County childcare costs · DOL NDCP 2022

Childcare costs in Jefferson County, WV

The standout signal in Jefferson County, WV is income burden: infant center care takes 9.2% of median ACS income (OVER7 · light-burden tercile), while the sticker sits 10% below the national average.

Data updated 2026-07-05

$8,594
Center Infant/yr
$8,054
Family Infant/yr
$93,744
Median Income
9.2%
% of Income (Infant)

The verdict

Jefferson County pairs below-national-median infant care costs with a light income burden on families.

Top 46%
cheapest nationally
Light
income-burden tier
Narrow
family-vs-infant price gap
#1,224
of 2,662 priced counties
A
PlainChildcare Composite Score
82/100
Jefferson County, WV

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.

Infant care burden A
Center-based infant care costs 9.2% of median household income here (national median 14.6%)
Preschool care burden A
Center-based preschool care costs 9.3% of median household income here (national median 12.5%)
School-age care burden B
Center-based school-age care costs 8.1% of median household income here (national median 10.4%)
Economic hardship B
6.6% poverty rate here (national median 9.3%)
Price-change feed

National sticker context: $9,592 average.

Center-based infant care in Jefferson County, WV costs $8,594/year, while family childcare is $8,054/year, based on National Database of Childcare Prices survey data from the U.S. Department of Labor. This represents 9.2% of the median household income, exceeding the HHS 7% affordability threshold. Toddler care at a center costs $8,201/year.

Annual childcare costs by age in Jefferson County

Age Group Center-Based Family Childcare
Infant $8,594 $8,054
Toddler $8,201 $9,093
Preschool $8,698 $9,786
School Age $7,613 $9,786

Where Jefferson County ranks on infant-care cost

Center-based infant care, every U.S. county with reported prices

$8,594 more affordable than 54% of 2,662 US counties

This county $2,500 $32,500 every U.S. county, bucketed by value

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

Jefferson County vs. every other West Virginia county: income vs. infant-care cost

Median household income (x) vs. average center-based infant care (y) across 30 West Virginia counties with reported prices. Crosshairs at the West Virginia median.

Median household income vs Avg. annual infant care 2×2 strategic matrix plotting 30 entities by Median household income (X) and Avg. annual infant care (Y), with a crosshair dividing the plot into four quadrants. High income, high costLow income, high costHigh income, low costLow income, low cost $20,000$40,000$60,000$80,000$100,000 $7,000$8,000$9,000$10,000$11,000 Median household income Avg. annual infant care

Within West Virginia, Jefferson County has higher income but lower infant-care cost than the typical West Virginia county (its national standing, below-national-median infant care costs, is a separate comparison against every U.S. county, not just its own state).

Full NDCP Care Ladder in Jefferson County

Every age×setting NDCP cell is reported here (MID / OVER7 · mid-price), center premium and age-step are county-specific.

Age Center Family Center premium
Infant $8,594 $8,054 +$540 (+6.7%)
Toddler $8,201 $9,093 $-892 (-9.8%)
Preschool $8,698 $9,786 $-1,088 (-11.1%)
School Age $7,613 $9,786 $-2,173 (-22.2%)

Across all four ages, a center path totals $33,106/year versus $36,719/year for family care ($3,613 less at a center). Infant center care runs 1.13× school-age center care here. Among the 55West Virginia counties with a complete NDCP ladder, Jefferson County ranks #14 by infant center price (1 = cheapest).

Jefferson County burden reading

The standout signal in Jefferson County, WV is income burden: infant center care takes 9.2% of median ACS income (OVER7 · light-burden tercile), while the sticker sits 10% below the national average.

Light-burden tercile reading: Jefferson County keeps infant center care at 9.2% of a $93,744 median (OVER7). 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.

Here's how center-based infant care priced out from 2008 to 2022, across 15 years of NDCP survey data.

-4.9% since 2008
Infant center care: $9,038 → $8,594
$8,594/yr
Most recent annual cost (2022)
15 years
Data available (2008–2022)
2008
$9,038
2009
$9,037
2010
$9,037
2011
$9,037
2012
$9,881
2013
$9,792
2014
$9,703
2015
$9,615
2016
$9,874
2017
$10,133
2018
$10,393
2019
$9,943
2020
$9,493
2021
$9,043
2022
$8,594
View full data table (all care types)
Year Ctr Infant
2008 $9,038
2009 $9,037
2010 $9,037
2011 $9,037
2012 $9,881
2013 $9,792
2014 $9,703
2015 $9,615
2016 $9,874
2017 $10,133
2018 $10,393
2019 $9,943
2020 $9,493
2021 $9,043
2022 $8,594

What to do with Jefferson County

Infant center care here runs 9.2% of the local median income (OVER7), check where your own household lands.

  • Jefferson County spends 9.2% 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
  • $8,594/yr center infant sticker (MID) - see how Jefferson 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 Jefferson County families are likely eligible. Check subsidy eligibility

Figures are NDCP county-level survey medians for 2022 - your local providers set the actual price.