How much does daycare cost in Texas?

The honest answer is that nobody publishes a price list for Texas daycare, and I do not invent one. What I can do is explain where prices come from, how they are quoted, and how to compare two providers without guessing. A price appears on a provider page here only when the provider has supplied it.

Why there is no official price

The state licenses and inspects childcare, but it does not collect tuition. The Texas Workforce Commission does run a market rate survey every few years to set what it pays providers for subsidized children, by region and by age of child, and that survey is the closest thing to an official reference. It is a snapshot of what providers charge, not a rule about what they may charge.

What sets the number

The child’s age. Infant care costs the most, because Texas requires more caregivers per child for babies. Prices step down for toddlers, again for preschoolers, and school-age care after school is the least.
The hours you need. Full-time care is the default quote. Part-time schedules, drop-in care by the hour, early drop-off, late pick-up, weekend and overnight care are each priced differently, and some providers do not offer them at all. The city pages count who does: as of the state’s latest list, 8,253 Texas providers report part-time care, 4,584 drop-in care, 1,180 weekend care and 506 24-hour or night care.
The setting. Licensed centers usually cost more than home-based care. Texas has 9,615 licensed centers and 4,714 home-based providers (licensed, registered and listed family homes), and the smaller homes are often the lower-priced option in a neighborhood.
The place. Prices in the big metro areas run well above small towns, and within a metro they follow neighborhood rents.
What is included. Meals (9,436 providers report serving them), diapers and wipes, transportation to school (4,932 report it), curriculum, accreditation and field trips can be in the price or on top of it.

How rates are quoted

Most Texas centers quote a weekly rate and charge for every week the child is enrolled, including holiday and vacation weeks. Preschools sometimes quote by the month or the school year. Drop-in providers quote by the hour or the half day. On top of the rate, expect some of: a registration or enrollment fee (often yearly), a supply or activity fee, a deposit, and late pick-up charges by the minute. Sibling discounts are common; ask.

How to compare two providers on cost

Ask each for its written rate sheet for your child’s age and schedule. A quoted number over the phone is a starting point, not a price.
Work out the yearly cost: weekly rate times the weeks you will be charged, plus every fee on the sheet, minus any discount you qualify for.
Note what is included. A higher weekly rate that covers meals and diapers can cost less than a lower one that does not.
Ask about the last two annual increases, and when the next one is expected.
If you may use child care assistance, check the provider’s page here for whether it accepts it, and read how the Texas program works. The same guide covers dependent care FSAs, the federal tax credit, Head Start and public pre-K.

Where cost fits

Cost is one line of the comparison. Every provider page here shows the same licensing record beside it: permit type, capacity, ages, hours, and the inspection history with any standards cited. Read the price sheet and the record together, then use the touring questions on your visit. Start from your city on the Texas page.