Design your kid. Then see the bill.

How we estimate it

Everyday life is food, clothes, a share of the home, health and transport for 18 years, for a middle-income family, from each country's published cost-of-a-child studies with childcare and school fees taken out (we add those back from your choices). "Tight budget" and "Comfortable" scale it down or up.

Childcare covers ages 0 to 3. School covers 13 years of fees. Activities use typical local prices for one weekly class, for the years kids usually stick with them. Travel is the child's share of family trips. Government help takes off the child benefits and tax breaks a middle-income family can count on (you can switch it off), such as the US Child Tax Credit or UK Child Benefit. Everything is in today's money with no inflation, so treat it as a comparison tool, not a savings plan.

Sources

• United States: LendingTree (2025), average cost to raise a child to 18 of about $297,700; Child Care Aware of America, childcare prices; College Board, Trends in College Pricing.
• United Kingdom: Child Poverty Action Group, The Cost of a Child (2025); Coram Family and Childcare survey; Independent Schools Council census.
• United Arab Emirates: KHDA and Edarabia school fee data; published estimates of about Dh1.1 million to raise a child to 18 in Dubai.
• Brazil: IBGE household budget survey (POF); Safra, O Especialista, about R$441,000 to 18 on average.
• Spain: Save the Children, El coste de la crianza (2024), €758 a month per child.
• Türkiye: our own rough estimate from household spending and 2025 private school and course fees. Prices there move fast with inflation.

Questions parents ask

How much does it cost to raise a child?

In the US, recent estimates put it at about $300,000 to age 18, before college (LendingTree, 2025). In the UK, about £250,000 for a couple including childcare and rent (Child Poverty Action Group, 2025). In Spain, about €758 a month (Save the Children, 2024). School fees, childcare and activities make the biggest difference between families.

Do governments help with the cost of a child?

Most do, but by very different amounts. The US gives a Child Tax Credit of up to $2,200 a year, the UK pays Child Benefit of about £1,350 a year, Germany pays €255 a month and Switzerland at least CHF 215 a month per child, with a birth bonus in some cantons. Expat families in the UAE usually get nothing from the state.

What is the biggest cost?

Everyday life (food, housing, clothes, transport) is the largest part for most families. After that it is childcare in the first years and, if you choose it, private or international school, which can double the total.

How accurate is this calculator?

It is a ballpark in today's money for a middle-income family, with no inflation. Real costs vary a lot by city and by family. Use it to compare choices, not to plan your savings to the cent.

How many activities should a child do?

One or two they genuinely enjoy is plenty for most kids, with lots of free, unstructured play. Paediatricians advise against specialising in a single sport before the teens because it raises injury and burnout risk.