Childcare costs in Fairfax County, VA
$17,959 a year for center-based infant care - 12.4% of the local median income, against a national average of $9,592.
The going rate for center-based infant care in Fairfax County, VA is $17,959/year, while family childcare is $13,527/year, per the U.S. Department of Labor's National Database of Childcare Prices (NDCP). This represents 12.4% of the median household income - exceeding the HHS 7% affordability threshold. Toddler care at a center costs $14,996/year, and preschool-age care is $15,970/year.
- $17,959
- Center Infant/yr
- $13,527
- Family Infant/yr
- $145,165
- Median Income
- 12.4%
- % of Income (Infant)
NDCP county market brief
Fairfax County, VA sticker posture in this snapshot
Entity-varying stamps from DOL NDCP county medians and ACS income burden, not a clone nationwide scaffold.
- PEAK NDCP sticker band
- HEAVY HHS income share
- #2,562 of 2,662 National infant rank
- $17,959 Center infant/yr
- $13,527 Family infant/yr
- Fairfax City Nearest price peer
- 8/8 NDCP cells filled
- 2022 Survey vintage
Infant-price neighbourhood
Nearest ABS(center_infant) peers in VA (NDCP 2022).
Annual Childcare Costs by Age Group
| 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 County 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
Full NDCP Care Ladder in Fairfax County
Fairfax County fills every age×setting NDCP cell in the PEAK sticker band - center premiums and the infant-to-school-age drop are readable without a second national strip.
| 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 County ranks #129 by infant center price (1 = cheapest).
What These Numbers Mean for Fairfax County Families
Weighed against a $145,165 median household income, Fairfax County's childcare bill tells an affordability story, putting infant center care at 12.4% of gross income. HHS draws the affordability line at 7% of income, and the typical local family exceeds the federal affordability line by 5.4 points.Fairfax County families generally find care more manageable than the national picture, though waitlists at licensed providers remain the real bottleneck.
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 2009–2022 (13 years of NDCP data).
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 County's PEAK NDCP sticker - not A-Z chrome.
PlainChildcare is rendered directly from the U.S. Department of Labor Women's Bureau National Database of Childcare Prices and Census ACS income data, no number is typed in by an editor. County childcare prices and affordability ratios are computed from NDCP and ACS records for this county. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of July 2026. Primary sources: DOL Women's Bureau NDCP and U.S. Census Bureau ACS.