High Cost Child Care Ranks Tri-Cities Low

If you're a working parent, you know how important it is to be close to your child care, and work location, and preferably be able to work remotely all or at least some of the time.

Seattle ranked #2 recently for its prosperous job market and ideal location for balancing career, childcare, and responsibilities for a great quality of life.

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A recent study put Seattle in the top 20 U.S. cities for working parents
among Western U.S. cities, securing second place nationally for a family & work-friendly environment.

Ranking second nationally due to its high share of remote workers, at 27% of the total workforce, 80% of the jobs here were office-related, helping the city rank fifth in this category.

Where in TriCities can I find Childcare?

Here in Tri-Cities, we have a short commute to work.

Unfortunately, we are somewhat short on daycare options in this area. According to reviews on Reddit. But, I know plenty of parents with children in Childcare locally and have had successful reviews.

Childcare options in Tri-Cities Washington

Here is a list of Childcare options in Tri-Cities Washington.

Right now the air quality here is something we have to deal with. Unlike Seattle or the West side of the mountains where the air quality index was almost 45, which was seventh-best among the 90 U.S. cities in our analysis

Household median income going to childcare was less than one-fifth of the total, at 18% for Seattle.

How much will Childcare cost in Tri-Cities?

According to Child Care Aware, parents in the Tri-Cities area of Washington pay around 20–21% of their income on child care for children under five, slightly below the state average of 23%. This equates to about $11,000 per year for each child.

With those prices, I'm not sure it makes sense to work unless you can work remotely.

Here are some examples of childcare costs in the Tri-Cities area:

YMCA Tri-Cities
Offers school-age child care programs with rates ranging from $104–$497 per month, depending on the number of days and times attended
Level Up Preschool
Offers full-day daycare options in Kennewick with tuition that depends on age and ranges from $1,241–$1,511 per month
In-home child care
As of May 2024, the average starting rate for in-home child care in Kennewick was $17.80 per hour.
Again, I'm not surprised some find it difficult to go to work at all given the cost of clothing, gas and, the cost of childcare.

Tri-Cities remains behind in remote workers costing households a huge chunk of their income to pay for childcare.

As of August 2023, 12.2% of U.S. workers are fully remote. More than 4.7 million U.S. workers are remote at least half the time. Only 11.1% of private sector businesses are fully remote. 65% of workers prefer remote work, while 32% prefer a hybrid work schedule.