County childcare costs · DOL NDCP 2022
Childcare costs in Benton County, MS
The standout signal in Benton County, MS is income burden: infant center care takes 20.7% of median ACS income (DESERT · heavy-burden tercile), while the sticker sits 16% below the national average.
Data updated 2026-09-24
- $8,019
- Center Infant/yr
- N/A
- Family Infant/yr
- $38,750
- Median Income
- 20.7%
- % of Income (Infant)
The verdict
Benton County pairs below-national-median infant care costs with a heavy income burden on families.
- Top 40%
- cheapest nationally
- Heavy
- income-burden tier
- #1,067
- 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.
National sticker context: $9,593 average.
Center-based infant care in Benton County, MS costs $8,019/year, based on National Database of Childcare Prices survey data from the U.S. Department of Labor. This represents 20.7% of the median household income, exceeding the HHS 7% affordability threshold. Toddler care at a center costs $7,467/year.
Heavy-burden age costs in Benton County
| Age Group | Center-Based | Family Childcare |
|---|---|---|
| Infant | $8,019 | N/A |
| Toddler | $7,467 | N/A |
| Preschool | $6,843 | N/A |
| School Age | $5,631 | N/A |
Where Benton County ranks on infant-care cost
Center-based infant care, every U.S. county with reported prices
$8,019 Among the most affordable more affordable than 60% 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
Benton County vs. every other Mississippi county: income vs. infant-care cost
Median household income (x) vs. average center-based infant care (y) across 30 Mississippi counties with reported prices. Crosshairs at the Mississippi median.
Within Mississippi, Benton County has lower income but higher infant-care cost than the typical Mississippi county (its national standing, below-national-median infant care costs, is a separate comparison against every U.S. county, not just its own state).
Benton County burden reading
The standout signal in Benton County, MS is income burden: infant center care takes 20.7% of median ACS income (DESERT · heavy-burden tercile), while the sticker sits 16% below the national average.
Heavy-burden tercile counties like Benton County put infant center care at 20.7% of a $38,750 ACS median, well above the HHS 7% line. Treat subsidy and family-setting trade-offs as first-order, not footnotes.
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)
Center-based infant care costs over 2010–2022 (13 years of NDCP data).
View full data table (all care types) ▼
| Year | Ctr Infant |
|---|---|
| 2008 | N/A |
| 2009 | N/A |
| 2010 | $3,123 |
| 2011 | $3,587 |
| 2012 | $4,145 |
| 2013 | $4,703 |
| 2014 | $4,331 |
| 2015 | $3,958 |
| 2016 | $3,586 |
| 2017 | $4,325 |
| 2018 | $5,064 |
| 2019 | $5,802 |
| 2020 | $6,541 |
| 2021 | $7,280 |
| 2022 | $8,019 |
Nearest infant-price counties in Mississippi
Ordered by ABS(center_infant) to Benton County's MID NDCP sticker - not A-Z chrome.
What to do with Benton County
Infant center care here runs 20.7% of the local median income (DESERT), check where your own household lands.
- Benton County spends 20.7% 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
- $8,019/yr center infant sticker (MID) - see how Benton 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 Benton County families are likely eligible. Check subsidy eligibility
Figures are NDCP county-level survey medians for 2022 - your local providers set the actual price.