What care costs for a preschooler and for two children, county by county, and how it compares with what families here earn.
Full-time care for a 4-year-old costs about $8,891 a year in the typical county in North Dakota, or $741 a month, 10.6% more than the $8,040 for the typical county nationally. Care for a 4-year-old and an 8-year-old comes to about $18,051 a year. The cost of care for one preschooler is 9.4% of median family income in the typical county.
The federal Department of Health and Human Services counts child care as affordable when it takes no more than 7% of family income. For one 4-year-old, none of North Dakota's 53 counties meet that at the median family income; nationally, 259 of 3,131 counties do. In the budget EPI draws up for two parents and two children, child care is 18.0% of the total in the typical county. In 1 county, care for one preschooler costs more than the family's housing.
Build a budget with your own child care cost, or see the rest of what North Dakota costs.
Care for a 4-year-old costs most in Morton County ($11,493), Burleigh County ($11,358) and Cass County ($11,011), and least in Eddy County ($8,291), Sioux County ($8,348) and Rolette County ($8,371). Metro counties are priced at child care centers, other counties at home-based family child care.
| Adams County | $8,406 | $701 | $17,073 | 8.1% |
| Barnes County | $8,863 | $739 | $18,051 | 9.3% |
| Benson County | $8,448 | $704 | $17,113 | 11.6% |
| Billings County | $8,630 | $719 | $17,682 | 8.8% |
| Bottineau County | $9,283 | $774 | $18,866 | 9.0% |
| Bowman County | $9,337 | $778 | $18,939 | 9.5% |
| Burke County | $9,194 | $766 | $18,688 | 7.8% |
| Burleigh County | $11,358 | $947 | $22,621 | 10.0% |
| Cass County | $11,011 | $918 | $21,944 | 10.1% |
| Cavalier County | $8,801 | $733 | $17,824 | 9.0% |
| Dickey County | $8,629 | $719 | $17,564 | 9.5% |
| Divide County | $10,204 | $850 | $20,738 | 9.1% |
| Dunn County | $9,783 | $815 | $19,967 | 7.7% |
| Eddy County | $8,291 | $691 | $16,825 | 9.9% |
| Emmons County | $8,475 | $706 | $17,165 | 9.3% |
| Foster County | $8,891 | $741 | $18,017 | 7.9% |
| Golden Valley County | $9,222 | $769 | $18,717 | 9.6% |
| Grand Forks County | $10,924 | $910 | $21,766 | 11.2% |
| Grant County | $8,493 | $708 | $17,204 | 10.3% |
| Griggs County | $8,513 | $709 | $17,259 | 9.2% |
| Hettinger County | $9,122 | $760 | $18,474 | 9.4% |
| Kidder County | $8,425 | $702 | $17,067 | 10.2% |
| LaMoure County | $8,425 | $702 | $17,116 | 8.7% |
| Logan County | $9,011 | $751 | $18,271 | 12.1% |
| McHenry County | $9,041 | $753 | $18,281 | 9.3% |
| McIntosh County | $8,474 | $706 | $17,168 | 10.7% |
| McKenzie County | $10,190 | $849 | $20,865 | 9.0% |
| McLean County | $9,139 | $762 | $18,515 | 8.7% |
| Mercer County | $9,505 | $792 | $19,307 | 9.2% |
| Morton County | $11,493 | $958 | $22,828 | 10.6% |
| Mountrail County | $9,186 | $766 | $18,689 | 9.4% |
| Nelson County | $8,458 | $705 | $17,139 | 8.7% |
| Oliver County | $10,269 | $856 | $20,258 | 10.5% |
| Pembina County | $8,662 | $722 | $17,564 | 9.5% |
| Pierce County | $8,901 | $742 | $18,075 | 9.4% |
| Ramsey County | $8,539 | $712 | $17,336 | 9.2% |
| Ransom County | $9,421 | $785 | $19,061 | 9.8% |
| Renville County | $9,322 | $777 | $18,913 | 10.8% |
| Richland County | $8,837 | $736 | $17,916 | 8.7% |
| Rolette County | $8,371 | $698 | $16,970 | 12.8% |
| Sargent County | $9,373 | $781 | $18,980 | 9.7% |
| Sheridan County | $8,525 | $710 | $17,263 | 9.2% |
| Sioux County | $8,348 | $696 | $16,915 | 19.6% |
| Slope County | $8,693 | $724 | $17,716 | 11.0% |
| Stark County | $9,332 | $778 | $19,106 | 9.2% |
| Steele County | $8,627 | $719 | $17,513 | 8.4% |
| Stutsman County | $8,769 | $731 | $17,855 | 8.5% |
| Towner County | $8,534 | $711 | $17,282 | 9.4% |
| Traill County | $8,899 | $742 | $18,068 | 7.9% |
| Walsh County | $8,644 | $720 | $17,551 | 9.9% |
| Ward County | $9,357 | $780 | $19,213 | 9.0% |
| Wells County | $8,449 | $704 | $17,133 | 10.0% |
| Williams County | $9,791 | $816 | $20,000 | 9.4% |
Click a column to sort it. The share compares care for one 4-year-old with the county's median family income. A dash means EPI publishes no income figure for that county.
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