How to use the childcare vs staying home calculator
- Enter your take-home pay per month, which is pay after taxes and payroll deductions.
- Enter childcare per month, commuting per month and other costs of working such as work clothes and meals out.
- If leaving the job would cost you benefits, enter their monthly value. If you want a per hour figure, enter the hours worked per week.
- Read the net gain per month and per year, and how much of your pay the costs of working use.
Formula
Costs of working = childcare + commuting + other costs
Net gain per month = take-home pay + benefits given up - costs of working
Net gain per year = net gain per month x 12
Net gain per hour = net gain per month / (hours per week x 52 / 12)
A negative net gain means that, on these numbers alone, working costs more than it brings in each month.
$3,000 of take-home pay less $1,800 of costs
Take-home pay of $3,000 a month, childcare of $1,500, commuting of $200 and other work costs of $100 leave a net gain of $1,200 a month, or $14,400 a year. Costs use 60% of the pay.
If you also give up a benefit worth $100 a month, the net gain becomes $1,300. Working 30 hours a week is about 130 hours a month, so $1,200 works out to $9.23 for each hour worked. If take-home pay were only $1,000, the same costs would produce a net loss of $800 a month.
Using the number sensibly
The net gain is a way to see what is left after the costs that exist only because you work. It is one input into a family decision, not the whole decision. Many people weigh career progress, time with their children and how long childcare will be needed alongside the money.
Childcare costs often fall when a child starts school, so a figure that looks poor now may look different in a few years. You can run the calculator again with the later costs to compare.
What this page does not include
The tool uses the amounts you enter for one typical month of your own. It does not model raises or promotions, retirement contributions, resume gaps, changes in taxes or credits when household income changes, or childcare subsidies.
For a closer look at your pay, try the gross pay calculator or the hourly to salary calculator, and put the result next to your plan in the budget planner. The commute time cost calculator prices the hours you spend traveling.
Assumptions and limits
- Every amount is for one month and stays the same across the year.
- Take-home pay is after taxes, and any change to taxes or credits from working or not working is not included.
- Benefits given up are a monthly value that you estimate.
- Nonmoney effects such as time at home or career growth are outside the calculation.
Frequently asked questions
Is it worth working after paying for childcare?
The calculator shows the money side only: take-home pay minus childcare, commuting and other costs. A positive number means working adds money each month, and a negative number means it costs money.
What counts as an other cost of working?
Anything you would not spend if you stayed home, such as work clothes, meals out, parking, dry cleaning or a phone plan used for work. Enter the monthly total.
How do I include benefits like a retirement match?
Estimate the monthly value of what you would lose by leaving, for example the employer match, and enter it as benefits given up. It is added to the net gain.
Why show a net gain per hour?
Dividing by hours worked turns the monthly figure into a rate you can compare with other options, such as part-time work or a different schedule.