Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives

December 2017

Time Out
Child care fees in Canada 2017

David Macdonald and Martha Friendly

www.policyalternatives.ca RESEARCH ANALYSIS SOLUTIONS

 About the authors

David Macdonald is a senior economist with the

Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.

Martha Friendly is the founder and executive direc-

ISBN978-1-77125-375-8 tor of the Childcare Resource and Research Unit.
This report is available free of charge at She is a Research Associate at the Canadian Cen-
www.policyalternatives.ca. tre for Policy Alternatives.

Please make a donation... Acknowledgments

Help us to continue to offer our The authors would like to thank Joe Fantauzzi, Lucy
publications free online. Trew and Jesse Whattam for their hard work con-
With your support we can continue to produce high- ducting the phone survey. They would also like to
quality researchand make sure it gets into the hands thank Lynell Anderson and Morna Ballantyne for
of citizens, journalists, policy-makers and progres- their comments on an earlier version of this paper.
sive organizations. Visit www.policyalternatives.ca
or call 613-563-1341 for more information.

The CCPA is an independent policy research organ-

ization. This report has been subjected to peer re-
view and meets the research standards of the Centre.

The opinions and recommendations in this report,

and any errors, are those of the authors, and do
not necessarily reflect the views of the funders
of this report.
4 Executive Summary
6 Introduction
8 The Results
Full-time infant fees
Full-time toddler fees
Full-time preschooler fees
Rural child care in Ontario and Alberta
Child care in First Nations communities
Wait lists for child care in Canada
22 Conclusion
24 Appendix I: Data Tables
26 Appendix II: Methodology
29 Notes
Executive Summary

This study is the latest in a series of studies conducted annually since

2014 including The Parent Trap (2014), They Go Up So Fast (2015) and A
Growing Concern (2016).
Infant fees are, not surprisingly, generally the highest of the three age
groups. Ontario cities had the highest infant fees, with Toronto having the
highest median full-time centre-based and regulated home child care infant
fees in the country at $1,758 a month, or $21,096 annually. Second highest
was Mississauga (ON), where parents pay at the median $1,452 a month, fol-
lowed closely by another Greater Toronto Area (GTA) city, Vaughan (ON),
with median fees of $1,415. The infant fees in Montreal are $168 a month10
times cheaper than Torontoswhile the next four cities of Gatineau, Laval,
Longueuil and Quebec City are at $183 a month.
Quebec, Manitoba and PEI all fund child care operationally, which al-
lows them to set more affordable maximum child care fees provincially. As
a result, cities in those provinces generally have the lowest parental fees.
Quebecs set fees are the same regardless of the childs age, while Manitobas
and PEIs set fees arelike parent fees in the market-based citieshigher
for infants and toddlers.
Toddler fees are highest in Toronto, with a full-time space costing $1,354
a month, or $16,248 a year. Vancouvers toddler fees are second highest,
with parents paying $1,292 a month, and Mississauga (ON), Burnaby (BC)
and Richmond (BC) tying for third most expensive for toddlers at $1,200 a
month. Least expensive again is Montreal, with a toddler space costing $168
a month, followed by Gatineau, Laval, Longueuil and Quebec City, all with
median fees of $183 a month.

Time Out: Child care fees in Canada 2017 4

 Child care spaces for preschool-aged children make up the largest group
of regulated spaces by far, and preschoolers are much more likely to be in cen-
tres, not home child care. Here, again, Toronto is the most expensive city in
the country, with full-time median preschool fees of $1,212 a month or $14,544
annually. In fact, Toronto has the unfortunate designation as the most ex-
pensive city in Canada for child care across all age groups. Mississauga (ON)
and Brampton (ON) are next highest for preschoolers, with median fees of
$1,052 and $1,050 respectively. Montreal has the lowest fees at $168, followed
by Gatineau, Laval, Longueuil and Quebec City, where fees are $183 a month.
Richmond (BC) reports the largest increase in preschooler fees since
201612% or an additional $105 a monthwhich is 10 times the rate of
inflation. In fact, 71% of the cities surveyed in 2017 saw their fees rise fast-
er than inflation in the past year.
Since 2014, preschool fees have risen faster than inflation in 82% of the
cities surveyed. Over the past three years, Toronto has seen the largest pre-
school fee increase of $214 a month or 21.4%six times faster than inflation.
This 2017 survey is the first time we have surveyed child care fees out-
side the largest cities. Surveying all fees in rural child care centres and regu-
lated home child care in Ontario and in one area in eastern rural Alberta
shows that fees arecontrary to expectationsnot particularly low; they
are mostly in the mid-range compared to median city fees across the coun-
try. Fees tend to be similar to those in nearby cities. Thus, for example, pre-
school fees in central rural Ontario ($911 a month) are not much different
than those found in the nearby city of Hamilton ($931 a month).
Wait lists for child care tend to be almost universal in big cities. They
are slightly less common in Calgary and Edmonton, although their preva-
lence has risen since last year. St. Johns (NL), Saint John (NB), Markham
(ON) and Vaughan (ON) also have fewer centres maintaining a wait list than
they did last year.
The prevalence of wait list fees has also declined dramatically since
last year. Interestingly, although the Ontario government prohibited them
in 2016, they persist in several Ontario cities. In British Columbia, a trend
away from wait list fees appears to be occurring, although unlike in Ontario,
it is not attributable to public policy.
The data shows that policy matters when it comes to parental fees with
provinces providing operational funding consistently showing the lowest
fees. Without doubt, child care fees in most of Canada are far too expen-
sive for many. While the ongoing child care fee data is filling an important
gap, fees are only part of the puzzle of how parents are coping with finding
care for their children.

5 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives

Introduction

Following the 2015 federal election won by a Liberal government that

vowed to meet with provinces, territories, and Indigenous communities to
begin work on a new National Early Learning and Child Care Framework,
to deliver affordable, high-quality, flexible, and fully inclusive child care
for Canadian families,1 the Government of Canada released a Multilateral
Framework on Early Learning and Child Care on June 12, 2017.2 The frame-
work emphasizes collaboration between the federal government and prov-
inces/territories, and states that the governments agree that the further
development of early learning and child care systems is one of the best in-
vestments that governments can make to strengthen the social and eco-
nomic fabric of our country. Highlighting five principleshigh-quality,
accessibility, affordability, flexibility, and inclusivitythe federal govern-
ment committed to funding through 2028, committing that the annual al-
location until 2027 and 2028 will be no less than the allocation of 2017 and
2018. It specifies that provincial/territorial use of the federal funds will be
limited to families more in need, defined as lower-income families, In-
digenous families, lone-parent families, families in underserved commun-
ities, those working non-standard hours, and/or families with children with
varying abilities.
The funding to accomplish the child care plan was outlined in the 2017
federal budget. It included federal funding of $540 million in 2018-2019, ris-
ing to $550 million in 2020-2021. By 2026-2027, the Government of Canadas
child care funding is envisioned to reach $870 million.

Time Out: Child care fees in Canada 2017 6

 At the same timeand in some instances linked to the action plans
provinces and territories are all developing regarding the national frame-
workjurisdictions are taking various child care initiatives. Several prov-
inces are experimenting with affordable child care for middle class parents,
including a small pilot project in Alberta, the development of an affordabil-
ity strategy and significant space expansion in Ontario, and a commitment
to put in place affordable universal child care by the new government in
British Columbia. Others are examining their staff training and funding ar-
rangements, considering workforce strategies, increasing subsidized child
care and considering other changes. How these will affect the common com-
mitment to the principles set outquality, accessibility, affordability, flex-
ibility, and inclusivitywill be seen after all bilateral agreements and ac-
tion plans are completed and the additional federal funds begin to flow to
provinces/territories. Next years version of this fee survey may well shed
some light on these details. This years survey, however, shows that in 2017,
regulated child care continues to remain scarce and expensive.
This survey, the fourth in a series beginning in 2014, shows that a young
middle-income family living in Toronto with an infant and a three-year-old
would be faced with a monthly bill of almost $3,000 (or $36,000 a year) for
regulated child care if they were able to find a space. In fact, 95% of Toronto
centres reported in 2017 (up 6 percentage points from 2016) that they main-
tained waiting lists for spaces. Recent research from other sources confirms
these findings. A Toronto economic modelling study found that 75% of all
families cannot afford regulated child care,3 while in a Manitoba survey, 75%
of the 1,000 respondents said that child care is too expensive in Manitoba.4
This survey and other research, such as that cited above, show that child
care affordability is a significant issue for modest- and middle-income fam-
ilies, not only for those who are lower income. A previous version of this re-
port (2016) examined the parental fees faced by low income families even
after including low income subsidies.5 Applying the provincial fee subsidy
guideline to a sample low-income family (in Quebec, the basic fee was used
instead), the 2016 report revealed that the subsidy programs often did not
make child care affordable even for the low-income families for whom they
are intended. The analysis found that eligible families are expected to pay
additional funds up to almost $500 a month per child, or they may be un-
able to access a fee subsidy as they are rationed in some regions. The issue
of affordability and the existing fee subsidy systems will be explored in more
detail in a separate paper later this year.

7 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives

The Results

This study is the latest in a series of studies conducted annually since

2014 including The Parent Trap (2014),6 They Go Up So Fast (2015)7 and A
Growing Concern (2016).8
The results presented below represent full-day, full-time fees paid by
parents (who do not receive a subsidy) in child care centres and regulated
home child care. In almost all cases, the actual cost of providing a space
is higher than what parents pay due to some public operational funding
of various kinds (for example, operating grants and wage enhancement).
These programs are not examined in detail here, but are provided in vari-
ous forms by all provinces/territories.
The data were collected through a phone survey of regulated full-day li-
censed child care centres and licensed child care homes (or licensed home
child care agencies) conducted from June 2017 through October 2017. In most
cases, all child care centres and licensed child care homes (or licensed home
child care agencies) were called in each city; in larger cities a random sam-
ple was surveyed. Please note that this survey does not extend to unregulat-
ed family child care and paid relative care, which makes up a significant
proportion of the paid child care provided in Canada.9 For the full methodo-
logical details see Appendix II.

Time Out: Child care fees in Canada 2017 8

 Full-time infant fees
Infant spaces make up the smallest group of spaces of the three full-time
age categories examined in this report. The definition of infant varies by
province/territory but is generally between birth and two years.10
Fees in this age category tend to be highest, regardless of the city. By
regulation, infants require a higher ratio of child care providers per child,
which increases the cost of providing this type of care. Infant spaces in cen-
tres are scarce and infants are proportionally more likely to be in regulated
home child care than children in other age groups. Details can be found in
Table 2 of Appendix I. The median fee for infant care may be lower in cities
where regulated home child care (which is generally cheaper, particularly
for infants) is more prevalent.
By far the most expensive surveyed city for infant care is Toronto, with
a median monthly full-time cost of $1,758 or $21,096 annually. This is more
than $300 more a month than the next most costly city of Mississauga (ON),
right next door, where the median monthly fee is $1,452. The third most ex-
pensive city is Vaughan (ON), also in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), with a
monthly fee of $1,415, putting the three most expensive cities for parents with
an infant all in the GTA. To find the first non-Ontario city, one must move to
fourth place Vancouver (BC) where median monthly infant fees are $1,360.
The lowest fee city for full-time infant care was Montreal, where par-
ents paid only $168 a month, which is 10 times cheaper than infant care
in Toronto. The next least expensive cities, all in Quebec (Gatineau, Laval,
Longueuil and Quebec City), have the same median monthly cost of $183
a month. Quebec cities, like citites in Manitoba and Prince Edward Island,
have fees that are set by the government.
In Quebec, households with net incomes up to $52,060 pay a basic fee
of $7.75 a day. Between $52,060 and $77,550 in net income the fee is $8.45 a
day; the fee is then set on a sliding scale to a maximum of $21.20 a day at
$162,490 in family income.11 Further exaggerating the considerable fee gap
between Quebec cities and the rest of Canada is that the provincially set fees
in Quebec do not change based on a childs age, as they do everywhere else.
The median income of a family with children aged five or under in Mont-
real is $47,289 in 2017, setting its fees at $7.75 a day or $168 a month.12 The
median family income in the other Quebec cities sits between $59,268 (Lon-
gueuil) and $76,356 (Quebec City), which puts their fees at $8.45 a day or
$183 a month at those income levels.13

9 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives

 Figure 1Median monthly fees for infants, 2017

Montreal $168
Quebec City $183
Longueuil $183
Laval $183
Gatineau $183
Winnipeg $651
Charlottetown $738
Saint John $868
Regina $875
Saskatoon $900
Halifax $910
Brampton $955
Edmonton $990
Ottawa $998
Windsor $998
Surrey $1,050
Hamilton $1,062
St. Johns $1,085
Markham $1,150
Richmond $1,200
London $1,217
Calgary $1,250
Burnaby $1,250
Kitchener $1,325
Vancouver $1,360
Vaughan $1,415
Mississauga $1,452
Toronto $1,758

$0 $200 $400 $600 $800 $1,000 $1,200 $1,400 $1,600 $1,800

SourceSee Appendix I for a breakdown of all fees.

Quebec now has two categories of for-profit centres: those that are oper-
ationally funded and maintain set fees and those without a set fee for which
parents receive a tax rebate for up to $35 a day. This tax rebate is unique
among the set fee provinces. The market priced sector in Quebec has been
expanding rapidly, although at present it has fewer spaces than those in
funded centres and home child care. As the operationally funded sites have
more spaces, the median fee for each city is the set fee, however a substantial
portion of Quebec parents face much higher fees than the set fees cited here.
This (2017) fee survey did not survey those higher priced tax-rebate centres.
In sixth place is Winnipeg (MB), where infant care costs $651 a month.
Manitoba also funds child care operationally14 and has set province-wide
fees, although at a higher level than Quebec, reducing fees as the child ages.

Time Out: Child care fees in Canada 2017 10

 Figure 2Median monthly fees for toddlers, 2017

Montreal $168
Quebec City $183
Longueuil $183
Laval $183
Gatineau $183
Winnipeg $451
Charlottetown $608
Regina $635
Saint John $716
Saskatoon $790
Halifax $825
Windsor $879
Edmonton $891
Surrey $920
St. Johns $955
Calgary $1,050
Hamilton $1,052
Kitchener $1,085
Ottawa $1,109
Markham $1,120
London $1,120
Brampton $1,128
Vaughan $1,150
Mississauga $1,200
Burnaby $1,200
Richmond $1,200
Vancouver $1,292
Toronto $1,354

$0 $200 $400 $600 $800 $1,000 $1,200 $1,400

SourceSee Appendix I for a breakdown of all fees.

Full-time toddler fees

Child care spaces for toddlers, who are between about 18 months and three
years by provincial definition, are numerically the second most common.
Fees for this age group are generally between the more expensive infant fees
and the less expensive preschooler fees. In regulated home child care, tod-
dlers are often the largest age category (see Table 2).
As with infants, Toronto is the most expensive city in the country for par-
ents seeking licensed toddler care. The median monthly toddler fee in To-
ronto is $1,354 or $16,248 a year. This is $62 more expensive a month than
second place Vancouver, where parents would pay $1,292 a month for a tod-
dler space. The third most expensive cities are Mississauga (ON), Burnaby
(BC) and Richmond (BC), where median toddler fees are $1,200 a month.
Cities in British Columbia and Ontario dominate the rankings of the most
expensive care for toddlers.

11 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives

 The least expensive city for a toddler is (again) Montreal at $168 a month,
eight times less expensive than Toronto. The Quebec cities of Gatineau,
Laval, Longueuil and Quebec City are all tied for second least expensive at
$183 a month. The next least expensive cities are Winnipeg, where parents
pay $451 a month, and Charlottetown (PE) at $608 a month. As with infant
fees, the lowest toddler fees are in the cities that operationally fund child
care and set fees provincially. Quebecs operational funding is by far the
most generous; not surprisingly, Quebec parent fees are the lowest by far.
In some cities, infant fees are lower than toddler fees. This is due to a
larger proportion of infant spaces being provided by less expensive home
care, thereby driving down the infant median, which is almost always high-
er than the toddler median due to higher staff-to-child ratios.
In Ottawa, for instance, 64% of infant spaces are provided in home child
care, creating a lower median fee for infants than for toddlers. In contrast, in
Toronto only 35% of infant spaces are in home child care; as such, the medi-
an infant fee is higher than for a toddler. This fee inversion due to home care
is seen in Ottawa and Brampton; Richmond and Hamilton are approaching
an inversion of infant fees being less than toddler fees.

Full-time preschooler fees

Because preschooler spaces are by far the most numerous, fees for pre-
school-age child care represent what the bulk of parents actually pay for
child care. Thus, we provide an extended analysis of these fees and their
changes over time below.
Generally, preschoolers are between the age of 2.5 and whenever they
start attending kindergarten (which in most provinces is in September of
the year they turn five, but four in Ontario and some other provinces/ter-
ritories). Just as for other age groups, this report only includes the fees for
full-time preschool spaces.
Child care spaces for preschoolers are predominantly in centre-based
care rather than home child care; between 60% and 70% of centre spaces
are designated for preschoolers. In regulated home child care, 20% to 45%
of spaces were used by preschoolers, although the fees in home child care
for preschool spaces are lower than in centres (see Table 1 for a city break-
down). Fee for preschool spaces are almost always lower than the other
age groups, due to the lower required number of child care staff per child.

Time Out: Child care fees in Canada 2017 12

 Figure 3Median monthly fees for preschoolers, 2017

Montreal $168
Quebec City $183
Longueuil $183
Laval $183
Gatineau $183
Winnipeg $451
Regina $575
Charlottetown $586
Saint John $694
Saskatoon $710
Windsor $781
Surrey $800
Halifax $823
Burnaby $840
St. Johns $868
Edmonton $885
Hamilton $931
Vancouver $950
Kitchener $975
Richmond $980
Calgary $1,000
Ottawa $1,009
London $1,010
Markham $1,017
Vaughan $1,031
Brampton $1,050
Mississauga $1,052
Toronto $1,212

$0 $200 $400 $600 $800 $1,000 $1,200 $1,400

SourceSee Appendix I for a breakdown of all fees.

As with the other two age categories, Toronto tops the fee rankings,
with a median preschool space parent fee of $1,212 a month or $14,544 an-
nually. This is $160 more a month than in the second highest city, Missis-
sauga (ON), where a preschool space costs $1,052 a month; Brampton (ON)
has a very similar median fee of $1,050. Following the most expensive cit-
ies (which, as with infant fees, are all in the GTA) are a set of seven cities
closely clustered within $30 of $1,000 a month, including Vaughan, Mark-
ham, London, Ottawa, Kitchener (all ON), Calgary (AB) and Richmond (BC).
Montreal has the lowest fees for preschool spaces at $168 a monthsev-
en times cheaper than those in Toronto. The next four least costly cities are
in Quebec: Gatineau, Laval, Longueuil and Quebec City at $183 a month.
Next is Winnipeg at $451 a month, followed by Regina ($575), without set
fees, which is slightly cheaper than Charlottetown ($586), where the prov-
ince sets fees. The gap between Quebec cities and others is somewhat small-
er than it is for other age groups, as the fees in Quebec dont decline for older
children, as they do most other cities.

13 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives

 Figure 4Change in median preschool fees between 2016 and 2017

St. Johns -2.4%

Burnaby -1.2%

INFLATION
Calgary -0.9%
Kitchener 0%
Charlottetown 0%
Winnipeg 0%
Vancouver 0%
Regina 8.8%
Saint John 1.9%
Ottawa 2.0%
Markham 2.1%
Saskatoon 2.2%
Quebec City 2.4%
Longueuil 2.4%
Laval 2.4%
Gatineau 2.4%
Halifax 2.5%
Vaughan 2.5%
Montreal 2.7%
London 3.4%
Hamilton 3.4%
Windsor 4.4%
Toronto 5.4%
Mississauga 6.6%
Surrey 6.7%
Edmonton -1%
7.3%
Brampton 10.0%
Richmond -1% 12.0%
-4% -2% 0% 2% 4% 6% 8% 10% 12% 14%

SourceCansim 326-0020 July 2016 through July 2017, A Growing Concern (2016), see Appendix I for a breakdown of all fees and authors calculations.

Since our last survey of child care fees, in the summer of 2016, the rate of
inflation has been 1.2%.15 Of the 28 cities with available data, 20 of them, or
71% of the cities included in this survey, have preschool fees that increased
faster than the rate of inflation over the past year.
Three citiesSt. Johns (NL), Burnaby (BC) and Calgary (AB)have
seen median preschool fees fall slightly since last year, and those fees in
four others remained unchanged: Vancouver (BC), Winnipeg (MB), Kitch-
ener (ON) and Charlottetown (PE). (Note that two of these last cities, Win-
nipeg and Charlottetown, are in provinces with set fees in which govern-
ments havent changed those fees in the last year).
The largest fee increase was in Richmond (BC), where fees leapt up 12%
or $105 a month since last year. This is in part due to individual providers
raising their fees, as well as new providers with higher fees starting to pro-
vide care there. Bramptons increase was similar at 10% or $95 a month. Ed-
monton parents experienced the third largest increase at 7% or $60 a month
for a preschool space.

Time Out: Child care fees in Canada 2017 14

 Figure 5Change in median preschool fees between 2014 and 2017

St. Johns 0%

INFLATION
Charlottetown 0%
Winnipeg 0%
Kitchener 2.8%
Windsor 4.3%
Halifax 5.4%
Ottawa 6.3%
Brampton 7.5%
Mississauga 7.6%
Calgary 8.2%
Vancouver 9.2%
Saskatoon 10.1%
Montreal 10.7%
London 10.8%
Burnaby 11.3%
Hamilton 15.3%
Edmonton 18.6%
Quebec City 20.7%
Longueuil 20.7%
Laval 20.7%
Gatineau 20.7%
Toronto 21.4%

0% 2% 4% 6% 8% 10% 12% 14% 16% 18% 20% 22%

SourceCansim 326-0020 July 2014 through July 2017, A Growing Concern (2016), see Appendix I for a breakdown of all fees and authors calculations.

Fees increasing much faster than the rate of inflation has been a con-
cerning trend over the four years in which we have surveyed fees. Further,
as this is our fourth annual survey, some longer-term conclusions on fee in-
creases are emerging.
As shown in Figure 5, none of the cities included in this analysis have ex-
perienced a decrease in fees since 2014, although Winnipeg (MB), Charlotte-
town (PE) and St. Johns (NL) fees have remained unchanged. It should be
noted that Winnipeg and Charlottetown are located in provinces that sup-
port child care operationally and set fees at rates that havent changed since
2014. In St. Johns, which operates on a market fee system, fees in 2017 are
at the same level as they were in 2014, while in Kitchener (ON) there was a
small increase of 2.8% in median preschool fees since 2014 ($26 a month).
Inflation over this three-year period was 3.7%.16 Of the 22 cities surveyed
in 2017 with data going back to 2014, only the four above experienced fee in-
creases at less than the rate of inflation. The other 18 cities surveyed (82%) re-
ported increases above the rate of inflationin many cases several times so.

15 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives

 Toronto, with the highest preschool fees in the country in 2017, also re-
ports the largest increase in those fees over the past three years21.4%, or
$214 a month, almost six times faster than inflation. Thus, Toronto child
care provision earns several dubious distinctions: Toronto has the highest
child care fees in every age category and it has experienced the fastest rise
in fees since 2014.
Since 2014, the Quebec cities of Gatineau, Laval, Longueuil and Quebec
City have also experienced substantial fee increases of 20.7% (although this
only represents $31 a month). This is primarily driven by policy-related in-
creases17 resulting from the sliding scale introduced in 2015. Edmonton is
not far behind Toronto and cities in Quebec, with an 18.6% increase ($139
a month) since 2014.

Rural child care in Ontario and Alberta

This year, the phone survey was expanded outside Canadas large cities to
examine child care fees in rural areas of Ontario and Alberta. As Canadian
postal codes contain a designator for rural areas (the second digit in the post-
al code is 0), it was possible to identify rural child care facilities and home
agencies. Using that designation, this years survey phoned all centres and
home child care agencies in Ontario located in rural postal code areas and
grouped them by the four postal code letters for Ontario of P (Northern), K
(Eastern), M (Central) and N (Southwestern). A fifth rural area in the east
part of Alberta, made up of the T0A, T0B and T0C postal codes was also
surveyed, including all centres and home child care agencies. See Figure 6
for a map of those rural areas.
One consideration in these rural areas is the prevalence of First Nations
child care, especially in northern Ontario. As child care in First Nations com-
munities often has different funding arrangements, rural child care and First
Nations child care were analyzed separately.
Figure 7 repeats Figure 3 above, but includes the median preschool fees
in the five rural areas discussed as well as among Ontario First Nations.
Surveying all rural child care centres and regulated home child care in On-
tario and in eastern rural Alberta, demonstrates thatcontrary to expecta-
tionsfees are not particularly low but usually in the mid-range compared
to Canadian cities, and comparable to median fees in nearby cities. For ex-
ample, preschool fees in central rural Ontario ($911 a month) are not much
different than those found in the nearby city of Hamilton ($931 a month).

Time Out: Child care fees in Canada 2017 16

 Figure 6Rural areas surveyed by postal code

T0A, T0B, A
V T0C
J
T
S R
G C
P E B

K
H
L
N M
SourceInnovation, Science and Economic Development Canada

Among the five rural areas analyzed, preschool fees were highest in
central rural Ontario at $911 a month; next highest in eastern rural and
northern Ontario, both at $825 a month, followed by eastern rural Alberta
at almost the same level ($822 a month); and lowest in rural southwestern
Ontario at $781 a month (the same level as nearby Windsor (ON), which re-
ported the lowest city parent fees for preschoolers in Ontario). In Alberta,
by contrast, there was a bigger gap between median preschool fees in the

17 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives

 Figure 7Median monthly fees for preschoolers 2017, (including rural areas)

Ontario First Nations $0

Montreal $168
Quebec City $183
Longueuil $183
Laval $183
Gatineau $183
Winnipeg $451
Regina $575
Charlottetown $586
Saint John $694
Saskatoon $710
SW rural Ontario $781
Windsor $781
Surrey $800
East rural Alberta $822
Halifax $823
Northern rural Ontario $825
East rural Ontario $825
Burnaby $840
St. Johns $868
Edmonton $885
Central rural Ontario $911
Hamilton $931
Vancouver $950
Kitchener $975
Richmond $980
Calgary $1,000
Ottawa $1,009
London $1,010
Markham $1,017
Vaughan $1,031
Brampton $1,050
Mississauga $1,052
Toronto $1,212
$0 $200 $400 $600 $800 $1,000 $1,200 $1,400

SourceSee Appendix I for a breakdown of all fees. The Ontario First Nations category is exclusive as First Nations communities were excluded from the Ontario rural areas
where they are located and grouped separately. Figure 7 is identical to Figure 3 but with rural areas and Ontario First Nations included for comparison.

rural area included ($822 a month) and those of Edmonton ($885 a month)
and Calgary ($1,000).

Child care in First Nations communities

First Nationsprovided child care makes up a substantial portion of rural
child care in Ontario, especially in northern Ontario. As they are funded dif-
ferently, rural and First Nations community (on-reserve) child care, were
separated out in the analysis.
On-reserve child care programs in Ontario represent a substantial sector
with almost 1,700 spaces reported in this survey. They are required to follow
provincial licensing requirements and are funded by the Ontario govern-
ment through agreements with 77 First Nations and three transfer payment
agencies. The provincial funding is primarily targeted towards fee subsidies,
children with special needs and other non-operational items. In Alberta,
child care in First Nations communities is not required to follow provincial

Time Out: Child care fees in Canada 2017 18

 requirements, and centres are not provincially funded but may be eligible
for federal government funding equivalent to parent child care subsidies.
In addition, child care in First Nations communities may be funded
through two federal programs: the First Nations and Inuit Child Care Initiative
(FNICCI) and Aboriginal Head Start On Reserve (AHSOR). These operation-
al funds allow First Nations communities to set low fees or charge no fees.
In Ontario First Nations communities, median infant child care fees are
$217 a month, among the lowest infant fees in the country, while median
fees for toddler and preschool care are $0, a unique situation in Canada. In
essence, First Nations communities may represent a fourth examplewith
Quebec, Manitoba and PEIof operationally-funded child care that, with low
fees or no fees, makes child care much more affordable for young families.

Wait lists for child care in Canada

While fees are high in most Canadian cities, wait lists are also a common fea-
ture, as demand for child care outstrips availability in most instances, espe-
cially for infants and toddlers. Another factor that, while beyond the scope
of this project, should be taken into account is the fact that parents may pre-
fer some centres over others simply because they have a better reputation
for quality, or a more attractive facility, or are in a more convenient location.
Calculating the length of child care waiting lists would likely yield un-
representative results because parents often put children on waiting lists
at several centres, thereby exaggerating the wait list length of any one cen-
tre. Also, some communities have developed centralized waiting lists. Thus,
the approach taken here was merely to ask whether a centre maintains an
internal waiting list (as a gauge of demand); the length of that waiting list
was not recorded.
It is clear that waiting lists are the norm for centres in almost all Can-
adian cities. In St. Johns (NL) and Saint John (NB), less than half the cen-
tres report maintaining a wait list. The City of Ottawa maintains a central-
ized waiting list or registry making it unnecessary for each centre to keep
its own, although 37% of centres reported maintaining an internal waiting
list. In last years survey, 96% of centres in Ottawa had a waiting list, in-
cluding those who were part of the centralized registry.18
In many of the large cities in Ontario, British Columbia and Saskatch-
ewan, 80% or more of centres maintain a wait list. The one province that
stands out is Alberta, where both Edmonton and Calgary (which have pri-

19 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives

 Figure 8Centres maintaining an internal waiting list, 2017

Ottawa 37%

St. Johns 43%

Saint John 47%

Markham 55%

Vaughan 62%

Calgary 63%

Edmonton 66%

Hamilton 69%

Richmond 78%

Surrey 78%

Halifax 79%

Burnaby 84%

Mississauga 85%

Windsor 87%

Brampton 89%

Regina 93%

Saskatoon 94%

Toronto 95%

Vancouver 95%

London 95%

Kitchener 100%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

SourceOttawa maintains a central waiting list which is not included in its low figure above which only includes centre who maintain their own internal waiting lists.

marily for-profit full-day centres) have notably fewer centres maintaining

a wait list, 66% and 63% respectively. In the case of Edmonton, this is up
from the 49% of centres that maintained such a list in 2016.19
In Kitchener, 90% of centres maintained a wait list in 2016 compared
to 100% this year. London, Vancouver and Saskatoon have similar propor-
tions as the previous year. And in Toronto, 95% of centres reported having
a waiting list in 2017 compared to 89% last year.
In addition, parents are sometimes asked to pay a fee to place their child
on a centres wait list. This practice was banned by the Ontario government
in September 2016 (just after our 2016 survey was conducted) which, based
on this years survey results, has greatly reduced the number of Ontario
centres charging a wait list fee, but hasnt entirely eliminated them. For
example, in Brampton, 9% of centres charged a wait list fee in 2017 while
the GTA cities of Toronto, Vaughan and Mississauga also have a small pro-
portion of centres still charging wait list fees. It should be noted that wait
list fees were most prevalent in the GTA prior to their prohibition last year.

Time Out: Child care fees in Canada 2017 20

 Figure 9Centres charging a wait list fee, 2017

St. Johns 0%

Saint John 0%

Ottawa 0%

Markham 0%

Hamilton 0%

Kitchener 0%

London 0%

Windsor 0%

Regina 0%

Saskatoon 0%

Surrey 1%

Burnaby 2%

Edmonton 3%

Toronto 3%

Vaughan 3%

Mississauga 4%

Halifax 6%

Brampton 9%

Richmond 13%

Vancouver 18%

Calgary 29%

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30%

Wait list fees are now most prevalent in Calgary, where 29% of centres
report charging parents for putting them on the list. Vancouver, where this
practice was much more prevalent last year, has seen a sharp decline in the
use of fees, falling from 42% of centres in 2016 to only 18% in 2017.20 A sim-
ilar fall is evident in neighbouring Richmond compared to 2016, when 29%
of centres charged a wait list fee. Interestingly, this decline experienced in
British Columbias cities does not have a basis in a policy change, as was
the case in Ontario.

21 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives

Conclusion

Three conclusions can be drawn from examining the data in this sur-
vey, as well as the data collected since 2014.
First, policy matters. Across Canada, child care fees are easily predicted
based on whether the province funds licensed child care operationally, or
whether fees and operational support are left to the market. The three prov-
inces that set lower parent fees are able to do this because they fund servi-
ces directly by providing base or operational funding. As a result, they have
the lowest fees in every age category.
Quebec, which provides the most operational funding by far (to all non-
profit and some for-profit child care) has the lowest fees by far. This remains
the case even though set fees rose by a substantial percentage when the
provincial government introduced geared-to-income fees in addition to the
basic flat fees. Nevertheless, the 2017 survey continues to show what was
evident in each of the three preceding surveys: across Canada, fees in cit-
ies with market-based child care fees are higher. By contrast, fees are low-
er in cities that set parent fees.
Second, conducting this survey on an annual basis addresses one of the
many well-recognized data gaps that are part of the Canadian child care
mosaic. It also underscores why a fuller approach to data and research in
this area is so badly needed to address questions and issues that can only
be hinted at here due to data limitations.
For example, what do the waiting list data collected say about parents
search for a regulated space? What are the characteristics of families using

Time Out: Child care fees in Canada 2017 22

 the regulated child care we surveyedand who isnt included? What is the
interplay between the provincial/territorial subsidy systems and the child
care fees reported here? How are the workforce issues endemic to Canadian
child care (such as low wages) linked to affordability? Given these questions,
the federal government commitment to developing a data strategy and put-
ting aside funds for this purpose in the 2017 federal budget is encouraging.
Third, the 2017 data support what parents, previous versions of this sur-
vey, and other research indicate: without doubt, child care fees in much of
Canada are too expensive for many, if not most familieslow- and mid-
dle-income alike. In 2017, affordable, high-quality early learning and child
care continues to be a possibility only for a lucky few Canadian families.
Further, where Canadians live is a determining factor in whether they will
be able to access affordable child care services within a highly inequitable
child care reality.
It is encouraging that affordability has now been formally identified
as a principle that will shape child care policy across Canada. As several
provinces are now beginning to explore how to put this in place, the next
versions of this survey will be able to play a role in determining if and how
the principle of child care affordability for families is being achieved.

23 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives

 Appendix I: Data Tables
Table 1Detailed median full-time fees by city for centres and homes, 2017

City Name Province All Monthly Fee (median) Centre Monthly Fee (median) Home Monthly Fee (median)
Infant Toddler Preschool Infant Toddler Preschool Infant Toddler Preschool
Brampton Ontario $955 $1,128 $1,050 $1,454 $1,135 $1,050 $955 $792 $792
Burnaby British Columbia $1,250 $1,200 $840 $1,250 $1,242 $840 $1,025 $1,000 $800
Calgary Alberta $1,250 $1,050 $1,000 $1,380 $1,185 $1,030 $880 $845 $720
Charlottetown Prince Edward Island $738 $608 $586
Edmonton Alberta $990 $891 $885 $1,036 $935 $890 $810 $760 $810
Gatineau Quebec $183 $183 $183
Halifax Nova Scotia $910 $825 $823 $910 $829 $823 $760 $760 $760
Hamilton Ontario $1,062 $1,052 $931 $1,367 $1,107 $971 $1,062 $977 $882
Kitchener Ontario $1,325 $1,085 $975 $1,460 $1,085 $956 $977 $977 $977
Laval Quebec $183 $183 $183
London Ontario $1,217 $1,120 $1,010 $1,225 $1,134 $1,010 $933 $933 $868
Longueuil Quebec $183 $183 $183
Markham Ontario $1,150 $1,120 $1,017 $1,432 $1,128 $1,017 $1,085 $1,085 $814
Mississauga Ontario $1,452 $1,200 $1,052 $1,506 $1,220 $1,052 $911 $911 $651
Montreal Quebec $168 $168 $168
Ottawa Ontario $998 $1,109 $1,009 $1,623 $1,259 $1,030 $928 $928 $928
Quebec City Quebec $183 $183 $183
Regina Saskatchewan $875 $635 $575 $875 $635 $570 $755 $650 $600
Richmond British Columbia $1,200 $1,200 $980 $1,350 $1,300 $980 $1,000 $900 $875
Saint John New Brunswick $868 $716 $694 $868 $716 $694 $760 $651 $651
Saskatoon Saskatchewan $900 $790 $710 $945 $790 $710 $863 $762 $700
St. John`s Newfoundland and Labrador $1,085 $955 $868 $1,107 $955 $868 $1,085 $868 $868
Surrey British Columbia $1,050 $920 $800 $1,100 $1,000 $810 $850 $822 $800
Toronto Ontario $1,758 $1,354 $1,212 $1,904 $1,471 $1,215 $1,020 $864 $864
Vancouver British Columbia $1,360 $1,292 $950 $1,360 $1,347 $950 $1,300 $1,200 $1,000
Vaughan Ontario $1,415 $1,150 $1,031 $1,450 $1,160 $1,042 $1,063 $1,063 $911
Windsor Ontario $998 $879 $781 $998 $879 $781 $906 $906 $808
Winnipeg Manitoba $651 $451 $451 $651 $451 $451 $482 $395 $395

East rural Ontario Ontario $927 $868 $825 $1,104 $873 $825 $651 $651 $618
Central rural Ontario Ontario $1,085 $1,020 $911 $1,085 $1,020 $911 $1,085 $998 $890
SW rural Ontario Ontario $939 $846 $781 $911 $825 $781 $977 $977 $977
Northern rural Ontario Ontario $868 $825 $825 $911 $868 $825 $868 $781 $781
East rural Alberta Alberta $825 $800 $822 $900 $816 $822 $768 $738 $825
Ontario First Nations Ontario $217 $0 $0 $217 $0 $0 $977 $977 $977

Time Out: Child care fees in Canada 2017 24

 Table 2 examines the distribution of spaces in centres and homes for each
city. For instance, in Brampton the survey found that 50% of home spaces
are for infants and 27% are for toddlers. Similarly, in Brampton, 64% of cen-
tre spaces are for preschoolers but only 7% are for infants.

Table 2Distribution of spaces in centres and licensed home care by city, 2017

City Name Province Center Space Distribution Home Space Distribution

Infant Toddler Preschool Infant Toddler Preschool
Brampton Ontario 7% 29% 64% 50% 27% 23%
Burnaby British Columbia 12% 31% 57% 13% 41% 46%
Calgary Alberta 11% 23% 66% 22% 53% 25%
Edmonton Alberta 11% 31% 57% 21% 52% 27%
Halifax Nova Scotia 12% 32% 56% 25% 50% 25%
Hamilton Ontario 6% 28% 66% 25% 34% 41%
Kitchener Ontario 7% 29% 64% 25% 50% 25%
London Ontario 11% 27% 62% 17% 52% 30%
Markham Ontario 5% 24% 71% 25% 50% 25%
Mississauga Ontario 5% 29% 66% 25% 50% 25%
Ottawa Ontario 6% 27% 67% 26% 49% 25%
Regina Saskatchewan 8% 27% 65% 18% 37% 45%
Richmond British Columbia 6% 18% 76% 18% 39% 43%
Saint John New Brunswick 16% 26% 57% 25% 50% 25%
Saskatoon Saskatchewan 10% 24% 66% 15% 33% 52%
St. John`s Newfoundland and Labrador 2% 28% 70% 40% 40% 20%
Surrey British Columbia 12% 18% 70% 13% 33% 54%
Toronto Ontario 9% 25% 66% 25% 49% 26%
Vancouver British Columbia 8% 15% 77% 18% 36% 46%
Vaughan Ontario 8% 26% 67% 24% 52% 24%
Windsor Ontario 11% 27% 62% 25% 50% 25%

East rural Ontario Ontario 8% 34% 58% 33% 46% 21%

Central rural Ontario Ontario 12% 27% 61% 33% 33% 33%
SW rural Ontario Ontario 10% 28% 62% 33% 50% 17%
Northern rural Ontario Ontario 9% 30% 61% 36% 46% 18%
East rural Alberta Alberta 11% 27% 62% 22% 39% 40%
Ontario First Nations Ontario 11% 27% 61% 33% 50% 17%

25 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives

Appendix II:
Methodology

In most cities, all centres and homes agencies (or individual homes in
BC) were called. At least three calls were made to all centres or agencies.
In some cases, more calls were made to push up response rates. Any sites
that did not offer full-time care were excluded. Total response rates are in-
cluded in Table 3 below.
In some cities, random samples of either centres and/or homes were
taken. Medians from those samples should be considered accurate to with-
in +/- 10%, nine times out of 10. While in set-fee provinces (Quebec, Mani-
toba and PEI) private operators need not necessarily charge the set-fee (al-
though they then forgo operational support), the median space is in the set
fee system and as such, those cities are not surveyed, as the median is known.
The median calculated is for the median space, not the median centre
or home agency. If one centre has more spaces, then its fee will have a lar-
ger impact on the median than a centre with fewer spaces. The aggregate
median for a city includes the spaces in both centres and licensed homes
combined. This can have an impact particularly on the median infant fee if
a city has a large number of homes providing infant care, something that is
less common among centres. The centre and home fees are separated out
in Table 1 above.
Daily fees were converted to monthly values by multiplying by 21.7.

Time Out: Child care fees in Canada 2017 26

 In some provinces, the number of licensed spaces is rigidly set for each
age group, as is the case for Ontario centres. However, in other settings
the number of spaces per age group is not prescribed but instead can vary
within a set of rules of maximum capacity, as is the case, for instance, with
home child care in Ontario. Where licensed capacity is rigidly set, that is
the number spaces for each age group used. In settings where there isnt a
set licensed capacity by age group, the operational capacity on the day the
survey is taken is the space count used for that age group. In the case of
home care agencies where providers are not directly surveyed, the agency is
asked to provide the typical distribution of spaces for the homes it organizes.
In some cases, two age groups may have the same fee. If that is the case,
the fees are recorded as such.

27 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives

 Table 3Survey methodology and coverage rates by city, 2017

% of licensed
City Name Province spaces surveyed Survey Methodology
Vancouver British Columbia A random sample of centre spaces and all home care providers were called

Richmond British Columbia A random sample of centre spaces and all home care providers were called

Burnaby British Columbia 62% All centers and home care providers were called

Surrey British Columbia 61% All centers and home care providers were called

Calgary Alberta A random sample of centre spaces and all home care agencies were called

Edmonton Alberta A random sample of centre spaces and all home care agencies were called

Saskatoon Saskatchewan 71% All centers and home care providers were called. The precise number of
spaces is unknown, survey rate is the proportion of centres contacted.
Regina Saskatchewan 61% All centers and home care providers were called. The precise number of
spaces is unknown, survey rate is the proportion of centres contacted.
Winnipeg Manitoba Fixed fees centres (<2 yrs:$30/day, 2yrs -5 yrs:$20.80/day)

Windsor Ontario 65% All centers and home care agencies were called

London Ontario 78% All centers and home care agencies were called

Kitchener Ontario 75% All centers and home care agencies were called

Hamilton Ontario 75% All centers and home care agencies were called

Brampton Ontario 81% All centers and home care agencies were called

Mississauga Ontario A random sample of centre spaces and all home care agencies were called

Vaughan Ontario 60% All centers and home care agencies were called

Toronto Ontario Centres were randomly sampled and all home care agencies called

Markham Ontario 58% All centers and home care agencies were called

Ottawa Ontario Centres were randomly sampled and all home care agencies called

Gatineau Quebec Fixed fees ($7.75/day) + adjustment for income

Laval Quebec Fixed fees ($7.75/day) + adjustment for income

Montreal Quebec Fixed fees ($7.75/day) + adjustment for income

Longueuil Quebec Fixed fees ($7.75/day) + adjustment for income

Quebec City Quebec Fixed fees ($7.75/day) + adjustment for income

Saint John New Brunswick 62% All centers and home care agencies were called

Halifax Nova Scotia 60% All centers and home care agencies were called

Charlottetown Prince Edward Island Fixed fees (<2 yrs:$34/day, 2yrs:$28/day, 3yrs-4yrs:$27/day)

St. Johns Newfoundland and Labrador 62% All centers and home care agencies were called

East rural Ontario Ontario 76% All centers and home care agencies were called

Central rural Ontario Ontario 72% All centers and home care agencies were called

SW rural Ontario Ontario 69% All centers and home care agencies were called

Northern rural Ontario Ontario 71% All centers and home care agencies were called

East rural Alberta Alberta 80% All centers and home care agencies were called

Ontario First Nations Ontario 60% All centers and home care agencies were called

Time Out: Child care fees in Canada 2017 28

 Notes

1Child Care, Liberal Party of Canada 2016 Election Platform (https://www.liberal.ca/realchange/

child-care/) (Accessed on November 23rd, 2017)

2https://www.canada.ca/en/employment-social-development/programs/early-learning-child-
care/reports/2017-multilateral-framework.html

3Cleveland, Krashinsky, Colley and Avery-Nunez, City of Toronto Licensed Child Care Demand
and Affordability Study, City of Toronto, October 2016 (https://www1.toronto.ca/City%20Of%20
Toronto/Childrens%20Services/Files/pdf/T/Toronto%20Demand%20&%20Affordability%20
Study%202016.pdf Accessed November 23rd, 2017).

4Manitoba Child Care Association, Poll Shows Huge Public Support for Child Care in Mani-
toba October 25, 2016 (http://mccahouse.org/mb-research-child-care-confirms-huge-support-
copy/ Accessed November 23rd, 2017)

5Macdonald and Friendly, A Growing Concern: 2016 Child Care Fees in Canadas Big Cities,
December 2016, Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.

6David Macdonald and Martha Friendly, The Parent Trap: Child Care Fees in Canadas Big Cit-
ies, November 2014, Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.

7David Macdonald and Thea Klinger, They Go Up So Fast: 2015 Child Care Fees in Canadian
Cities, December 2015, Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.

8David Macdonald and Martha Friendly, A Growing Concern: 2016 Child Care Fees in Canadas
Big Cities, December 2016, Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.

9This is in part because the difficulties of surveying what are largely unidentified private oper-
ations are beyond the scope of this project.

10See Friendly, Grady, Macdonald, and Forer, 2014,Early Childhood Education and Care in
Canada 2014, Childcare Resource and Research Unit, for definitions of age groups and staff to
child ratios in each province/territory.

29 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives

11See the Quebec government fee calculator at http://www.budget.finances.gouv.qc.ca/budget/
outils/garde-net-en.asp, The additional contribution is reduced by 50% for a 2nd child and there
is none for 3rd and subsequent children.

12Statistics Canada, Custom tabulation from Census 2016, adjusted for inflation using cansim
326-0021.

13Ibid.

14Note that Manitoba and Prince Edward Island both use a combination of operational funding
(unit funding) and a fee subsidy to pay the fee on behalf of lower income families.

15See Cansim 326-0020 All-Items CPI July 2016 to July 2017 the midpoints of when the child care
surveys were conducted.

16See Cansim 326-0020 All-Items CPI July 2014 to July 2017 the midpoints of when the child
care surveys were conducted.

17Regulated child care in Quebec falls under two systems: the first, which includes non-prof-
it centres de la petite enfance and some for-profit garderies, is substantially operationally-fund-
ed and has set fees as described; the second (a newer, faster-growing sector) is made up of non-
operationally-funded garderies that do not have set fees, for which parents receive a substantial
rebate from the provincial government. It was not possible to separate these for this survey.

18David Macdonald and Martha Friendly, A Growing Concern: 2016 Child Care Fees in Canadas
Big Cities, December 2016, Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, figure 6.

19Ibid

20David Macdonald and Martha Friendly, A Growing Concern: 2016 Child Care Fees in Canadas
Big Cities, December 2016, Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, figure 7.

Time Out: Child care fees in Canada 2017 30