Nursery, childminder or nanny?

For most families the sum comes down to funded hours first, and the type of care second. Coram's Childcare Survey 2026 puts 25 hours a week of nursery for an under-2 at £188.75 in England, with no funded hours. A childminder averages £155.28. A nanny costs far more, at £17.56 an hour gross before employer costs, on Nannytax's 2026 figures.

These are averages, read on 3 November 2026. Yours may be a long way off.

What each one is

A nursery looks after children on its own premises. A childminder, in Coram's words, is a registered child carer working with children for more than two hours a day in domestic premises, usually their own home. A nanny works in your home, and you're their employer.

We can't tell you which is best for your child. Visit, ask questions, and trust what you see.

What the prices look like

Coram's weekly averages for 25 hours, with no funded hours taken off:

Scotland is the odd one out. Coram says it's the only nation where a childminder costs more than a nursery.

London runs higher. Inner London averages £238.01 at a nursery and £226.39 with a childminder for 25 hours for an under-2, and the North East's childminder average is £122.65.

Coram doesn't cover Northern Ireland, because the funding system there is too different to compare directly. We have no childcare price for it. Nannies aren't in Coram's data anywhere, since councils don't hold it.

Nannies

Nannytax's guide says the average nanny's gross pay is £17.56 an hour across the UK, or £45,656 a year on 50 hours a week. Inner London is £21.63 an hour, Scotland £16.52, Wales £16.46 and Northern Ireland £14.00. Nannytax sells nanny payroll, so bear in mind who's publishing this.

Gross pay isn't the whole bill. Nannytax lists employer's National Insurance, pension contributions, employer's liability insurance and statutory entitlement costs on top. We have no figure for those.

Funded hours, nation by nation

This is where the real difference lies, and the rules aren't the same across the UK.

England. Free Childcare for Working Parents gives 30 hours a week for 38 weeks a year, from 9 months to 4 years old, says GOV.UK. Each parent must expect to earn at least £2,643.68 over the next 3 months if they're 21 or over, and neither can have adjusted net income over £100,000. Two-year-olds can also get 15 hours if you get extra support, such as Universal Credit with a household income of £15,400 or less after tax, or if your child has an education, health and care plan, says GOV.UK.

Scotland. There are no funded hours for under-2s, says Coram. Some 2-year-olds qualify through certain benefits or experience of care, and your council may offer more, according to mygov.scot. If you work and get Universal Credit, the limit is monthly household take-home pay of £885. From age 3, it's up to 1,140 hours a year, about 30 a week in term time or 22 all year.

Wales. Also no funded hours for under-2s, says Coram. Flying Start pays for 12.5 hours a week for 2-year-olds in eligible areas, and the Welsh Government says it's gradually expanding that. Coram says this halves the 25-hour price to £83.01 at a nursery or £69.01 with a childminder. The Childcare Offer starts at age 3 to 4.

Northern Ireland. The Childcare Subsidy Scheme takes 15% off the bill for eligible working parents, based on Tax-Free Childcare eligibility, and continues for 2026-27. Providers choose whether to offer it, and you can use Tax-Free Childcare on the rest. Funded pre-school places are for the year before primary school, per nidirect, which falls at about age 3 to 4.

The catch in England

"Free" has limits. Those hours run in term time, and Coram's prices for eligible families don't include holidays. So a 25-hour place may cost nothing for 38 weeks. For a 50-week year, the other 12 weeks at £188.75 come to £2,265, by our sum. That's a rough figure, because Coram gives no holiday price.

Some providers will spread the hours out. Coram says a stretched 30-hour entitlement commonly gives 22 funded hours a week across the year.

A full-time place is different again. Coram's average for 50 hours a week at an English nursery, paying for 20 after funded hours, is £148.82 for an under-2 in term time. Childminders are £122.32.

Providers may ask for extras too. GOV.UK lists meals, nappies, extra hours and trips, and says your provider should agree an alternative if you decline. You can still get the free hours if you don't pay. Our nappy count and costs may help if you end up bringing your own.

Other help with the bills

• Tax-Free Childcare: for every £8 you pay in, the government adds £2, up to £2,000 a child a year (£4,000 if your child is disabled). It covers registered childminders, nurseries and nannies, says GOV.UK
• Universal Credit: it can pay back up to 85% of childcare costs, capped at £1,071.09 a month for one child, or £1,836.16 for 2 or more. You can't claim it alongside Tax-Free Childcare

A nanny only counts for Tax-Free Childcare if they're registered, so check before you budget on it.

Questions worth asking

Availability can decide this for you. Only 58% of the councils in England that answered told Coram they had enough places for at least 75% of under-2s without funded hours, against 75% for those with them. Start looking early, if you can.

Ask any provider about fees in the holidays, sick days, deposits and what's included. Ask how babies nap too. The NHS advice for every sleep is on the back, on a firm, flat mattress, in a clear cot, and in the same room as you for at least the first 6 months at home. A good carer will be happy to talk it through. Anything about your child's health or development is one for your doctor or health visitor.

Grandparents and friends count as well, and they're a full choice. Coram doesn't price informal care, and the funded schemes above generally need registered providers.

To see childcare next to everything else, add it to the three-year cost calculator, or start with what the first year really costs.