Question 1

How much does it cost to raise a child to 18 in Australia?

Accepted Answer

It depends heavily on income, schooling and where you live. A middle-income couple ($120k joint) raising one kid through public school sees a net cost of about $250,000-$280,000 over 18 years after Child Care Subsidy and Family Tax Benefit. Two kids in private school on a $200k income can exceed $1 million, mostly schooling fees. A single parent on $60k receives enough Centrelink support that the marginal net cost of one kid is under $30,000 over 18 years. This forecast personalises the figure to your family's situation.

Question 2

What does this forecast include?

Accepted Answer

Year by year from birth (year 0) to age 18, it sums base raising costs (food, clothes, transport, health), childcare for ages 0-4, schooling fees for ages 5-17 — and subtracts Child Care Subsidy, Family Tax Benefit Part A and B (with end-of-year supplements), Paid Parental Leave in birth years, and Parenting Payment if eligible. The output is a year-by-year net family cost plus the cumulative net cost by 18.

Question 3

What schooling cost does it use?

Accepted Answer

Public school: $1,500/year (uniforms, levies, excursions, devices — based on ASG and Futurity surveys). Catholic systemic: $7,500/year (median fees + extras). Private/independent: $22,000/year (national median across independent schools — top-tier capital-city schools can be $40k+, regional independents can be $15k).

Question 4

Is the cost adjusted for inflation?

Accepted Answer

No — figures are held flat in today's (2025-26) dollars across the 18-year horizon. Government rates, school fees and base costs all rise with inflation in real life, so the cumulative figure is best read as 'what this would cost in today's prices if it all happened today'. Adding CPI escalation would inflate the headline but obscure the comparison between scenarios — keeping the dollar real makes side-by-side comparisons honest.

Question 5

Why does my single-parent net cost look so low?

Accepted Answer

On a single-parent income under $80k, the combination of full FTB Part B, Part A, 90% Child Care Subsidy and Parenting Payment Single in the early years can offset most of the marginal cost of raising one kid. That doesn't mean single parents don't experience financial stress — it means the narrow accounting (cost of the kid minus government support directly attributable to that kid) is small. Cost of housing, transport and your own living expenses sit outside this forecast.

yr	ages	base	childcare	school	CCS	FTB	PPL+PP	net
0	0	$12,100	—	—	—	−$3,243	−$21,979	-$13,122
1	1	$12,100	$29,000	—	−$23,506	−$3,243	—	$14,351
2	2	$12,100	$29,000	—	−$23,506	−$3,243	—	$14,351
3	3	$12,100	$29,000	—	−$23,506	−$3,243	—	$14,351
4	4	$12,100	$29,000	—	−$23,506	−$3,243	—	$14,351
5	5	$13,750	—	$1,500	—	−$3,243	—	$12,007
6	6	$13,750	—	$1,500	—	−$3,243	—	$12,007
7	7	$13,750	—	$1,500	—	−$3,243	—	$12,007
8	8	$13,750	—	$1,500	—	−$3,243	—	$12,007
9	9	$13,750	—	$1,500	—	−$3,243	—	$12,007
10	10	$13,750	—	$1,500	—	−$3,243	—	$12,007
11	11	$13,750	—	$1,500	—	−$3,243	—	$12,007
12	12	$13,750	—	$1,500	—	−$3,243	—	$12,007
13	13	$18,700	—	$1,500	—	−$3,243	—	$16,957
14	14	$18,700	—	$1,500	—	−$3,243	—	$16,957
15	15	$18,700	—	$1,500	—	−$3,243	—	$16,957
16	16	$18,700	—	$1,500	—	−$3,243	—	$16,957
17	17	$18,700	—	$1,500	—	−$3,243	—	$16,957
18	—	$0	—	—	—	—	—	$0
cumulative		$264,000	$116,000	$19,500	−$94,024	−$58,374	−$21,979	$225,123

cost of a child — 18-year forecast

your family situation

peak strain years

net cost by year

year-by-year breakdown

how this forecast is built

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