age group

Care type

Monthly price per child ($)

Preset to Connecticut's median. Replace it with a real quote any time.

Children in paid care

Your estimated childcare bill

$1,556

per month, $18,668 a year, for 1 child. That is about 19.6% of the typical Connecticut family income ($95,265 a year).

Want the full comparison?

Centers vs a nanny vs after-school care, with the tax breaks included, in our childcare cost calculator. Then fold the winner into your family budget planner.

How Connecticut compares

At $1,556 a month for infant care at a center, Connecticut sits about 103% above the national median. For a typical Connecticut family earning $95,265 a year, that one bill is about 19.6% of gross income, before any tax breaks, and the federal affordability benchmark is 7%. Inside the state, prices run from $14,873 a year in New London County to $22,524 in Fairfield County for the same infant center care, which is why where you live in Connecticut matters as much as the state line.

Example: Two children in Connecticut, an infant and a preschooler, both at a center: $1,556 + $1,237 = $2,793 a month, $33,511 a year at median prices. A sibling discount of 10% on the second child would save about $1,484 a year.

New to the options? Read childcare costs explained and our story on the real cost of childcare.

Frequently asked questions

How much does childcare cost in Connecticut?

The median price of full-time infant care at a childcare center in Connecticut is $1,556 a month ($18,668 a year) in the federal data (2023 estimates). Home-based infant care runs $1,020 a month, and preschool at a center is $1,237 a month.

Why do prices vary so much inside Connecticut?

These are medians across Connecticut's 8 counties in the federal database. For infant care at a center, the priciest county in the data is Fairfield County at $22,524 a year and the least pricey is New London County at $14,873. City care almost always costs more than rural care.

How current are these figures?

They are the US Department of Labor's 2023 estimated prices, the latest federal childcare price release, built from the National Database of Childcare Prices. Prices have likely risen since, so use them as a solid floor when you budget and compare quotes, not as a quote themselves.

How can I bring the bill down?

Compare center and home-based prices above, ask about sibling discounts and part-week schedules, and claim every tax break: the Child and Dependent Care Credit and a Dependent Care FSA can return real money. Our childcare cost calculator models centers, nannies and after-school care side by side.

Keep exploring

Neighboring states in the alphabet: California · Delaware

All states: childcare costs by state · Tools: Childcare cost calculator · Family budget planner

Source: US Department of Labor, Women's Bureau, National Database of Childcare Prices (NDCP), county price data table, 2023 estimated prices, retrieved 2026-10-13. State figures are medians of the state's county median prices; monthly figures are the annual price divided by 12. Prices have likely risen since 2023, so treat these as a well-documented floor, not a quote.