Affordable Daycare in South Carolina
Full-time care at a center costs a median of $117 a week for a baby and $127 for a preschooler in the middle South Carolina county (2022). Families who qualify can get help paying through SC Working Families Child Care Scholarships, and the daycares listed here accept it.
- daycares that accept child care assistance listed
- 31
- towns
- 22
- towns have their own affordable daycare page
- 2
- of all South Carolina daycares
- 1%
Map of South Carolina: 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 South Carolina, and help paying for it
- Infant care at a center, per week, in the middle South Carolina county (2022)
- $117
- The median of 46 county medians, from $94 in the lowest county to $222 in the highest.
- Preschool-age care at a center, per week, in the middle South Carolina county (2022)
- $127
- The median of 46 county medians, from $98 in the lowest county to $184 in the highest.
- Head Start or Early Head Start centers in South Carolina
- 179
- Free for children from birth to 5 in families who qualify, by income or because they receive public assistance.
South Carolina
Largest towns for affordable daycare in South Carolina
Programs
Programs in South 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.
| Program | Listed |
|---|---|
| All daycares | 2,292 |
| Take infants | 311 |
| Child care centers | 1,604 |
| Accept subsidy | 31 |
| In-home daycares | 688 |
| Christian & church daycares | 293 |
| Montessori schools | 68 |
| Preschools & pre-K | 338 |
| Early morning daycare | 361 |
| Part-time daycare | 103 |
| Drop-in daycare | 38 |
| Bilingual daycare | 20 |
| Head Start | 179 |
The South Carolina state record
South Carolina Department of Social Services, Division of Early Care and Education licenses daycares in South Carolina.
- License list
- The state's public list of licensed child care
- Ages served
- On some licenses only; elsewhere shown where the daycare gives them
- 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
Before you enroll
Paying for daycare in South Carolina
- 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.
South Carolina
Cost, inspections and ratios in South Carolina
A to Z
All 22 South Carolina towns with affordable daycare, A to Z
C3 towns
- Charleston1 accept assistance
- Columbia2 accept assistance
- Conway1 accept assistance
F1 town
- Fort Mill1 accept assistance
G4 towns
- Georgetown2 accept assistance
- Goose Creek1 accept assistance
- Greenville1 accept assistance
- Greer1 accept assistance
H3 towns
- Hanahan1 accept assistance
- Hartsville1 accept assistance
- Hilton Head Island1 accept assistance
M2 towns
- Moncks Corner1 accept assistance
- Mount Pleasant1 accept assistance
N1 town
- North Charleston2 accept assistance
R1 town
- Rock Hill1 accept assistance
S2 towns
- Simpsonville1 accept assistance
- Summerville4 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 South Carolina
How many daycares that accept child care assistance are in South Carolina?
31 daycares that accept child care assistance are listed in 22 South Carolina towns. Accepting assistance says nothing about a daycare's own prices. A daycare without this tag may still accept assistance; ask.
Which South Carolina town has the most daycares that accept child care assistance?
Summerville, with 4 listed. Next are Beaufort (3) and Columbia (2).
How do I apply for child care assistance in South Carolina?
Apply through SC Working Families Child Care Scholarships, run by the South Carolina Department of Social Services. 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 South 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 South Carolina?
South Carolina Department of Social Services, Division of Early Care and Education licenses daycares in South Carolina. It publishes its inspections and the rules it cited, and we copy them onto each listing.