County childcare costs · DOL NDCP 2022
Childcare costs in Ouachita Parish, LA
The standout signal in Ouachita Parish, LA is income burden: infant center care takes 16.5% of median ACS income (HEAVY · mid-burden tercile), while the sticker sits 15% below the national average.
Data updated 2026-09-24
- $8,147
- Center Infant/yr
- $7,107
- Family Infant/yr
- $49,261
- Median Income
- 16.5%
- % of Income (Infant)
The verdict
Ouachita Parish pairs below-national-median infant care costs with a moderate income burden on families.
- Top 42%
- cheapest nationally
- Moderate
- income-burden tier
- Moderate
- family-vs-infant price gap
- #1,109
- 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 Ouachita Parish, LA costs $8,147/year, while family childcare is $7,107/year, based on National Database of Childcare Prices survey data from the U.S. Department of Labor. This represents 16.5% of the median household income, exceeding the HHS 7% affordability threshold. Toddler care at a center costs $7,768/year.
Annual childcare costs by age in Ouachita Parish
| Age Group | Center-Based | Family Childcare |
|---|---|---|
| Infant | $8,147 | $7,107 |
| Toddler | $7,768 | $7,107 |
| Preschool | $7,465 | $7,193 |
| School Age | $6,930 | $6,240 |
Where Ouachita Parish ranks on infant-care cost
Center-based infant care, every U.S. county with reported prices
$8,147 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
Ouachita 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, Ouachita 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 Ouachita Parish
Every age×setting NDCP cell is reported here (MID / HEAVY · mid-price), center premium and age-step are county-specific.
| Age | Center | Family | Center premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| Infant | $8,147 | $7,107 | +$1,040 (+14.6%) |
| Toddler | $7,768 | $7,107 | +$661 (+9.3%) |
| Preschool | $7,465 | $7,193 | +$272 (+3.8%) |
| School Age | $6,930 | $6,240 | +$690 (+11.1%) |
Across all four ages, a center path totals $30,310/year versus $27,647/year for family care ($2,663 more at a center). Infant center care runs 1.18× school-age center care here. Among the 64Louisiana counties with a complete NDCP ladder, Ouachita Parish ranks #51 by infant center price (1 = cheapest).
Ouachita Parish burden reading
The standout signal in Ouachita Parish, LA is income burden: infant center care takes 16.5% of median ACS income (HEAVY · mid-burden tercile), while the sticker sits 15% below the national average.
Mid-burden tercile: Ouachita Parish spends 16.5% of a $49,261 median on infant center care (HEAVY). Pair the MID 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 | $4,875 |
| 2009 | $4,940 |
| 2010 | $5,200 |
| 2011 | $5,460 |
| 2012 | $5,720 |
| 2013 | $5,720 |
| 2014 | $5,815 |
| 2015 | $6,060 |
| 2016 | $6,327 |
| 2017 | $6,630 |
| 2018 | $6,933 |
| 2019 | $7,237 |
| 2020 | $7,540 |
| 2021 | $7,843 |
| 2022 | $8,147 |
Nearest infant-price counties in Louisiana
Ordered by ABS(center_infant) to Ouachita Parish's MID NDCP sticker - not A-Z chrome.
What to do with Ouachita Parish
Infant center care here runs 16.5% of the local median income (HEAVY), check where your own household lands.
- Ouachita Parish 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
- $8,147/yr center infant sticker (MID) - see how Ouachita 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 Ouachita Parish families are likely eligible. Check subsidy eligibility
Figures are NDCP county-level survey medians for 2022 - your local providers set the actual price.