Calculator, Global
How much does it cost to raise a child anywhere?
A currency-agnostic estimate based on a child’s share of household consumption, for countries where no national study exists.
Total, birth to 18
$218,571
for a child in a two-child household
A child is about 28.6% of household consumption
What this means
This estimates a share of what your household spends, so it moves in step with your income. It is rough by design: use it for scale, and price childcare and housing locally for anything you will act on.
A consumption-share model, not a measured national total. Currency is formatted, not converted: enter income in your own currency.
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What this result means
This works differently from our country pages. Rather than a national total, it estimates the share of your household’s consumption that a child represents, which is the method used when no local study exists. It is rough by design, and a country-specific page will always be better where one exists.
Like every estimate on this site, this is an order of magnitude rather than a forecast. Your own childcare and housing costs will move it more than any national figure.
Assumptions and limits
- Uses a consumption-share model rather than a measured national total, because most countries have no equivalent study.
- Assumes about 85% of household income goes to consumption, which varies considerably by country and income level.
- Currency is formatted, not converted. Enter income in your own currency.
- Where a country-specific page exists, treat that as the better guide.
Sources
- Geography
- Any country
No source is cited for the national starting figure because it is our own planning estimate, not a figure taken from a published study.
The decision behind the number
Money · QuestionHow much does it cost to raise a child?
The figure most often quoted is about $233,600 from birth to age 17, from the USDA, for a middle-income married-couple family with a child born in…
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