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MARKET INTELLIGENCE / OBSERVED HISTORY

Australian Capital Territory childcare market history

See how reported childcare service numbers and average fees have changed over time. Choose a market or search a suburb to find its wider region.

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ACT

Centre-based day care services

189What does this count include?

What is counted?

Government-approved services that reported at least one session of subsidised care during January–March 2026.

Can I see the service names?

This government release publishes an area total, not the individual service names or IDs. We do not have a verified list of the 189 services behind this figure. A directory of services today would not establish which services were counted in this historical quarter.

Check the original government workbook ↗

ACT · January–March 2026

Services reporting care during the quarter. Individual service names are not supplied in this release.

Change in service count

+24

165 services in July–September 2018, compared with 189 in January–March 2026. 14.5% more. This does not identify individual openings or closures.

Average centre-based day care fee

$16.35 per hour

Per child, before the government Child Care Subsidy is deducted. This is the hourly fee, not a daily fee or the amount a family pays after subsidy.

Published Department centre-based day care average.

39.7% higher than July–September 2019. Prices are not adjusted for inflation; the services in the sample can change.

How service numbers changed across ACT

Services reporting care

Each bar is the number of services reporting care in that quarter. Scroll sideways to see all quarters. A missing bar means no published figure, not zero services. These counts do not measure available childcare places.

Quarterly figures and original sources

June 2020 is missing because of temporary COVID-19 relief arrangements.

ACT. Service counts and fees cover centre-based day care. Fees are per hour before subsidy.
QuarterServicesHourly feeServices in fee sampleEvidence
2018-Q3165UnavailableUnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2018-Q4169UnavailableUnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2019-Q1166UnavailableUnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2019-Q2169UnavailableUnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2019-Q3169$11.70UnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2019-Q4171$11.70UnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2020-Q1174$11.75UnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2020-Q3176$11.90UnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2020-Q4176$11.85UnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2021-Q1179$11.95UnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2021-Q2184$12.10UnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2021-Q3184$12.30UnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2021-Q4185$12.35UnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2022-Q1185$12.55UnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2022-Q2185$12.70UnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2022-Q3188$13.05UnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2022-Q4185$13.10UnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2023-Q1193$13.40UnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2023-Q2190$13.50UnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2023-Q3189$14.25UnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2023-Q4189$14.35UnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2024-Q1193$14.60UnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2024-Q2195$14.70UnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2024-Q3193$15.25UnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2024-Q4193$15.30UnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2025-Q1196$15.55UnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2025-Q2198$15.70UnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2025-Q3190$16.05UnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2025-Q4188$16.10UnavailableOriginal workbook ↗
2026-Q1189$16.35UnavailableOriginal workbook ↗

Understanding the Australian Capital Territory childcare market

How many childcare services are reported in Australian Capital Territory?

The Department of Education reported 189 centre-based day care services in January–March 2026. These services reported at least one subsidised session of care during the quarter. This collection covers services participating in Child Care Subsidy, not every preschool or approved service.

Check the Department of Education source ↗

What is the average childcare fee in Australian Capital Territory?

The published centre-based day care average is $16.35 per child per hour in January–March 2026, before Child Care Subsidy. The source does not supply a fee sample count here. This is an average across the source population, not a quote for a particular centre or a daily rate.

Check the Department of Education source ↗

Has the number of services changed?

The published count increased by 24 between July–September 2018 and January–March 2026. This compares reporting service totals. It does not identify individual openings or closures, or tell us how many childcare places were added. Fees and service counts may cover different sets of services.

Check the Department of Education source ↗

Does this tell me whether a particular site is viable?

Regional history helps frame a decision, but a site assessment needs an exact address and a defined catchment. Use a detailed report to investigate nearby competitors, child-age population, available local fees and development evidence. Confirm occupancy, staffing, planning and financial assumptions separately.

Prepared by Child Care Demand for operators, developers and childcare buyers. Read the methodology and coverage. Contact support@childcaredemand.com with a source correction.

THE NEXT STEP / CHILD CARE DEMAND

Before you commit to a site, see the whole catchment.

You’ve explored ACT. Now assess an exact address: the families around it, the services competing for them and the developments that could change the picture.

Child Care Demand brings that evidence into one report for operators, developers and childcare buyers.

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What you’ll find inside your report

Who would you compete with?

Nearby service names, locations and published capacity, with care types and available quality evidence.

Understand the alternatives families already have.

Find it in: Map · Demand & supply

What does local demand look like?

Child-age population, demand measures and supply comparisons for your selected drive-time or radius catchment.

Screen the demand case before commissioning deeper diligence.

Find it in: Demand & supply

What are nearby centres charging?

Published local fees, their dates and the services included in the sample, where available.

Test your pricing assumptions against local evidence.

Find it in: Commercials

What could change the market?

Recorded childcare development applications, published stages and proposed places where the source provides them.

Investigate future competition before committing to a site.

Find it in: Pipeline

How has the wider market changed?

Dated state and matched regional service and fee history, saved with your report.

Put today’s conditions in context for your investment case.

Find it in: Demand & supply

Can you check and share the evidence?

Source references, collection dates and coverage notes, with a shareable and printable report.

Give partners and decision-makers evidence they can inspect.

Find it in: Sources · Share · Print

Free market research

Published regional service counts and fee history. Useful for exploring an area and comparing how it has changed.

Your detailed site report

An exact address and your selected catchment, with named nearby services, local demand, available fees and development evidence. Broader historical context is included separately.

Coverage varies by location and source. Missing fees, capacity or development details are labelled. A report supports your due diligence; it does not verify occupancy, guarantee demand or replace planning advice. The historical aggregate does not identify every service counted in earlier quarters.

From research to a site decision

  1. Create your account. Set up your workspace and review the subscription terms.
  2. Choose your site. Enter a street address and choose a drive-time or radius catchment.
  3. Run and review your report. Explore the evidence, share it with your team and identify what needs further investigation.

A subscription or eligible trial is required to generate a report. Signing up does not generate a report or start a paid subscription automatically.

Create an account to assess a site →See a sample reportAlready a customer? Run your report
Discuss a site assessment with us →

Preschool provider mix

ACT · annual ABS observations

Providers delivering a preschool program to children aged 3 to 6, including programs within centre-based day care. Government share is government-operated preschool and day-care program providers divided by all providers in this collection. These are service providers, not counts of corporate owners.

Observed annual August reference periods. ABS perturbs cells to protect confidentiality; source totals are retained and components may not add exactly.
YearAll program providersGovernmentGovernment shareWithin day careEvidence
20202608633.1%175ABS table A1 ↗
20212638231.2%182ABS table A1 ↗
20222668431.6%182ABS table A1 ↗
20232648030.3%184ABS table A1 ↗
20242748330.3%192ABS table A1 ↗
20252688130.2%188ABS table A1 ↗

Some preschools are reclassified to day care as collection methods change. A change in setting is not proof of an opening or closure. Management categories do not establish ultimate ownership, a transfer or merger. Source: based on Australian Bureau of Statistics data, CC BY 4.0.