Child Cost Calculator — Cost of Raising a Child
Enter your household income tier and child's age to estimate annual child-rearing costs and the total cost from birth to age 18 — broken down by housing, food, transportation, healthcare, childcare, clothing and other expenses.
Household income tier
years
Average annual cost for the current age group (2022 USD estimate)
$16,400
per yearHousing
29%
Food
18%
Transportation
15%
Childcare & Education
16%
Healthcare
9%
Clothing
6%
Miscellaneous
7%
How does this calculator work?
A middle-income US family spends roughly $294,000 raising one child from birth to 17 (2022 dollars; USDA 2017 × CPI). About 29% goes to housing, 18% food, 16% childcare/education, 15% transportation, 9% healthcare. Low-income families spend ~$220,000 and high-income families ~$460,000. College costs are not included.
Formula
How this is calculated
The cost figures are derived from the USDA 2017 report "Expenditures on Children by Families" (Lino et al., Miscellaneous Publication No. 1528-2015), the most comprehensive US study of child-rearing costs. The report estimated total costs from birth through age 17 for a two-parent, two-child household: approximately $174,690 for low-income families, $233,610 for middle-income families, and $372,210 for high-income families in 2017 dollars. These figures are scaled by approximately 1.26 to reflect cumulative US CPI-U inflation from 2017 to 2022.
Costs are broken into six age brackets (0–2, 3–5, 6–8, 9–11, 12–14, 15–17), reflecting the age-varying pattern in the USDA data — younger children incur higher childcare costs while older children have higher food and transportation costs. The donut chart shows the average spending shares across all age groups: housing is the single largest component at 29%, followed by food (18%), transportation (15%) and childcare/education (16%).
These are national averages for a two-parent household. Costs can be 15–30% higher in high cost-of-living metro areas (New York, San Francisco) and 10–20% lower in rural areas. Single-parent households, families with many children (economies of scale on housing and transportation), and households making different childcare or educational choices (public vs. private school, daycare vs. stay-at-home parent) will see significant variation. The figure does not include college tuition or private-school fees, which can add $150,000–$300,000+ per child.
Frequently asked questions
For a middle-income two-parent household, the USDA 2017 estimate scaled to 2022 dollars is approximately $294,000 from birth through age 17 — not including college. This works out to roughly $16,000–$17,000 per year on average. High-income families spend about $460,000 and low-income families about $220,000 over the same period.
No. The USDA study and this calculator cover costs from birth through age 17 only. College tuition, room and board are excluded. Four-year college costs in the US currently range from about $50,000 (community college path) to $300,000+ (private university), depending heavily on the institution and the amount of financial aid received.
The USDA study is based on two-parent, two-child households. Single-parent households generally spend slightly less in total (lower shared housing costs) but face much higher financial strain relative to income. Families with more than two children may benefit from economies of scale — housing and transportation costs do not double with each additional child. Use the figures as a starting point and adjust for your situation.
TG we-Calculate Editorial Team. (2026). Child Cost Calculator — Cost of Raising a Child [Online calculator]. TG we-Calculate. https://we-calculate.com/calculator/child-cost-calculator
TG we-Calculate Editorial Team. "Child Cost Calculator — Cost of Raising a Child." TG we-Calculate. 2026. https://we-calculate.com/calculator/child-cost-calculator.
TG we-Calculate Editorial Team, "Child Cost Calculator — Cost of Raising a Child," TG we-Calculate, 2026. [Online]. Available: https://we-calculate.com/calculator/child-cost-calculator
@misc{wecalculate_child_cost_calculator, title = {Child Cost Calculator — Cost of Raising a Child}, author = {{TG we-Calculate Editorial Team}}, howpublished = {\url{https://we-calculate.com/calculator/child-cost-calculator}}, year = {2026}, note = {TG we-Calculate} }
Did this calculator help you?