Affordable Daycare in Hawaii

29 daycares that accept child care assistance are listed in 12 Hawaii towns. Accepting assistance says nothing about a daycare's own prices. A daycare without this tag may still accept assistance; ask.

Honolulu, with 12 listed. Next are Kihei (3) and Makawao (3).

Apply through the Child Care Subsidy program, run by the Hawaii Department of Human Services. It is for low-income families who need child care to keep working, go to school, or take part in job training, and who meet income and activity requirements. Income limits change each year, so check the current limits on the state's site.

Some families can get it. Head Start and Early Head Start are free for children from families who qualify, and some states waive the family's share of the cost for the lowest incomes. Ask your state's child care assistance office what you qualify for.

Not by itself. Accepting assistance means the daycare takes payments from the state program; its own prices vary like any daycare's. Ask whether it charges more than the state pays, and how much you would pay.

Each state runs a child care assistance program, paid for in part by the federal Child Care and Development Fund. Families who qualify by income, and usually by working, looking for work or going to school, get help paying a daycare that accepts it; the help is often called a voucher or subsidy. Most families pay a share called a copayment, set by the state. Apply through the Hawaii child care assistance office.

Some families can. States may waive the copayment for families with the lowest incomes, and Head Start and Early Head Start are free for families who qualify. Ask your state's child care assistance office what you qualify for.

Hawaii Department of Human Services, Child Care Licensing licenses daycares in Hawaii.