As the United States celebrates its 250th anniversary this year, Kansas City ranks the 183rd largest city in the nation.

Cross the state line from Wyandotte County into Johnson County and the licensed childcare footprint multiplies six times over a population only triple the size. That asymmetry — Wyandotte's 1.6 establishments per 1,000 kids under five, Johnson's 3.2 — is the structural fact behind Kansas City, Kansas's last-place finish among Kansas cities at 45/100. Layered on top: a $59,183 median household income roughly $14,000 below the state, and a 41% single-parent share that produces the lowest family strain score in Kansas (35/100). Infant tuition of $11,497 absorbs 19.4% of pre-tax pay. Wyandotte families often reach across municipal lines for care, then lose the recovered hours to the commute back.

Key highlights & actionable takeaways

Score 45/100, Strained, ranked 168 of 250 — last of 5 Kansas cities, distinct from Kansas City, Missouri across the state line.
Family strain score 35/100; 41% single-parent share, the highest in Kansas, layered on a $59,183 median household income.
Wyandotte County operates just 1.6 licensed establishments per 1,000 kids under five — under 40% of the national density of 4.2.

Actionable takeaways

The Wyandotte-Johnson asymmetry is the single sharpest cross-county gap in this report. Six times the licensed establishment density across one county line, on a population only triple the size. The local angle is whether KCK families are commuting into Johnson County for care — and what that costs them.
Disambiguate from Kansas City, Missouri. Same metro, two states, two reports — KCK ranks 168 of 250, KCMO ranks separately. National coverage routinely treats them as one market; the data says otherwise.
The 41% single-parent share is the structural driver of family strain at 35. Combined with sub-state-median income, it explains why Wyandotte's score sits last in Kansas despite affordable headline pricing — interview KCK Public Schools' family-services office for ground truth.

Affordability — 58/100

A Kansas City, Kansas family with one infant in center care pays $11,497 a year, the median for Wyandotte County. Against a household income of $59,183 — nearly $14,000 below the Kansas state median — that absorbs 19.4% of pre-tax earnings. Center care here costs almost as much as the city's median rent of $1,073 a month, putting it on a one-to-one footing with housing. Family child care drops the figure to $8,380, but those slots are scarcer in Wyandotte than in neighboring Johnson County. Across the state line, Missouri families with similar incomes face comparable bills, but the Wyandotte combination of lower wages, higher single-parent share, and thin licensed supply puts Kansas City, Kansas at the bottom of the Kansas list. A typical family with two children in center care here is staring at $22,000 a year, more than a third of household income before taxes, food, or transportation.

Supply — 26/100

Wyandotte County has an estimated 6,630 licensed slots against roughly 15,800 kids under five with working parents — about 42 slots per 100 kids. The county runs only 20 licensed centers, or 1.6 establishments per 1,000 children under five, less than 40% of the national density of 4.2. That's the thinnest provider footprint of any Kansas city in this index. Across the river, Johnson County (Overland Park, Olathe) operates roughly six times the density on a population base only triple the size — so Wyandotte families often reach across municipal lines to find care, then lose hours to the commute.

Workforce — 64/100

The median Kansas City, Kansas childcare worker earns $14.64 an hour, or about $30,440 a year — the same regional figure that applies across the Kansas City metro. Against the local single-adult living wage of $22.97, that's 64% — meaning a single childcare worker living alone in Wyandotte cannot, on her wages alone, cover rent, food, transportation, and healthcare without a second income or public assistance. Center directors here describe a familiar cycle: a teacher leaves for retail or warehouse work that pays $17 an hour, and the classroom rebuilds attachment from scratch.

Family strain — 35/100

Mothers' labor force participation in Wyandotte households with children under six runs 67%, slightly below the Kansas average of 70% and the national 68%. That figure reads less as discretionary career work and more as economic load-bearing in a city where 41% of children live with a single parent — the highest single-parent share of any Kansas city in this index, and well above both the state (29%) and national (32%) averages. For roughly four in ten Kansas City, Kansas children, the entire calculus of cost, supply, and pickup falls on one adult.

Policy support — 44/100

Kansas enrolls 45% of 4-year-olds in state pre-K, with 6 of 10 NIEER quality benchmarks met and per-child spending of $4,562. The state offers no paid family leave program, and CCDF subsidy reach covers an estimated 16.5% of eligible Kansas families. Head Start serves about 6,400 children statewide. Policy is measured at the state level; Kansas City, Kansas inherits the Kansas posture without local supplements, even as Wyandotte families face higher need than the state average.

In-home care in Kansas City, Kansas

In-home care in Kansas City, Kansas typically reflects metro-wide nanny market patterns, with full-time live-out rates running below the national median and roughly in line with the broader Kansas City regional market. With center supply unusually thin in Wyandotte County, families with non-traditional schedules — particularly health care, logistics, and casino sector workers around the Legends district — sometimes turn to nanny shares or extended family arrangements as the only viable path to consistent coverage during odd-hour shifts.

Methodology: The the score is a 0-100 composite score across five dimensions: Affordability (30 pts), Supply (25 pts), Workforce Health (15 pts), Family Strain (15 pts), and Policy Support (15 pts). City-level prices and supply use the city's primary containing county. Policy Support is measured at the state level. Full methodology and data sources: beverly.io/research/methodology.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2019-2023 5-year estimates; U.S. Department of Labor Women's Bureau National Database of Childcare Prices; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS (May 2024) and QCEW; Buffett Early Childhood Institute / Bipartisan Policy Center / Child Care Aware childcaregap.org (Sept 2025); NIEER State of Preschool Yearbook 2024; HHS ACF CCDF FY2023; National Partnership for Women & Families (March 2026).

Methodology. The State of Childcare Index is a 0-100 composite score across five dimensions: Affordability (30 pts), Supply (25 pts), Workforce Health (15 pts), Family Strain (15 pts), and Policy Support (15 pts). Each dimension draws on publicly available federal data: U.S. Census ACS (5-year), DOL Women's Bureau NDCP, BLS OEWS and QCEW, the Buffett/BPC/CCAoA childcaregap.org dataset, NIEER State of Preschool, and HHS ACF CCDF reports. City-level prices and supply use the city's primary containing county. Policy Support is measured at the state level. Full methodology and data sources: /research/methodology.