County childcare costs · DOL NDCP 2022
Childcare costs in Natchitoches Parish, LA
The standout signal in Natchitoches Parish, LA is income burden: infant center care takes 19.8% of median ACS income (HEAVY · heavy-burden tercile), while the sticker sits 15% below the national average.
Data updated 2026-09-24
- $8,164
- Center Infant/yr
- $7,127
- Family Infant/yr
- $41,310
- Median Income
- 19.8%
- % of Income (Infant)
The verdict
Natchitoches Parish pairs below-national-median infant care costs with a heavy income burden on families.
- Top 42%
- cheapest nationally
- Heavy
- income-burden tier
- Moderate
- family-vs-infant price gap
- #1,116
- 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.
Natchitoches Parish, LA families pay $8,164/year for center-based infant care, while family childcare is $7,127/year, per the U.S. Department of Labor's National Database of Childcare Prices (NDCP). This represents 19.8% of the median household income, exceeding the HHS 7% affordability threshold. Toddler care at a center costs $7,887/year.
Heavy-burden age costs in Natchitoches Parish
| Age Group | Center-Based | Family Childcare |
|---|---|---|
| Infant | $8,164 | $7,127 |
| Toddler | $7,887 | $7,127 |
| Preschool | $7,627 | $7,170 |
| School Age | $6,933 | $6,067 |
Where Natchitoches Parish ranks on infant-care cost
Center-based infant care, every U.S. county with reported prices
$8,164 more affordable than 58% 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
Natchitoches Parish vs. every other Louisiana county: income vs. infant-care cost
Median household income (x) vs. average center-based infant care (y) across 30 Louisiana counties with reported prices. Crosshairs at the Louisiana median.
Within Louisiana, Natchitoches Parish has lower income but higher infant-care cost than the typical Louisiana 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 Natchitoches Parish
Complete NDCP ladder under a heavy-burden tercile (19.8% of ACS median, HEAVY), compare center premiums before treating sticker alone as the story.
| Age | Center | Family | Center premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| Infant | $8,164 | $7,127 | +$1,037 (+14.6%) |
| Toddler | $7,887 | $7,127 | +$760 (+10.7%) |
| Preschool | $7,627 | $7,170 | +$457 (+6.4%) |
| School Age | $6,933 | $6,067 | +$866 (+14.3%) |
Across all four ages, a center path totals $30,611/year versus $27,491/year for family care ($3,120 more at a center). Infant center care runs 1.18× school-age center care here. Among the 64Louisiana counties with a complete NDCP ladder, Natchitoches Parish ranks #56 by infant center price (1 = cheapest).
Natchitoches Parish burden reading
The standout signal in Natchitoches Parish, LA is income burden: infant center care takes 19.8% of median ACS income (HEAVY · heavy-burden tercile), while the sticker sits 15% below the national average.
Heavy-burden tercile counties like Natchitoches Parish put infant center care at 19.8% of a $41,310 ACS median, well above the HHS 7% line. Treat subsidy and family-setting trade-offs as first-order, not footnotes.
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 | $4,866 |
| 2009 | $4,922 |
| 2010 | $5,200 |
| 2011 | $5,330 |
| 2012 | $5,460 |
| 2013 | $5,564 |
| 2014 | $5,668 |
| 2015 | $5,980 |
| 2016 | $6,292 |
| 2017 | $6,604 |
| 2018 | $6,916 |
| 2019 | $7,228 |
| 2020 | $7,540 |
| 2021 | $7,852 |
| 2022 | $8,164 |
Nearest infant-price counties in Louisiana
Ordered by ABS(center_infant) to Natchitoches Parish's MID NDCP sticker - not A-Z chrome.
What to do with Natchitoches Parish
Infant center care here runs 19.8% of the local median income (HEAVY), check where your own household lands.
- Natchitoches Parish spends 19.8% 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
- $8,164/yr center infant sticker (MID) - see how Natchitoches Parish 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 Natchitoches Parish families are likely eligible. Check subsidy eligibility
Figures are NDCP county-level survey medians for 2022 - your local providers set the actual price.