County childcare costs · DOL NDCP 2022
Childcare costs in Penobscot County, ME
The standout signal in Penobscot County, ME is income burden: infant center care takes 22.4% of median ACS income (DESERT · heavy-burden tercile), while the sticker sits 39% above the national average.
Data updated 2026-09-24
- $13,295
- Center Infant/yr
- $9,533
- Family Infant/yr
- $59,438
- Median Income
- 22.4%
- % of Income (Infant)
The verdict
Penobscot County pairs the 12th percentile for infant-care affordability nationally with a heavy income burden on families.
- 12th pct.
- affordability nationally
- Heavy
- income-burden tier
- Wide
- family-vs-infant price gap
- #2,345
- 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.
Steep-price tercile: family infant care here is $9,533/yr beside the $13,295 center sticker; toddler center care is $10,591/yr.
Steep-book age ladder for Penobscot County
| Age Group | Center-Based | Family Childcare |
|---|---|---|
| Infant | $13,295 | $9,533 |
| Toddler | $10,591 | $9,360 |
| Preschool | $9,793 | $8,320 |
| School Age | $10,053 | $8,320 |
Where Penobscot County ranks on infant-care cost
Center-based infant care, every U.S. county with reported prices
$13,295 more affordable than 12% 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
Penobscot County vs. every other Maine county: income vs. infant-care cost
Median household income (x) vs. average center-based infant care (y) across 16 Maine counties with reported prices. Crosshairs at the Maine median.
Within Maine, Penobscot County has lower income but higher infant-care cost than the typical Maine county (its national standing, the 12th percentile for infant-care affordability nationally, is a separate comparison against every U.S. county, not just its own state).
Full NDCP Care Ladder in Penobscot County
Penobscot County sits in the steep-price third of NDCP-priced counties (HIGH), read center premiums and the infant-to-school-age drop as county-specific, not a clone caption.
| Age | Center | Family | Center premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| Infant | $13,295 | $9,533 | +$3,762 (+39.5%) |
| Toddler | $10,591 | $9,360 | +$1,231 (+13.2%) |
| Preschool | $9,793 | $8,320 | +$1,473 (+17.7%) |
| School Age | $10,053 | $8,320 | +$1,733 (+20.8%) |
Across all four ages, a center path totals $43,732/year versus $35,533/year for family care ($8,199 more at a center). Infant center care runs 1.32× school-age center care here. Among the 16Maine counties with a complete NDCP ladder, Penobscot County ranks #15 by infant center price (1 = cheapest).
Penobscot County burden reading
The standout signal in Penobscot County, ME is income burden: infant center care takes 22.4% of median ACS income (DESERT · heavy-burden tercile), while the sticker sits 39% above the national average.
Heavy-burden tercile counties like Penobscot County put infant center care at 22.4% of a $59,438 ACS median, well above the HHS 7% line and already in the steep sticker third of the national book. 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)
Center-based infant care costs over 2012–2022 (11 years of NDCP data).
View full data table (all care types) ▼
| Year | Ctr Infant |
|---|---|
| 2008 | N/A |
| 2009 | N/A |
| 2010 | N/A |
| 2011 | N/A |
| 2012 | $8,216 |
| 2013 | $8,320 |
| 2014 | $8,658 |
| 2015 | $8,996 |
| 2016 | $8,996 |
| 2017 | $8,996 |
| 2018 | $8,996 |
| 2019 | $10,071 |
| 2020 | $11,145 |
| 2021 | $12,220 |
| 2022 | $13,295 |
Nearest infant-price counties in Maine
Ordered by ABS(center_infant) to Penobscot County's HIGH NDCP sticker - not A-Z chrome.
What to do with Penobscot County
Infant center care here runs 22.4% of the local median income (DESERT), check where your own household lands.
- Penobscot County spends 22.4% 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
- $13,295/yr center infant sticker (HIGH) - see how Penobscot 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 Penobscot County families are likely eligible. Check subsidy eligibility
Figures are NDCP county-level survey medians for 2022 - your local providers set the actual price.