County childcare costs · DOL NDCP 2022
Childcare costs in Highlands County, FL
The standout signal in Highlands County, FL is income burden: infant center care takes 16.5% of median ACS income (HEAVY · mid-burden tercile), while the sticker sits 8% below the national average.
Data updated 2026-09-24
- $8,840
- Center Infant/yr
- N/A
- Family Infant/yr
- $53,679
- Median Income
- 16.5%
- % of Income (Infant)
The verdict
Highlands County pairs below-national-median infant care costs with a moderate income burden on families.
- Top 48%
- cheapest nationally
- Moderate
- income-burden tier
- #1,270
- 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 Highlands County, FL costs $8,840/year, per the U.S. Department of Labor's National Database of Childcare Prices (NDCP). This represents 16.5% of the median household income, exceeding the HHS 7% affordability threshold. Toddler care at a center costs $7,280/year.
Annual childcare costs by age in Highlands County
| Age Group | Center-Based | Family Childcare |
|---|---|---|
| Infant | $8,840 | N/A |
| Toddler | $7,280 | N/A |
| Preschool | $7,020 | N/A |
| School Age | $5,980 | N/A |
Where Highlands County ranks on infant-care cost
Center-based infant care, every U.S. county with reported prices
$8,840 more affordable than 52% 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
Highlands County vs. every other Florida county: income vs. infant-care cost
Median household income (x) vs. average center-based infant care (y) across 30 Florida counties with reported prices. Crosshairs at the Florida median.
Within Florida, Highlands County has lower income and lower infant-care cost than the typical Florida county (its national standing, below-national-median infant care costs, is a separate comparison against every U.S. county, not just its own state).
Highlands County burden reading
The standout signal in Highlands County, FL is income burden: infant center care takes 16.5% of median ACS income (HEAVY · mid-burden tercile), while the sticker sits 8% below the national average.
Mid-burden tercile: Highlands County spends 16.5% of a $53,679 median on infant center care (HEAVY). Pair the PAR 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)
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 | $6,073 |
| 2009 | $6,290 |
| 2010 | $6,685 |
| 2011 | $7,079 |
| 2012 | $7,473 |
| 2013 | $7,868 |
| 2014 | $7,639 |
| 2015 | $7,410 |
| 2016 | $7,605 |
| 2017 | $7,800 |
| 2018 | $7,995 |
| 2019 | $8,190 |
| 2020 | $8,385 |
| 2021 | $8,580 |
| 2022 | $8,840 |
Nearest infant-price counties in Florida
Ordered by ABS(center_infant) to Highlands County's PAR NDCP sticker - not A-Z chrome.
What to do with Highlands County
Infant center care here runs 16.5% of the local median income (HEAVY), check where your own household lands.
- Highlands County spends 16.5% 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
- $8,840/yr center infant sticker (PAR) - see how Highlands 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 Highlands County families are likely eligible. Check subsidy eligibility
Figures are NDCP county-level survey medians for 2022 - your local providers set the actual price.