County childcare costs · DOL NDCP 2022
Childcare costs in Fairfax City, VA
The standout signal in Fairfax City, VA is sticker price: center infant care runs $17,959/yr (PEAK · steep-price tercile · #2,561 of 2,662), 87% above the U.S. average.
Data updated 2026-07-05
- $17,959
- Center Infant/yr
- $13,527
- Family Infant/yr
- $128,708
- Median Income
- 14.0%
- % of Income (Infant)
The verdict
Fairfax City pairs the 4th percentile for infant-care affordability nationally with a moderate income burden on families.
- 4th pct.
- affordability nationally
- Moderate
- income-burden tier
- Wide
- family-vs-infant price gap
- #2,561
- of 2,662 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.
Steep-price tercile: family infant care here is $13,527/yr beside the $17,959 center sticker; toddler center care is $14,996/yr.
Steep-book age ladder for Fairfax City
| Age Group | Center-Based | Family Childcare |
|---|---|---|
| Infant | $17,959 | $13,527 |
| Toddler | $14,996 | $11,702 |
| Preschool | $15,970 | $11,486 |
| School Age | $12,267 | $9,838 |
Where Fairfax City ranks on infant-care cost
Center-based infant care, every U.S. county with reported prices
$17,959 more affordable than 4% of 2,662 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
Fairfax City vs. every other Virginia county: income vs. infant-care cost
Median household income (x) vs. average center-based infant care (y) across 30 Virginia counties with reported prices. Crosshairs at the Virginia median.
Within Virginia, Fairfax City has higher income and higher infant-care cost than the typical Virginia county (its national standing, the 4th percentile for infant-care affordability nationally, is a separate comparison against every U.S. county, not just its own state).
Full NDCP Care Ladder in Fairfax City
Fairfax City sits in the steep-price third of NDCP-priced counties (PEAK), read center premiums and the infant-to-school-age drop as county-specific, not a clone caption.
| Age | Center | Family | Center premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| Infant | $17,959 | $13,527 | +$4,432 (+32.8%) |
| Toddler | $14,996 | $11,702 | +$3,294 (+28.1%) |
| Preschool | $15,970 | $11,486 | +$4,484 (+39%) |
| School Age | $12,267 | $9,838 | +$2,429 (+24.7%) |
Across all four ages, a center path totals $61,192/year versus $46,553/year for family care ($14,639 more at a center). Infant center care runs 1.46× school-age center care here. Among the 134Virginia counties with a complete NDCP ladder, Fairfax City ranks #128 by infant center price (1 = cheapest).
Fairfax City sticker reading
The standout signal in Fairfax City, VA is sticker price: center infant care runs $17,959/yr (PEAK · steep-price tercile · #2,561 of 2,662), 87% above the U.S. average.
Mid-burden tercile: Fairfax City spends 14.0% of a $128,708 median on infant center care (HEAVY). Pair the PEAK sticker with the age-group table before treating any single cell as the household story.
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 13 years, from 2009 through 2022.
View full data table (all care types) ▼
| Year | Ctr Infant |
|---|---|
| 2008 | N/A |
| 2009 | $15,704 |
| 2010 | $15,912 |
| 2011 | $16,120 |
| 2012 | $16,328 |
| 2013 | $16,779 |
| 2014 | $17,229 |
| 2015 | $17,680 |
| 2016 | $18,287 |
| 2017 | $18,893 |
| 2018 | $19,500 |
| 2019 | $20,107 |
| 2020 | $20,713 |
| 2021 | N/A |
| 2022 | $17,959 |
Nearest infant-price counties in Virginia
Ordered by ABS(center_infant) to Fairfax City's PEAK NDCP sticker - not A-Z chrome.
What to do with Fairfax City
Infant center care here runs 14.0% of the local median income (HEAVY), check where your own household lands.
- Fairfax City spends 14.0% 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
- $17,959/yr center infant sticker (PEAK) - see how Fairfax City 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 Fairfax City families are likely eligible. Check subsidy eligibility
Figures are NDCP county-level survey medians for 2022 - your local providers set the actual price.