Press

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 1, 2026

Contact: Luci Manning, 202-374-1974

First-ever distance-based national study launches with interactive data tool at childcaregap.org

WASHINGTON, D.C.—More than 4.1 million children under age six in the United States cannot access a child care slot within a reasonable distance of their homes, according to a new national report released today by the Child Care Trust. The analysis, The National Child Care Gap: A Problem That is Costing Everyone, documents a child care gap of 28.2 percent nationwide—translating to nearly one in three young children. An interactive data tool at childcaregap.org allows users to explore findings by state, county, congressional district, metropolitan area, and more.

Against a potential need of 14.8 million children with working parents, there are only 10.8 million legally operating child care slots known to state agencies. The gap is largest in rural communities, where the gap rate reaches 32 percent, compared to 27 percent in urban areas. In Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada, North Carolina, and Rhode Island, more than half of children with working parents lack access to care within a reasonable distance of home.

“The scale of this problem has been poorly defined for too long,” said Linda K. Smith, lead author and executive director of the Child Care Trust. “Policymakers and employers have been working from incomplete information. This gives them the data they need to understand where the gaps are largest, what they are costing, and what it will take to close them.”

A Cost Borne by Families, Employers, and Governments

The long-term economic cost of the child care gap is estimated to be between $216.4 billion and $329.4 billion over the next 10 years, equivalent to $51,700 to $78,700 per missing slot per year.

• For families, the consequences include reduced earnings and lost career advancement.
• For employers, the gap drives absenteeism, turnover, and constrained labor supply.
• For governments, fewer working parents means lower tax collections at every level.

“Child care is vital infrastructure,” Smith said. “When families cannot access it, everyone pays.”

Concentrated in the Communities That Can Least Afford It

More than three-quarters of the national child care gap is concentrated within 10 miles of federally designated Opportunity Zones—economically distressed communities. Within Opportunity Zone boundaries, the shortfall is approximately 400,000 slots, however when the radius is expanded to within 10 miles, the gap reaches 3.4 million child care slots.

The Most Comprehensive National Analysis to Date

The report is the first national study to measure child care access using a distance-based model, better reflecting how families seek care. In urban areas the radius to define a child care spot within a reasonable distance is 3.5-miles and it is 10-miles in rural areas. The analysis combines state-provided licensing data, federal sources, U.S. Census workforce estimates, and Head Start program data. The methodology was developed over five years in collaboration with a 12-state advisory committee of child care administrators and policy experts.

Detailed findings for every state, county, metropolitan area, congressional district, state senate district, and Opportunity Zone are available at childcaregap.org. This analysis was completed in collaboration with Child Care Aware® of America, Bipartisan Policy Center, and Buffet Early Childhood Institute at the University of Nebraska.

About the Child Care Trust

The Child Care Trust™ is a nonpartisan research and policy organization dedicated to understanding and addressing the nation’s child care crisis. Backed by Child Care Aware® of America, the Trust will develop real-world solutions, informed by data and research, for how America funds, organizes, and sustains quality child care.

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