Named data brief · The Second Paycheck Report
The Second Paycheck Report
The question every dual-income family reaching Oahu actually asks: after childcare, what does the second job really net? Here are the licensed-care costs, sourced and dated — and an honest calculator so you can run your own number, not ours.
What licensed care costs on Oahu
Full-time monthly rates from the 2023 Hawaii Child Care Market Rate Study (Hawaii DHS, CCDF biennial requirement; prepared by PATCH), Oahu — Full-Time Monthly Rates. CCDF suggests the 75th percentile as the access benchmark — the rate that clears three-quarters of the market. Provider counts are shown so you can weigh the smaller samples honestly.
| Type of care | Median /mo | 75th pctile /mo | # providers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Center-based infant/toddler care | $1,561 | $1,650 | 4 |
| Accredited (NAEYC/NECPA) center-based care | $950 | $1,285 | 8 |
| Licensed center-based or group child care home | $900 | $1,200 | 31 |
| Registered family child care home — infant/toddler | $825 | $925 | 44 |
| Registered family child care home | $800 | $900 | 48 |
| Licensed before/after-school care | $135 | $135 | 1 |
Source: 2023 Hawaii Child Care Market Rate Study (Hawaii DHS, CCDF biennial requirement; prepared by PATCH). Pulled 2026-08-05. Rates are full-time monthly; the study segments by care type, not single-year age bands. Figures transcribed from the study's Oahu full-time monthly rate table. CCDF suggests the 75th percentile as the access benchmark. Small provider samples are shown so readers can weigh them.
The crossover: what the second job nets
Enter the second earner's expected monthly take-home and pick a care option. This runs entirely on your device; nothing is sent anywhere. We supply the sourced cost — you supply your wage, because a "representative Oahu wage" would be a number we made up.
One child, one care slot, full-time. Add a slot per child. Ignores commuting, taxes on the margin, and fee assistance — for which see the on-base and CCDF options below.
Before you assume it doesn't pencil
On-base Child Development Centers use income-banded fees that can land well below market, and CCDF/DHS fee assistance exists for eligible families. Start those in parallel — waitlists are the constraint, not eligibility. See the base pages under the family layer for the finders.
Cite this report
PCS Oahu, "The Second Paycheck Report," August 2026 edition, pcsoahu.com/family/childcare/. Cost data: 2023 Hawaii Child Care Market Rate Study (Hawaii DHS, CCDF biennial requirement; prepared by PATCH).
Machine-readable: JSON · CSV — free to reuse with attribution (CC BY 4.0).
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