Childcare Cost Calculator
Estimate your monthly childcare fees based on official 2025 government survey data for England and Wales.
Your details
Compare like-for-like costs by setting type
Coram Childcare Survey 2026. Adjust to match your situation.
Nursery
£148.82
per week
Childminder
£122.32
per week
Childminder is cheaper by £26.50/week (18% less)
Paying for 20 hours above 30-hour entitlement (term time).
Source: Coram Childcare Survey 2026. Costs are averages and vary by provider. Funded hours cover 38 weeks (term time); outside term time you pay full price or stretch your entitlement across the year for fewer funded hours per week.
How costs compare across England & Wales
Full-time (50 hrs/week) for a child under 2. Based on 2025 government data.
London
£1,938/mo
£9/hr · under 2s · 50 hrs/wk
South East England
£1,565/mo
£7/hr · under 2s · 50 hrs/wk
Cardiff
£1,788/mo
£8/hr · under 2s · 50 hrs/wk
East Midlands
£1,422/mo
£7/hr · under 2s · 50 hrs/wk
North West England
£1,394/mo
£6/hr · under 2s · 50 hrs/wk
Yorkshire and Humber
£1,340/mo
£6/hr · under 2s · 50 hrs/wk
Sources: Wales Government SASS 2024 & DfE Childcare Survey 2025. Figures show average hourly rates for nurseries.
Government-funded childcare hours
England
- 15 hours/week for all 3–4 year olds (38 weeks/year)
- 30 hours/week for eligible working parents of 3–4 year olds
- From April 2024: 15 hours/week for eligible working parents of 2-year-olds
- From Sept 2024: 15 hours/week for eligible working parents of children aged 9 months to 2 years
- From Sept 2025: 30 hours/week for eligible working parents of children aged 9 months up to school age
- Eligibility: both parents working ≥16 hrs/week at National Living Wage, neither earning over £100,000/year
Wales
- Childcare Offer for Wales: up to 30 hours/week for eligible working parents of 3–4 year olds
- Available for 48 weeks per year
- Check eligibility via Welsh Government
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