Average cost to raise a child now tops $300,000, study finds

Raising a child comes with a long list of expenses, from child care to additional groceries. But how much does that add up to over 18 years?

A new estimate from LendingTree puts the price tag at $303,418 for 2026, or an average of $16,857 per year. It’s the first time the figure has topped $300,000 since LendingTree began the analysis in 2023 and is up about 2% from a year earlier.

The calculation is based on the typical expenses for a couple earning the U.S. median family income, about $100,000, while accounting for offsets from tax incentives. Because the analysis ends when a child turns 18, it does not include the cost of college, another major expense for parents.

With the average cost of a U.S. college education at about $38,000 a year, that could add another $152,000 to the total.

American families are feeling the financial strain of raising children, with a CBS News poll in February finding that 77% of respondents believe it is harder to raise a family today than it was for previous generations. A previous LendingTree study found many parents were unprepared for the added costs, with some going into debt to pay for child care and other expenses.

“The cost of raising a child for 18 years has climbed to more than $300,000, and that steady rise puts tremendous strain on Americans’ budgets,” said Matt Schulz, LendingTree’s chief consumer finance analyst, in a statement.

As with most expenses, location matters. Costs in three states — Alaska, Kansas and Montana — jumped more than 20% from a year earlier, while Hawaii is the most expensive state to raise a child, with families expected to spend $412,661 in 2026, LendingTree found. 

Some areas are offering parents a measure of financial relief, with the study noting that some child-related expenses saw a “dramatic slowdown” from a year earlier.

Infant child care, for example, is estimated to cost $17,264 in 2026, or $572 less than a year ago. LendingTree estimates it costs an average of $29,325 per year to raise a child in the first five years, down 0.3%.

However, the total cost to raise a child from birth through high school graduation represents a major expense, given that the median household income in 2024 was $83,730. The price tag for child-rearing now approaches the median sales price of a home in the U.S., which was $356,000 as of January 31, according to Zillow.

Researchers tapped 2024 data from the U.S. Census Bureau and Bureau of Labor Statistics, as well as from a variety of other government, nonprofit and academic sources. 

However, the total cost to raise a child from birth through high school graduation represents a major expense, given that the median household income in 2024 was $83,730. The price tag for child-rearing now approaches the median sales price of a home in the U.S., which was $356,000 as of January 31, according to Zillow.