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Affordable Daycare in North Carolina

Full-time care at a center costs a median of $181 a week for a baby and $123 for a preschooler in the middle North Carolina county (2022). Families who qualify can get help paying through the Child Care Subsidy program, and the daycares listed here accept it.

daycares that accept child care assistance listed
3,210
towns
425
towns have their own affordable daycare page
209
of all North Carolina daycares
49%

Map of North Carolina: each dot is a town with daycares that accept child care assistance, sized by how many are listed

Accepts assistance
What puts a daycare on this listThe state record says it accepts child care subsidies, or it says it accepts child care assistance or vouchers.Accepting assistance says nothing about a daycare's own prices. A daycare without this tag may still accept assistance; ask.

Cost and help paying

What daycare costs in North Carolina, and help paying for it

Infant care at a center, per week, in the middle North Carolina county (2022)
$181
The median of 99 county medians, from $109 in the lowest county to $355 in the highest.
Preschool-age care at a center, per week, in the middle North Carolina county (2022)
$123
The median of 99 county medians, from $84 in the lowest county to $199 in the highest.
Head Start or Early Head Start centers in North Carolina
412
Free for children from birth to 5 in families who qualify, by income or because they receive public assistance.
How to apply: Child Care Subsidy programHead Start in North CarolinaDaycare cost in North Carolina, by age and county

County prices: U.S. Department of Labor, National Database of Childcare Prices, 2022 (median full-time weekly price).

North Carolina

Largest towns for affordable daycare in North Carolina

Charlotte336 accept assistanceRaleigh158 accept assistanceDurham151 accept assistanceFayetteville130 accept assistanceGreensboro130 accept assistanceWinston-Salem73 accept assistanceWilmington60 accept assistanceRocky Mount44 accept assistanceChapel Hill40 accept assistanceHickory39 accept assistanceAsheville38 accept assistanceCary36 accept assistance

Programs

Programs in North Carolina

Counts come from the state record and what each daycare says it offers. A daycare without a tag may still offer the program; ask.

ProgramListed
All daycares6,565
Take infants3,301
Child care centers5,566
Accept subsidy3,210
In-home daycares999
Christian & church daycares605
Montessori schools132
Preschools & pre-K5,228
Early morning daycare970
Part-time daycare171
Drop-in daycare37
After-school care4,110
Bilingual daycare13
Head Start412

The North Carolina state record

North Carolina Division of Child Development and Early Education licenses daycares in North Carolina.

License list
The state's public list of licensed child care
Ages served
The ages on each license
Inspections
Every visit the state publishes back to 2023
Cited rules
Each cited rule, in the state's own wording
Corrections
Correction dates as the state records them
Search the North Carolina state records

Before you enroll

Paying for daycare in North Carolina

  1. 1

    Apply for assistance first

    Your state decides who qualifies and how much it pays. Apply through the state's child care assistance office before you choose a daycare.

  2. 2

    Ask about the copayment

    Most families pay a share of the cost. Ask the daycare whether it charges more than the state pays, and how much.

  3. 3

    Ask about open subsidy spots

    Some daycares cap how many children on assistance they take. Ask whether a spot is open now.

  4. 4

    Check the license record

    Open a listing for its state license and, where the state publishes it, the inspection record.

North Carolina

Cost, inspections and ratios in North Carolina

Daycare cost in North CarolinaWeekly prices by age and countyWhat North Carolina inspectors citeThe rules cited most, and what they meanStaff-to-child ratios in North CarolinaHow many children each adult may care forTour checklist for North CarolinaQuestions to ask when you visit

A to Z

All 425 North Carolina towns with affordable daycare, A to Z

A15 towns
B34 towns
C43 towns
D10 towns
E20 towns
F12 towns
G16 towns
H29 towns
I3 towns
J5 towns
K12 towns
L22 towns
M36 towns
N11 towns
O4 towns
P20 towns
R31 towns
S43 towns
T12 towns
V5 towns
W37 towns
Y3 towns
Z2 towns

Nearby

Nearby states

Georgia2,747 accept assistanceVirginia2,729 accept assistanceTennessee2,184 accept assistanceSouth Carolina31 accept assistance

Questions

Questions about affordable daycare in North Carolina

How many daycares that accept child care assistance are in North Carolina?

3,210 daycares that accept child care assistance are listed in 425 North Carolina towns. Accepting assistance says nothing about a daycare's own prices. A daycare without this tag may still accept assistance; ask.

Which North Carolina town has the most daycares that accept child care assistance?

Charlotte, with 336 listed. Next are Raleigh (158) and Durham (151).

How do I apply for child care assistance in North Carolina?

Apply through the Child Care Subsidy program, run by the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, through county agencies. It is for families who are working or looking for work, in school or job training, or whose child needs care for child welfare reasons or a family crisis, and who meet the income rules. Income limits change each year, so check the current limits on the state's site.

Is there free daycare?

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.

Does a daycare that accepts assistance cost more?

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.

How does child care assistance work?

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 North Carolina child care assistance office.

Can I get free daycare?

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.

Who licenses daycares in North Carolina?

North Carolina Division of Child Development and Early Education licenses daycares in North Carolina. It publishes its inspections and the rules it cited, and we copy them onto each listing.