County childcare costs · DOL NDCP 2022
Childcare costs in Sumter County, AL
The standout signal in Sumter County, AL is income burden: infant center care takes 22.2% of median ACS income (DESERT · heavy-burden tercile), while the sticker sits 27% below the national average.
Data updated 2026-07-05
- $7,050
- Center Infant/yr
- $5,380
- Family Infant/yr
- $31,726
- Median Income
- 22.2%
- % of Income (Infant)
The verdict
Sumter County pairs below-national-median infant care costs with a heavy income burden on families.
- Top 29%
- cheapest nationally
- Heavy
- income-burden tier
- Moderate
- family-vs-infant price gap
- #784
- of 2,662 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: $9,592 average.
Quiet-price tercile: center infant care is $7,050/yr with family care at $5,380/yr (22.2% of median income), absolute stickers are low; capacity and waitlists still bind.
Quiet-book age ladder for Sumter County
| Age Group | Center-Based | Family Childcare |
|---|---|---|
| Infant | $7,050 | $5,380 |
| Toddler | $6,846 | $5,380 |
| Preschool | $6,651 | $5,380 |
| School Age | $6,456 | $5,380 |
Where Sumter County ranks on infant-care cost
Center-based infant care, every U.S. county with reported prices
$7,050 Among the most affordable more affordable than 71% 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
Sumter County vs. every other Alabama county: income vs. infant-care cost
Median household income (x) vs. average center-based infant care (y) across 30 Alabama counties with reported prices. Crosshairs at the Alabama median.
Within Alabama, Sumter County has lower income but higher infant-care cost than the typical Alabama 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 Sumter County
Sumter 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 | $7,050 | $5,380 | +$1,670 (+31%) |
| Toddler | $6,846 | $5,380 | +$1,466 (+27.2%) |
| Preschool | $6,651 | $5,380 | +$1,271 (+23.6%) |
| School Age | $6,456 | $5,380 | +$1,076 (+20%) |
Across all four ages, a center path totals $27,003/year versus $21,520/year for family care ($5,483 more at a center). Infant center care runs 1.09× school-age center care here. Among the 67Alabama counties with a complete NDCP ladder, Sumter County ranks #44 by infant center price (1 = cheapest).
Sumter County burden reading
The standout signal in Sumter County, AL is income burden: infant center care takes 22.2% of median ACS income (DESERT · heavy-burden tercile), while the sticker sits 27% below the national average.
Heavy-burden tercile counties like Sumter County put infant center care at 22.2% of a $31,726 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)
15 years of federal survey data (2008–2022) show how center-based infant care has moved.
View full data table (all care types) ▼
| Year | Ctr Infant |
|---|---|
| 2008 | $4,651 |
| 2009 | $4,794 |
| 2010 | $4,938 |
| 2011 | $5,081 |
| 2012 | $5,224 |
| 2013 | $5,368 |
| 2014 | $5,511 |
| 2015 | $5,541 |
| 2016 | $5,571 |
| 2017 | $5,601 |
| 2018 | $5,891 |
| 2019 | $6,181 |
| 2020 | $6,470 |
| 2021 | $6,760 |
| 2022 | $7,050 |
Nearest infant-price counties in Alabama
Ordered by ABS(center_infant) to Sumter County's MID NDCP sticker - not A-Z chrome.
What to do with Sumter County
Infant center care here runs 22.2% of the local median income (DESERT), check where your own household lands.
- Sumter County spends 22.2% 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
- $7,050/yr center infant sticker (MID) - see how Sumter 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 Sumter County families are likely eligible. Check subsidy eligibility
Figures are NDCP county-level survey medians for 2022 - your local providers set the actual price.