Daycare in Vermont.

A short, honest guide to Vermont daycare.

Vermont has invested more aggressively in early childhood than almost any other state, but tuition still runs well above the national average and supply is tight nearly everywhere. The Chittenden County corridor (Burlington, South Burlington, Essex, Williston, Colchester) holds the majority of the state's licensed center seats. Act 76, passed in 2023, dramatically expanded Vermont's Child Care Financial Assistance Program, raised provider reimbursement, and funded teacher compensation; it is changing the price and availability of care across the state as the rollout continues.

STARS quality rating

STARS is Vermont's voluntary five-step Step Ahead Recognition System, administered by the Vermont Child Development Division (CDD). Programs earn one through five stars on regulatory history, staff qualifications and continuous learning, family and community engagement, program practices, and program management. Higher stars represent meaningful investment above licensing minimums; STARS participation in Vermont is among the highest in the country. Filter our directory by STARS rating.

Universal Pre-K (Act 166)

Vermont's Act 166, passed in 2014 and fully implemented since 2016, entitles every three- and four-year-old in the state to ten hours per week of publicly funded prequalified preschool during the school year at participating public school, private center, family child care, and community-based sites. Local school districts contract with prequalified providers and pay them directly. NIEER consistently scores Vermont as one of the highest-quality and highest-access state Pre-K programs in the country. Federal Head Start and Early Head Start fund additional free hours and seats statewide. Read our NAEYC accreditation explainer to understand how Vermont's quality standards compare nationally.

Vermont licensing and ratios

The Vermont Child Development Division within the Department for Children and Families licenses and registers all legal child care centers, afterschool programs, family child care homes (registered for up to 6 children, licensed for up to 12), and Head Start programs under 33 V.S.A. Chapter 35 and Vermont's Child Care Licensing Regulations. Center ratios are 1:4 for infants, 1:5 for toddlers (ages one and two), 1:8 for preschoolers (three to five), and 1:13 for school-age. Every provider in our directory is cross-checked against the CDD licensing database monthly.

Financial help in Vermont (CCFAP, expanded by Act 76)

The Vermont Child Care Financial Assistance Program (CCFAP), administered through the CDD, was substantially expanded by Act 76 of 2023. Families up to 575 percent of the federal poverty level (approximately $172,500 for a family of four at current FPL) now qualify on a sliding scale, with no copay below 175 percent FPL. Provider reimbursement was raised to match true cost, and a portion of the funding is dedicated to teacher compensation. Act 166 funds many three- and four-year-old preschool hours. Head Start and Early Head Start fund additional free seats. The federal Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit and a Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account through an employer can layer further savings. Our tax credit explainer walks through the math.

Where Vermont parents tend to overpay

• Defaulting to a Burlington or South Burlington center when a STARS four- or five-star registered family child care home in Colchester, Winooski, or Milton runs $200 to $400 less per month for comparable infant care.
• Paying full preschool tuition for a three- or four-year-old without enrolling in the Act 166 ten-hour Universal Pre-K benefit, which most participating centers credit against tuition.
• Skipping the CCFAP application after Act 76. The expansion reaches well into upper-middle-income ranges, and many families who would not have qualified before now do.

Before your first tour, download the free DaycareSquare comparison checklist and the tour questions list.