Childcare Cost Calculator
Calculate your childcare costs for 2025/26, see your free hours entitlement with the September 2025 expansion, and find the best government support scheme for your family.
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How to Use This Calculator
My Childcare Costs tab
Select your child's age group, enter the hours per week and hourly rate you pay, and toggle whether both parents are working. The calculator shows your gross annual cost, your free hours entitlement, and the net cost after free hours are applied. From September 2025, working parents of children aged 9 months and over can access 30 free hours per week during term time.
Tax-Free Childcare tab
Enter your annual childcare cost (after free hours) and number of children. The calculator shows how much the government will top up via a Tax-Free Childcare account — for every £8 you deposit, the government adds £2. The maximum top-up is £2,000 per child per year (£4,000 for disabled children).
Best Scheme tab
Compare Tax-Free Childcare, the Universal Credit childcare element, and employer vouchers (legacy scheme) side by side. Enter your childcare cost, household income, and toggle which schemes apply to you. The calculator recommends the scheme that saves you the most.
Share your result
Every input is encoded in the URL. Click Share to send your exact scenario to a partner, employer, or save it for later.
The Formula
Childcare costs and support are calculated as follows:
Free Hours Value = Free Hours/week × Hourly Rate × 38 weeks (term-time)
Annual Net Cost = Annual Gross Cost − Free Hours Value
Tax-Free Childcare Top-up = Net Cost × 20% (capped at £2,000/child/year)
Parent deposits £8 → Government adds £2 → £10 available
UC Childcare Element = Monthly Cost × 85%
Capped at £1,031.88/month (1 child) or £1,768.94/month (2+ children)
Free hours are funded for 38 term-time weeks. If you use childcare year-round (52 weeks), you pay the full rate for the remaining 14 weeks. Some providers offer "stretched" hours across 52 weeks at fewer hours per week.
Tax-Free Childcare and Universal Credit childcare cannot be used at the same time — choose the one that gives you the highest saving.
Example
Sarah — Marketing Manager, 2-year-old son, Bristol
Sarah and her partner both work full-time. Their son attends nursery 40 hours per week at £7/hour. As working parents, they qualify for 30 free hours per week from September 2025.
My Childcare Costs tab
Free hours save Sarah £7,980 per year. She then uses Tax-Free Childcare on the remaining £6,580, getting a £1,316 government top-up — reducing her actual cost to around £5,264 per year.
Best Scheme tab
With a household income of £65,000 and no Universal Credit, Tax-Free Childcare is the best option — saving £1,316/year via the 20% government top-up on the net childcare cost.