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How Much Will It Cost to Raise a Child?

Posted by Mark Lino, Ph.D. in Food and Nutrition
Feb 21, 2017
USDA’s annual report, Expenditures on Children by Families, provides annual estimates for the cost of raising a child. This report provides families with an indication of expenses to anticipate, and is used by state and local governments in determining child support guidelines and foster care payments. Click to enlarge.
USDA’s annual report, Expenditures on Children by Families, provides annual estimates for the cost of raising a child. This report provides families with an indication of expenses to anticipate, and is used by state and local governments in determining child support guidelines and foster care payments. Click to enlarge.

Today, USDA released its annual Expenditures on Children by Families report, also known as the “Cost of Raising a Child,” showing that a middle-income family with a child born in 2013 can expect to spend about $245,340 ($304,480 adjusted for projected inflation*) for food, housing, childcare and education, and other child-rearing expenses up to age 18. The costs by location are lower in the urban South ($230,610) and rural ($193,590) regions of the country. Families in the urban Northeast incurred the highest costs to raise a child ($282,480).

Category/Topic: Food and Nutrition
Tags: CNPP Cost of Raising a Child economics Expenditures on Children by Families Food and Nutrition Research Rural

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Comments

Royal Rife
Aug 19, 2014

A graph of this expense from say, 1930 to the present would be a very interesting, real world, inflation history. The effects of the economy, politics, wars, un-backing of money from gold and silver etc. could be displayed graphically.

Tauf Chowdhury
Aug 22, 2014

Interesting.. never thought about it as a yearly expense but definitely should!

Anonymous
May 31, 2019

I am trying to find the most recent report for the Cost of Raising a Child, but it appears that it was not published last year or this year. Is this report no longer being produced? Thanks very much!

Ben Weaver
Jun 03, 2019

@Anonymous - thank you for your interest in the Expenditures on Children by Families report. The most recent version of the report is the 2015 report. Please use this version for your work. Any updates to this report or other reports published by USDA Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion can be found on our USDA Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion website. We encourage you to sign up for email updates to ensure you receive notifications as soon as they are released.