Exercise Trainers and Group Fitness Instructors
Median $47,160
Occupation · SOC 39-9011
Childcare Workers: pay and where the jobs are
What childcare workers earn in the U.S., how pay varies across workers and states, and tools to plan around it.
National pay, May 2025
$34,980 median annual wage
- Mean (average) annual wage
- $35,030
- Median hourly wage
- $16.82
- Mean hourly wage
- $16.84
- Employment
- 518,910
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 39-9011.
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See where your pay falls among childcare workers nationally and in your state. Nothing you type leaves your browser.
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Use these numbers
How much do childcare workers make?
The median annual wage for childcare workers was $34,980 in May 2025, so half of workers earned more and half earned less. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $24,260 and the highest-paid 10% more than $46,010. As an hourly rate, the median is $16.82. About 518,910 people work in this occupation nationwide. The highest state medians are in District of Columbia ($47,340), Washington ($41,680) and Massachusetts ($40,900). District of Columbia also comes out on top after taxes and local prices.
Pay ladder
What each step of the pay range for childcare workers looks like per month. Take-home here includes federal tax, Social Security and Medicare for a single filer; add your state in the paycheck calculator.
| Step | Annual | Hourly | Monthly gross | Monthly after federal tax & FICA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $24,260 | $11.66 | $2,022 | $1,799 |
| 25th percentile | $29,360 | $14.12 | $2,447 | $2,148 |
| Median | $34,980 | $16.82 | $2,915 | $2,524 |
| 75th percentile | $38,570 | $18.55 | $3,214 | $2,764 |
| 90th percentile | $46,010 | $22.12 | $3,834 | $3,262 |
Childcare Workers: pay by state
54 states and territories have a published median, sorted from highest to lowest. The last two columns are our estimates: the median after 2026 federal and state taxes, and that take-home restated in national-average prices.
1
$35,071 take-home in national prices
2
$32,971 take-home in national prices
3
$32,792 take-home in national prices
Where a median childcare worker paycheck goes furthest after 2026 taxes and BEA price levels.
| State | Employment | Median | 10th pct. | 90th pct. | Median after tax* | In national prices† |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| District of Columbia | 1,350 | $47,340 | $39,050 | $56,790 | $38,543 | $35,071 |
| Washington | 4,340 | $41,680 | $35,340 | $50,080 | $35,092 | $32,792 |
| Massachusetts | 13,140 | $40,900 | $34,130 | $49,790 | $33,030 | $31,232 |
| Colorado | 13,310 | $40,750 | $33,430 | $49,190 | $33,659 | $32,662 |
| California | 52,780 | $40,020 | $35,340 | $52,670 | $33,232 | $30,015 |
| Oregon | 5,240 | $38,650 | $32,580 | $46,450 | $30,673 | $29,676 |
| Vermont | Not published | $38,030 | $32,140 | $46,030 | $31,897 | $32,562 |
| New York | 44,020 | $37,590 | $33,630 | $46,970 | $30,757 | $28,500 |
| New Hampshire | 2,820 | $37,080 | $27,850 | $44,500 | $31,974 | $30,695 |
| Hawaii | 1,870 | $37,030 | $30,850 | $47,270 | $30,625 | $27,853 |
| Rhode Island | 1,800 | $36,940 | $31,410 | $45,140 | $30,687 | $30,003 |
| Connecticut | 12,020 | $36,660 | $34,940 | $44,760 | $30,413 | $29,354 |
| New Jersey | 25,070 | $36,390 | $32,220 | $44,800 | $30,556 | $28,083 |
| Maine | 4,990 | $36,350 | $31,200 | $46,020 | $30,315 | $31,237 |
| Alaska | 1,340 | $36,200 | $30,640 | $46,640 | $31,086 | $30,369 |
| Maryland | 9,750 | $36,030 | $31,570 | $47,280 | $29,785 | $28,377 |
| New Mexico | 4,120 | $35,840 | $29,880 | $42,190 | $30,404 | $32,971 |
| Illinois | 23,900 | $35,830 | $31,200 | $44,980 | $29,341 | $29,353 |
| Minnesota | 11,570 | $35,520 | $28,560 | $44,880 | $29,482 | $29,895 |
| Montana | 2,190 | $35,120 | $27,770 | $38,750 | $29,505 | $31,174 |
| Arizona | 5,530 | $35,100 | $30,830 | $45,660 | $29,899 | $29,698 |
| Virginia | 13,930 | $34,330 | $28,150 | $44,100 | $28,604 | $28,292 |
| Florida | 21,760 | $34,210 | $27,960 | $44,730 | $29,668 | $28,688 |
| Delaware | 1,230 | $33,210 | $31,200 | $40,410 | $27,565 | $27,618 |
| Wisconsin | 5,560 | $32,460 | $24,650 | $42,830 | $27,549 | $29,278 |
| Utah | 4,830 | $31,630 | $23,040 | $43,440 | $26,979 | $27,289 |
| Michigan | 14,010 | $30,970 | $27,210 | $39,340 | $25,999 | $27,021 |
| Missouri | 12,430 | $30,790 | $28,600 | $41,600 | $26,410 | $29,080 |
| Nebraska | 9,390 | $30,740 | $28,130 | $36,660 | $26,331 | $29,223 |
| North Dakota | 4,030 | $30,290 | $23,310 | $37,070 | $26,518 | $29,809 |
| Indiana | 8,280 | $30,180 | $23,880 | $38,250 | $25,569 | $27,396 |
| Idaho | 4,430 | $30,160 | $17,550 | $42,150 | $25,923 | $27,147 |
| Pennsylvania | 13,000 | $30,140 | $22,710 | $39,290 | $25,451 | $26,084 |
| Nevada | 3,740 | $29,740 | $27,520 | $38,560 | $26,076 | $26,082 |
| Ohio | 11,300 | $29,680 | $23,800 | $40,390 | $25,662 | $27,661 |
| Tennessee | 13,650 | $29,660 | $21,730 | $38,050 | $26,012 | $28,314 |
| South Carolina | 10,660 | $29,650 | $22,020 | $37,720 | $25,712 | $27,427 |
| Kansas | 7,430 | $29,240 | $22,810 | $37,280 | $24,818 | $27,554 |
| North Carolina | 12,550 | $29,140 | $22,840 | $40,990 | $24,940 | $26,440 |
| Kentucky | 5,820 | $28,920 | $21,860 | $39,550 | $24,523 | $27,199 |
| Texas | 34,160 | $28,570 | $21,750 | $37,290 | $25,136 | $25,898 |
| Arkansas | 5,400 | $28,450 | $23,940 | $33,640 | $24,472 | $28,149 |
| Iowa | 6,020 | $28,420 | $21,950 | $37,220 | $24,586 | $28,014 |
| Wyoming | 1,110 | $28,250 | $21,960 | $50,040 | $24,874 | $26,835 |
| Georgia | 21,040 | $28,020 | $22,170 | $36,980 | $24,035 | $24,960 |
| Virgin Islands | 50 | $28,010 | $23,480 | $35,050 | — | — |
| South Dakota | 2,370 | $27,940 | $26,500 | $37,840 | $24,619 | $27,791 |
| Oklahoma | 7,590 | $27,730 | $22,040 | $38,580 | $23,743 | $27,029 |
| West Virginia | 1,930 | $27,710 | $22,170 | $35,890 | $23,774 | $26,564 |
| Louisiana | 8,000 | $22,900 | $18,650 | $33,610 | $20,167 | $22,864 |
| Alabama | 4,580 | $22,720 | $18,680 | $32,330 | $19,482 | $21,934 |
| Puerto Rico | 1,960 | $22,600 | $21,840 | $30,370 | — | — |
| Mississippi | 5,420 | $22,050 | $18,230 | $33,600 | $19,618 | $22,562 |
| Guam | Not published | $22,020 | $22,020 | $27,000 | — | — |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 39-9011. *Our estimate for a single filer paid biweekly with no pre-tax deductions or local tax, 2026 federal and state rules. †Take-home ÷ BEA Regional Price Parity × 100 (2024 price levels).
Sources
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25nat.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25st.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.