The childcare cost calculator shows your real monthly childcare bill after government-funded hours and the Tax-Free Childcare top-up. Enter the hours you need, your provider's hourly rate and your child's age to see gross cost, funded-hours saving and net cost for 2026.
After funded hours & Tax-Free Childcare
The calculator takes your total weekly childcare hours, subtracts government-funded hours, and multiplies the remaining hours by your provider's rate. If you use Tax-Free Childcare (TFC), it then applies the 20% government top-up on the amount you pay — capped at £2,000 per child per year.
Funded hours are available for 38 term-time weeks. Some providers stretch them over 52 weeks at a lower weekly rate.
For every 80p you pay into your TFC account, the government adds 20p — a 20% bonus. The maximum government contribution is £500 per quarter (£2,000 a year) per child, or £1,000 per quarter (£4,000 a year) for a disabled child. You can use TFC at any Ofsted-registered provider: nurseries, childminders, after-school clubs, nannies and holiday clubs.
For the TFC eligibility rules and tax benefit, see the Tax-Free Childcare calculator.
The Tax-Free Childcare calculator focuses on TFC eligibility and savings. The child benefit calculator shows your weekly/monthly child benefit. The nanny tax calculator covers the full cost of employing a nanny.
Working parents can get up to 30 hours of funded childcare per week for children aged 9 months to school age. Both parents must each earn at least the equivalent of 16 hours at the National Living Wage per week and neither can earn more than £100,000 a year. Non-working parents or those earning over £100,000 get the universal 15 hours from age 2.
Tax-Free Childcare is a government top-up: for every £8 you pay into your TFC account, the government adds £2 — a 20% bonus. The maximum government contribution is £2,000 per child per year (£500 per quarter), or £4,000 for a disabled child. You can use it to pay any Ofsted-registered provider.
Average nursery fees in 2026 are roughly £5.50 to £6.00 per hour depending on your region. A full-time nursery place (50 hours a week) costs approximately £1,100 to £1,300 per month outside London, and over £1,800 in London. Costs vary widely by area and provider.
Yes. You can claim your 15 or 30 funded hours and then use Tax-Free Childcare to pay for any additional hours you need. The two schemes stack — funded hours reduce your bill first, then TFC tops up your payments for the remainder.
Funded hours are available for up to 38 weeks a year (term time). Some providers let you spread them across 52 weeks at fewer hours per week — for example, 30 hours over 38 weeks becomes roughly 22 hours over 52 weeks. Check with your provider.
You get 30 hours if both parents work (or one works and one is disabled, a carer or on parental leave) and each earns at least the equivalent of 16 hours at the National Living Wage but not more than £100,000 a year. If you do not meet the work test, you get the universal 15 hours from age 2.
