Fitchburg, Wis. — The cost of child care in Wisconsin is rising faster than families can absorb, according to the 2026 Child Care Market Survey released today by the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families (DCF). The Wisconsin Early Childhood Association (WECA) is sounding the alarm: these increases are steeper and faster than anyone anticipated. Earlier projections for how much rates would rise after the Child Care Bridge Payment program ends now look conservative. With the cost of goods and services up across the board, the squeeze families feel today is likely just the beginning. 

Stabilization funding kept costs down — the data proves it

DCF’s report shows that tuition rates grew slowly when child care stabilization payments were at their highest. As that funding dropped, tuition began to climb. This confirms what WECA has continued to say: stabilization payments worked. They grew the supply of child care and kept costs down for parents. 

Families are slipping below the state’s affordability line 

The 2026 Child Care Market Rate Survey indicates difficulty for parents across the economic spectrum. Wisconsin statute and federal regulation set the affordability bar for child care subsidy at the 75th percentile, meaning the subsidy should cover 75 percent of child care slots in a region. But as stabilization payments to providers decreased last year, that purchasing power eroded. By December, the subsidy had slipped to the 60th percentile, 15 points below the state’s own target. At that level roughly 72,473d of slots statewide (40 percent), price out above what the subsidy will cover, leaving families in need with fewer affordable options. 

Statewide, DCF reports the median price of full-time infant care in group child care programs is $17,400, making up 22 percent of a median household income. Dane County sees the steepest prices of nearly $24,000 per year for a single child, that’s double in-state tuition at a four-year UW campus.  

“For a growing number of families, the two biggest lines in the budget are a roof overhead and a safe place for their child to spend the day. With those two expenses now making up more than 50% of a household budget, my concern is that the rising cost of child care alongside affordability issues across the board is going to push working families into poverty,” said Ruth Schmidt, Executive Director of Wisconsin Early Childhood Association.   

What happens when the funding runs out next week 

WECA’s deeper concern is what happens next. When Child Care Counts payments were cut in half in May 2023, providers who had relied on those funds for payroll, rent, and utilities were forced to pass the cost on to families. The Child Care Bridge Payments that replaced them have put more than $9 million a month into the system this year, but that funding ends next week, with nothing to replace it. The market rate for care is likely to climb sharply to make up the difference.

About WECA

The Wisconsin Early Childhood Association (WECA) is a statewide nonprofit dedicated to ensuring every Wisconsin child has access to high-quality early care and education, and that the educators who provide it are valued and supported. WECA advances policy, research, and community partnerships rooted in the lived experience of families and the early childhood workforce.