Austin runs hotter on daycare prices than most of Texas, with Westlake and the Eanes ISD pocket setting the metro top and a meaningful gap between West Austin and the East Side. The Round Rock, Pflugerville, and Leander suburbs price more like North Austin than rural Williamson County. Texas's full-day public pre-K and the regional CCS subsidy meaningfully change the math for the families they reach. This guide pulls the most recent Travis, Williamson, and Hays County pricing, explains how AISD pre-K and the Texas CCS subsidy change the math, and shows where those ranges come from.
In 2026 dollars, full-time center-based daycare in Austin runs roughly $1,450 to $2,250 per month for infants and roughly $1,225 to $1,825 per month for preschool-age children. Licensed home-based child care, regulated under 40 TAC Chapter 747, typically charges 20 to 30 percent less than centers in the same neighborhood. These ranges come from the National Database of Childcare Prices for Travis County and the United Way for Greater Austin market-rate work, not single-point averages.
Infant care in Austin typically prices 20 to 25 percent above preschool-age care because of staff-to-child ratio rules. Texas HHSC Child Care Regulation sets the infant ratio at 1:4 for centers, with a maximum group size of 10 for infants under 18 months. The arithmetic of paying multiple credentialed teachers across small infant rooms is what makes infant rooms the most expensive line item in any Austin center's budget.
| Area | Infant, center | Preschool, center | Family child care |
|---|---|---|---|
| Westlake, Tarrytown, Old Enfield, Eanes ISD (78746) | $2,000–$2,250 / month | $1,625–$1,825 / month | $1,425–$1,600 / month |
| Downtown, Rainey, Bouldin Creek, Travis Heights | $1,850–$2,075 / month | $1,525–$1,725 / month | $1,325–$1,500 / month |
| Hyde Park, North Loop, Allandale, Brentwood | $1,750–$1,975 / month | $1,450–$1,650 / month | $1,275–$1,450 / month |
| Mueller, Cherrywood, French Place | $1,725–$1,925 / month | $1,425–$1,625 / month | $1,250–$1,425 / month |
| South Lamar, Zilker, Barton Hills | $1,675–$1,900 / month | $1,400–$1,600 / month | $1,225–$1,400 / month |
| Cedar Park, Leander, Lakeway, Bee Cave | $1,625–$1,850 / month | $1,375–$1,575 / month | $1,200–$1,375 / month |
| Round Rock, Pflugerville | $1,575–$1,800 / month | $1,325–$1,525 / month | $1,150–$1,325 / month |
| South Austin, Manchaca, Sunset Valley | $1,550–$1,775 / month | $1,300–$1,500 / month | $1,125–$1,300 / month |
| East Austin, MLK, Holly | $1,475–$1,675 / month | $1,250–$1,425 / month | $1,075–$1,250 / month |
| Riverside, Dove Springs, Southeast Austin | $1,450–$1,625 / month | $1,225–$1,400 / month | $1,050–$1,225 / month |
These ranges represent licensed care at established providers, not subsidized seats. Westlake, Tarrytown, and the 78746 zip code sit at the top of the metro range. Riverside and Dove Springs sit near the bottom, though still above the rural Texas median. The Round Rock and Pflugerville suburbs run at South Austin pricing because of demand from tech, semiconductor, and corporate-campus families along the I-35 and MoPac corridors.
If your child is four during the school year, Texas's full-day public pre-K materially changes the math. Austin Independent School District operates a full-day pre-K program with free seats for eligible four-year-olds at most elementary campuses and dedicated three-year-old pre-K at a smaller set of campuses with Title I or state-grant funding. Round Rock ISD, Pflugerville ISD, Leander ISD, Hays CISD, and the other Austin-area districts follow the same TEA eligibility criteria.
Texas pre-K eligibility includes household income under 185 percent of the federal poverty level, English learner status, homelessness, foster care, military-connected family status, and dependents of Star of Texas Award recipients. Eanes ISD and a handful of other Austin-area districts also offer tuition-based pre-K for non-eligible four-year-olds on a space-available basis; current rates are posted on each district's Early Childhood page.
Heads up. Texas pre-K does not cover the full working week or year. Most AISD pre-K runs roughly 7:40 a.m. to 2:55 p.m. on the school calendar. Families who need extended-day or extended-year hours typically pair pre-K with wraparound care at the same site or with a partnering center. Several AISD elementary sites offer wraparound through community partners blended with CCS-subsidized care for eligible families.
For infants, toddlers, and the gap before pre-K eligibility, the Texas Child Care Services program is the regional subsidy system. CCS covers a portion of licensed child care for income-eligible working families, with eligibility at initial entry up to 85 percent of the Texas state median income. Co-payments are sliding-scale, capped by the state, and reduced for Texas Rising Star three- and four-star providers. Families in Travis County apply through Workforce Solutions Capital Area; surrounding counties (Bastrop, Caldwell, Hays, Williamson, Burnet, Blanco, Fayette, Lee, and Llano) use Workforce Solutions Rural Capital Area.
Approved families use a CCS-eligible provider, which can be a licensed center, a licensed family child care home, or a registered home meeting CCS minimum quality standards. Capital Area has historically maintained a CCS waitlist that varies by funding cycle. The United Way for Greater Austin Success By 6 collaborative operates the local Child Care Resource and Referral function and is the practical first call for most Austin families exploring CCS for the first time.
Three federal tools stack on top of any CCS subsidy or AISD pre-K placement: the federal Child and Dependent Care Credit on IRS Form 2441, the Dependent Care FSA at most employers (up to $5,000 per family per year of pre-tax savings), and the federal Child Tax Credit. Texas has no state income tax, so there is no state-level dependent care credit to layer on top of the federal credit.
The absence of a state-level credit makes the Dependent Care FSA particularly valuable for Austin families. A two-earner household at Austin wages typically recovers the full $5,000 FSA benefit, which works out to roughly $1,250 to $1,850 in federal tax savings depending on marginal rate. The federal Child and Dependent Care Credit recovers an additional $600 to $1,200 of qualifying expenses, depending on adjusted gross income.
A two-income Mueller family with a one-year-old in full-time licensed center care spends roughly $1,750 to $1,925 per month, or $21,000 to $23,100 per year, per the National Database of Childcare Prices for Travis County and the United Way for Greater Austin market-rate work.
If the family qualifies for CCS at 85 percent of the state median income or below, the sliding-scale co-payment lands somewhere around $275 to $475 per month, with CCS covering the balance at the provider's tiered Texas Rising Star rate.
If the family is over the CCS ceiling, the full private rate stands. A Dependent Care FSA recovers $5,000 in pre-tax savings, and the federal Child and Dependent Care Credit recovers an additional $600 to $1,200 of qualifying expenses on top of that.
Walk through the cost calculator to model your own Austin year with full-day pre-K, CCS subsidy, FSA, and the federal credits factored in. Use the comparison checklist and tour questions when you start visiting centers. Read the Texas pre-K explainer, our subsidized daycare guide, our daycare tax credit explainer, the Texas state cost overview, and the broader cost pillar.
For neighborhood and listing detail, see daycare in Austin overall and the editorial best daycares in Austin roundup. Westlake, Tarrytown, Hyde Park, Mueller, Travis Heights, Bouldin, South Lamar, Cedar Park, Round Rock, and East Austin neighborhood guides are in progress.
Neighborhoods, listings, CCS-eligible sites, and the full Austin metro early-learning landscape.
Read → Pre-KHow HB 3 expanded full-day pre-K, who qualifies, and how to enroll in AISD and surrounding districts.
Read → ToolModel your Austin daycare year with CCS subsidy, FSA, and the federal credits factored in.
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