Childcare costs in Mills County, IA
$8,459 a year for center-based infant care - 10.3% of the local median income, against a national average of $9,592.
Mills County, IA families pay $8,459/year for center-based infant care, while family childcare is $5,709/year, based on National Database of Childcare Prices survey data from the U.S. Department of Labor. This represents 10.3% of the median household income - exceeding the HHS 7% affordability threshold. Toddler care at a center costs $7,289/year, and preschool-age care is $7,289/year.
- $8,459
- Center Infant/yr
- $5,709
- Family Infant/yr
- $81,907
- Median Income
- 10.3%
- % of Income (Infant)
NDCP county market brief
Mills County, IA sticker posture in this snapshot
Entity-varying stamps from DOL NDCP county medians and ACS income burden, not a clone nationwide scaffold.
- MID NDCP sticker band
- OVER7 HHS income share
- #1,203 of 2,662 National infant rank
- $8,459 Center infant/yr
- $5,709 Family infant/yr
- Harrison County Nearest price peer
- 8/8 NDCP cells filled
- 2022 Survey vintage
Infant-price neighbourhood
Nearest ABS(center_infant) peers in IA (NDCP 2022).
Annual Childcare Costs by Age Group
| Age Group | Center-Based | Family Childcare |
|---|---|---|
| Infant | $8,459 | $5,709 |
| Toddler | $7,289 | $5,615 |
| Preschool | $7,289 | $5,615 |
| School Age | $5,831 | $5,428 |
Where Mills County ranks on infant-care cost
Center-based infant care, every U.S. county with reported prices
$8,459 more affordable than 55% 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 Mills County
Every age×setting NDCP cell is reported here (MID / OVER7) - center premium and age-step are county-specific, not a clone caption.
| Age | Center | Family | Center premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| Infant | $8,459 | $5,709 | +$2,750 (+48.2%) |
| Toddler | $7,289 | $5,615 | +$1,674 (+29.8%) |
| Preschool | $7,289 | $5,615 | +$1,674 (+29.8%) |
| School Age | $5,831 | $5,428 | +$403 (+7.4%) |
Across all four ages, a center path totals $28,868/year versus $22,367/year for family care ($6,501 more at a center). Infant center care runs 1.45× school-age center care here. Among the 99Iowa counties with a complete NDCP ladder, Mills County ranks #72 by infant center price (1 = cheapest).
What These Numbers Mean for Mills County Families
Mills County's median household income of $81,907 sets the bar for what counts as affordable care here, putting infant center care at 10.3% of gross income. The HHS benchmark is 7%, meaning the typical family here exceeds the federal affordability line by 3.3 points.Mills 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)
The NDCP has tracked center-based infant care here for 7 years, from 2016 through 2022.
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 | N/A |
| 2016 | $8,747 |
| 2017 | $8,699 |
| 2018 | $8,651 |
| 2019 | $8,603 |
| 2020 | $8,555 |
| 2021 | $8,507 |
| 2022 | $8,459 |
Nearest infant-price counties in Iowa
Ordered by ABS(center_infant) to Mills County's MID 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.