Home daycare vs daycare center: cost, size and hours

What each one is

A home daycare is care in the provider's own home, licensed or registered by the state. Most states have two sizes: a family child care home, where one provider cares for a small group, and a group or large home with an assistant and more children. A daycare center is a separate building with classrooms by age, a director and a team of teachers.

Both are common. Of the 200,223 licensed daycares in the state records we hold, 41.1% are homes. States license homes in different ways, and many let a small home care for a few children without a license, so that share depends on the state.

Cost: homes charge less, mostly for babies

The gap is largest for infants and almost gone by school age. In 2022, the county median for full-time infant care was $31 a week lower in a home than in a center, 18% less. For preschoolers the gap was $13, and for school-age children $2.

Home care cost less than center care for infants in 2,273 of the 2,555 counties where the survey has both prices. These are 2022 prices; the Consumer Price Index for day care and preschool rose 22.2% from the 2022 average to August 2026, so today's prices are higher in both settings.

Median weekly price, full-time care, 2022 county survey.

Group size and staff

Homes are much smaller. The median licensed capacity is 10 children in a family child care home, 16 in a group home and 72 in a center, from the license records of 153,560 open daycares that list a capacity.

In a home, your child spends the day with one or two adults and a mixed-age group, often with siblings together. A center groups children by age, with more adults on site, so a sick teacher is easier to cover. Ask a home provider what happens when they are ill or on vacation; many close and families need a backup plan.

Hours: homes are more often open late and on weekends

26.1% of licensed home daycares with hours on their state record stay open to 7 PM or later, against 9.8% of centers. 15.7% of homes list Saturday or Sunday care, against 3.7% of centers. Early starts are common in both: 50.8% of homes and 46.3% of centers open before 7 AM.

If you work evenings, nights or weekends, a home daycare is the more likely fit. Check the hours on the daycare's page, then confirm them with the provider.

What inspectors cite at each

Inspectors visit both, and the rules they cite differ in kind. In the 17 states where we hold at least 300 inspected homes and 300 inspected centers, safety and hazards make up 21.3% of the rules cited at homes and 12.0% at centers, and records and paperwork 21.3% against 13.2%. At centers, supervision and ratios make up 10.9% of cited rules, against 4.2% at homes.

These are shares of what gets cited, not how often a home or center is cited. The pattern fits the settings: a home is a family house, so household hazards make up more of what inspectors find, while a center has more staff and larger groups, so supervision and staff rules make up more. Read the record of the daycare you are considering, not the average.

Checklist

How to choose

• Budget first. For an infant, a home is usually the lower price. Compare the county figure with what nearby daycares quote you.
• Your hours. If you need care before 7 AM, after 6 PM or on weekends, start with home daycares.
• Backup care. Ask what happens when the provider is sick or on vacation, and how many days a year they close.
• Group and age mix. Ask how many children are there on a typical day and their ages, and how many adults.
• The license and the record. Check that the license is current and read the inspection visits on the daycare's page.
• Visit both kinds. Tour one home and one center close to home or work; the feel of the day often decides it.

Next step

Next steps

FAQ

Questions

Sources: U.S. Department of Labor, National Database of Childcare Prices (2022); U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Consumer Price Index; state child care license and inspection records (two years to October 2026).