County childcare costs · DOL NDCP 2022
Childcare costs in Hawkins County, TN
The standout signal in Hawkins County, TN is sticker price: center infant care runs $6,811/yr (MID · quiet-price tercile · #652 of 2,661), 29% below the U.S. average.
Data updated 2026-09-24
- $6,811
- Center Infant/yr
- $4,723
- Family Infant/yr
- $53,647
- Median Income
- 12.7%
- % of Income (Infant)
The verdict
Hawkins County pairs top-quartile cheapest infant care nationally with a light income burden on families.
- Top 24%
- cheapest nationally
- Light
- income-burden tier
- Moderate
- family-vs-infant price gap
- #652
- 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 $6,811/yr with family care at $4,723/yr (12.7% of median income), absolute stickers are low; capacity and waitlists still bind.
Quiet-book age ladder for Hawkins County
| Age Group | Center-Based | Family Childcare |
|---|---|---|
| Infant | $6,811 | $4,723 |
| Toddler | $5,720 | $5,070 |
| Preschool | $5,720 | $5,070 |
| School Age | $2,600 | $5,200 |
Where Hawkins County ranks on infant-care cost
Center-based infant care, every U.S. county with reported prices
$6,811 Among the most affordable more affordable than 74% 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
Hawkins County vs. every other Tennessee county: income vs. infant-care cost
Median household income (x) vs. average center-based infant care (y) across 30 Tennessee counties with reported prices. Crosshairs at the Tennessee median.
Within Tennessee, Hawkins County has lower income but higher infant-care cost than the typical Tennessee county (its national standing, top-quartile cheapest infant care nationally, is a separate comparison against every U.S. county, not just its own state).
Full NDCP Care Ladder in Hawkins County
Hawkins County sits in the quieter-price third (MID), complete ladders here still show setting trade-offs even when the absolute sticker is low.
| Age | Center | Family | Center premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| Infant | $6,811 | $4,723 | +$2,088 (+44.2%) |
| Toddler | $5,720 | $5,070 | +$650 (+12.8%) |
| Preschool | $5,720 | $5,070 | +$650 (+12.8%) |
| School Age | $2,600 | $5,200 | $-2,600 (-50%) |
Across all four ages, a center path totals $20,851/year versus $20,063/year for family care ($788 more at a center). Infant center care runs 2.62× school-age center care here. Among the 95Tennessee counties with a complete NDCP ladder, Hawkins County ranks #29 by infant center price (1 = cheapest).
Hawkins County sticker reading
The standout signal in Hawkins County, TN is sticker price: center infant care runs $6,811/yr (MID · quiet-price tercile · #652 of 2,661), 29% below the U.S. average.
Light-burden tercile reading: Hawkins County keeps infant center care at 12.7% of a $53,647 median (HEAVY). Sticker still matters (MID), 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)
Here's how center-based infant care priced out from 2008 to 2022, across 15 years of NDCP survey data.
View full data table (all care types) ▼
| Year | Ctr Infant |
|---|---|
| 2008 | $4,940 |
| 2009 | $4,992 |
| 2010 | $5,200 |
| 2011 | $5,460 |
| 2012 | $5,460 |
| 2013 | $5,564 |
| 2014 | $5,720 |
| 2015 | $5,928 |
| 2016 | $5,980 |
| 2017 | $6,500 |
| 2018 | $6,605 |
| 2019 | $6,657 |
| 2020 | $6,709 |
| 2021 | $6,760 |
| 2022 | $6,811 |
Nearest infant-price counties in Tennessee
Ordered by ABS(center_infant) to Hawkins County's MID NDCP sticker - not A-Z chrome.
What to do with Hawkins County
Infant center care here runs 12.7% of the local median income (HEAVY), check where your own household lands.
- Hawkins County spends 12.7% 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
- $6,811/yr center infant sticker (MID) - see how Hawkins 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 Hawkins County families are likely eligible. Check subsidy eligibility
Figures are NDCP county-level survey medians for 2022 - your local providers set the actual price.