County childcare costs · DOL NDCP 2022
Childcare costs in Barnwell County, SC
The standout signal in Barnwell County, SC is sticker price: center infant care runs $4,882/yr (QUIET · quiet-price tercile · #2 of 2,661), 49% below the U.S. average.
Data updated 2026-09-24
- $4,882
- Center Infant/yr
- $6,095
- Family Infant/yr
- $42,470
- Median Income
- 11.5%
- % of Income (Infant)
The verdict
Barnwell County pairs the cheapest infant care in the country with a light income burden on families.
- Top 1%
- cheapest nationally
- Light
- income-burden tier
- Narrow
- family-vs-infant price gap
- #2
- of 2,661 priced counties
A center-based childcare affordability composite (infant, preschool, and school-age price burden relative to local median income) plus poverty rate, benchmarked against every other tracked county nationally. Not a rating of childcare quality, safety, or availability. Dimensions with no data on file are excluded and their weight redistributed, never counted as zero.
Quiet-price tercile: center infant care is $4,882/yr with family care at $6,095/yr (11.5% of median income), absolute stickers are low; capacity and waitlists still bind.
Quiet-book age ladder for Barnwell County
| Age Group | Center-Based | Family Childcare |
|---|---|---|
| Infant | $4,882 | $6,095 |
| Toddler | $4,882 | $6,095 |
| Preschool | $5,402 | $6,615 |
| School Age | $7,135 | $7,309 |
Where Barnwell County ranks on infant-care cost
Center-based infant care, every U.S. county with reported prices
$4,882 Among the most affordable more affordable than 99% of 2,661 US counties
Each bar is a $2.5K-wide band; taller bars hold more US counties. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Department of Labor, National Database of Childcare Prices · 2022
Barnwell County vs. every other South Carolina county: income vs. infant-care cost
Median household income (x) vs. average center-based infant care (y) across 30 South Carolina counties with reported prices. Crosshairs at the South Carolina median.
Within South Carolina, Barnwell County has lower income and lower infant-care cost than the typical South Carolina county (its national standing, the cheapest infant care in the country, is a separate comparison against every U.S. county, not just its own state).
Full NDCP Care Ladder in Barnwell County
Barnwell County sits in the quieter-price third (QUIET), complete ladders here still show setting trade-offs even when the absolute sticker is low.
| Age | Center | Family | Center premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| Infant | $4,882 | $6,095 | $-1,213 (-19.9%) |
| Toddler | $4,882 | $6,095 | $-1,213 (-19.9%) |
| Preschool | $5,402 | $6,615 | $-1,213 (-18.3%) |
| School Age | $7,135 | $7,309 | $-174 (-2.4%) |
Across all four ages, a center path totals $22,301/year versus $26,114/year for family care ($3,813 less at a center). Infant center care runs 0.68× school-age center care here. Among the 46South Carolina counties with a complete NDCP ladder, Barnwell County ranks #1 by infant center price (1 = cheapest).
Barnwell County sticker reading
The standout signal in Barnwell County, SC is sticker price: center infant care runs $4,882/yr (QUIET · quiet-price tercile · #2 of 2,661), 49% below the U.S. average.
Light-burden tercile reading: Barnwell County keeps infant center care at 11.5% of a $42,470 median (OVER7). Sticker still matters (QUIET), but income share is not the binding constraint versus waitlists and licensed capacity.
For how to vet a licensed provider (inspection reports, QRIS ratings, CCDF subsidy intake), see Choosing Quality Childcare. Rate methodology: how these numbers are computed.
Historical Price Trends (2008–2022)
The NDCP has tracked center-based infant care here for 9 years, from 2014 through 2022.
View full data table (all care types) ▼
| Year | Ctr Infant |
|---|---|
| 2008 | N/A |
| 2009 | N/A |
| 2010 | N/A |
| 2011 | N/A |
| 2012 | N/A |
| 2013 | N/A |
| 2014 | $6,825 |
| 2015 | $7,150 |
| 2016 | $7,475 |
| 2017 | $7,800 |
| 2018 | $7,217 |
| 2019 | $6,633 |
| 2020 | $6,049 |
| 2021 | $5,465 |
| 2022 | $4,882 |
Nearest infant-price counties in South Carolina
Ordered by ABS(center_infant) to Barnwell County's QUIET NDCP sticker - not A-Z chrome.
What to do with Barnwell County
Infant center care here runs 11.5% of the local median income (OVER7), check where your own household lands.
- Barnwell County spends 11.5% of median income on infant center care, above the HHS 7%-of-income affordability line. See exactly where your own household income lands. Affordability calculator
- $4,882/yr center infant sticker (QUIET) - see how Barnwell County compares against the full national ladder. National rankings
- If care is straining the budget, federal and state programs (CCDF, Head Start) can cut it sharply. Check whether Barnwell County families are likely eligible. Check subsidy eligibility
Figures are NDCP county-level survey medians for 2022 - your local providers set the actual price.