County childcare costs · DOL NDCP 2022

Childcare costs in Lamar County, GA

The standout signal in Lamar County, GA is income burden: infant center care takes 11.4% of median ACS income (OVER7 · light-burden tercile), while the sticker sits 22% below the national average.

Data updated 2026-07-05

$7,436
Center Infant/yr
$6,760
Family Infant/yr
$64,966
Median Income
11.4%
% of Income (Infant)

The verdict

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

Top 32%
cheapest nationally
Light
income-burden tier
Narrow
family-vs-infant price gap
#851
of 2,662 priced counties
B
PlainChildcare Composite Score
76/100
Lamar County, GA

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 B
Center-based infant care costs 11.4% of median household income here (national median 14.6%)
Preschool care burden B
Center-based preschool care costs 10.2% of median household income here (national median 12.5%)
School-age care burden A
Center-based school-age care costs 5.6% of median household income here (national median 10.4%)
Economic hardship C
8.3% poverty rate here (national median 9.3%)
Price-change feed

National sticker context: $9,592 average.

Quiet-price tercile: center infant care is $7,436/yr with family care at $6,760/yr (11.4% of median income), absolute stickers are low; capacity and waitlists still bind.

Quiet-book age ladder for Lamar County

Age Group Center-Based Family Childcare
Infant $7,436 $6,760
Toddler $6,916 $5,824
Preschool $6,638 $5,876
School Age $3,640 $3,120

Where Lamar County ranks on infant-care cost

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

$7,436 Among the most affordable more affordable than 67% 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

Lamar County vs. every other Georgia county: income vs. infant-care cost

Median household income (x) vs. average center-based infant care (y) across 30 Georgia counties with reported prices. Crosshairs at the Georgia 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$120,000 $4,000$6,000$8,000$10,000$12,000 Median household income Avg. annual infant care

Within Georgia, Lamar County has higher income and higher infant-care cost than the typical Georgia 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 Lamar County

Lamar 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 $7,436 $6,760 +$676 (+10%)
Toddler $6,916 $5,824 +$1,092 (+18.8%)
Preschool $6,638 $5,876 +$762 (+13%)
School Age $3,640 $3,120 +$520 (+16.7%)

Across all four ages, a center path totals $24,630/year versus $21,580/year for family care ($3,050 more at a center). Infant center care runs 2.04× school-age center care here. Among the 159Georgia counties with a complete NDCP ladder, Lamar County ranks #123 by infant center price (1 = cheapest).

Lamar County burden reading

The standout signal in Lamar County, GA is income burden: infant center care takes 11.4% of median ACS income (OVER7 · light-burden tercile), while the sticker sits 22% below the national average.

Light-burden tercile reading: Lamar County keeps infant center care at 11.4% of a $64,966 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.

The NDCP has tracked center-based infant care here for 8 years, from 2015 through 2022.

+17.2% since 2015
Infant center care: $6,344 → $7,436
$7,436/yr
Most recent annual cost (2022)
8 years
Data available (2015–2022)
2015
$6,344
2016
$6,500
2017
$6,656
2018
$6,812
2019
$6,968
2020
$7,124
2021
$7,280
2022
$7,436
View full data table (all care types)
Year Ctr Infant
2008 N/A
2009 N/A
2010 N/A
2011 N/A
2012 N/A
2013 N/A
2014 N/A
2015 $6,344
2016 $6,500
2017 $6,656
2018 $6,812
2019 $6,968
2020 $7,124
2021 $7,280
2022 $7,436

What to do with Lamar County

Infant center care here runs 11.4% of the local median income (OVER7), check where your own household lands.

  • Lamar County spends 11.4% 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
  • $7,436/yr center infant sticker (MID) - see how Lamar 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 Lamar County families are likely eligible. Check subsidy eligibility

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