Affordable Daycare in Rhode Island
Full-time care at a center costs a median of $293 a week for a baby and $248 for a preschooler in the middle Rhode Island county (2022). Families who qualify can get help paying through Starting RIght child care assistance, and the daycares listed here accept it.
- daycares that accept child care assistance listed
- 24
- towns
- 13
- towns have their own affordable daycare page
- 3
- of all Rhode Island daycares
- 6%
Map of Rhode Island: each dot is a town with daycares that accept child care assistance, sized by how many are listed
Cost and help paying
What daycare costs in Rhode Island, and help paying for it
- Infant care at a center, per week, in the middle Rhode Island county (2022)
- $293
- The median of 5 county medians, from $290 in the lowest county to $311 in the highest.
- Preschool-age care at a center, per week, in the middle Rhode Island county (2022)
- $248
- The median of 5 county medians, from $245 in the lowest county to $263 in the highest.
- Head Start or Early Head Start centers in Rhode Island
- 21
- Free for children from birth to 5 in families who qualify, by income or because they receive public assistance.
Rhode Island
Largest towns for affordable daycare in Rhode Island
Programs
Programs in Rhode Island
Counts come from each daycare's name and what it says it offers; the state license list is not on DaycarePal yet. A daycare without a tag may still offer the program; ask.
| Program | Listed |
|---|---|
| All daycares | 429 |
| Take infants | 76 |
| Child care centers | 388 |
| Accept subsidy | 24 |
| In-home daycares | 41 |
| Christian & church daycares | 6 |
| Montessori schools | 21 |
| Preschools & pre-K | 118 |
| Early morning daycare | 81 |
| Part-time daycare | 30 |
| Bilingual daycare | 14 |
| Head Start | 21 |
The Rhode Island license list
Rhode Island Department of Human Services, Office of Child Care licenses daycares in Rhode Island. The Rhode Island license list is not on DaycarePal yet.
- Listings
- From public business listings: the name, address, phone, website and hours each business publishes
- License
- No license record is matched to these listings yet; that does not mean a daycare is unlicensed
- Inspections
- Not on these listings; check the state's own search
Before you enroll
Paying for daycare in Rhode Island
- 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
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
Ask about open subsidy spots
Some daycares cap how many children on assistance they take. Ask whether a spot is open now.
- 4
Check the license record
Open a listing for its state license and, where the state publishes it, the inspection record.
Rhode Island
Cost, inspections and ratios in Rhode Island
A to Z
All 13 Rhode Island towns with affordable daycare, A to Z
C3 towns
- Central Falls1 accept assistance
- Coventry2 accept assistance
- Cranston4 accept assistance
E1 town
- East Greenwich1 accept assistance
J1 town
- Johnston1 accept assistance
L1 town
- Lincoln1 accept assistance
M1 town
- Middletown1 accept assistance
P2 towns
- Pawtucket1 accept assistance
- Providence4 accept assistance
W4 towns
- Warren1 accept assistance
- Warwick5 accept assistance
- West Warwick1 accept assistance
- Westerly1 accept assistance
No town on this list matches. Check the spelling, or search by ZIP code above.
Nearby
Nearby states
Questions
Questions about affordable daycare in Rhode Island
How many daycares that accept child care assistance are in Rhode Island?
24 daycares that accept child care assistance are listed in 13 Rhode Island towns. Accepting assistance says nothing about a daycare's own prices. A daycare without this tag may still accept assistance; ask.
Which Rhode Island town has the most daycares that accept child care assistance?
Warwick, with 5 listed. Next are Cranston (4) and Providence (4).
How do I apply for child care assistance in Rhode Island?
Apply through Starting RIght child care assistance, run by the Rhode Island Department of Human Services. It is for income-eligible Rhode Island families who need child care so they can work or take part in approved training or education, with children through age 12 (or through 18 if disabled). 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 Rhode Island 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 Rhode Island?
Rhode Island Department of Human Services, Office of Child Care licenses daycares in Rhode Island. Its license list is not on DaycarePal yet, so the listings here come from public business listings and show no license or inspection record. Use the state's own search, linked on this page, to check a daycare's license.