Last Updated: August 22, 2026

$10-a-Day Child Care in Canada 2026: Fees by Province and City

Five years after Ottawa launched the Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care (CWELCC) program, most Canadian parents are paying significantly less for licensed child care than they did in 2019 — but most are still not paying the promised $10 a day. This guide breaks down exactly what parents pay in 2026, province by province and city by city, based on the latest research from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA).

Key Takeaways

• 6 jurisdictions have made $10 a day a hard cap: Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Nunavut. Quebec’s $9.65/day rate predates CWELCC entirely.
• Ontario caps fees at $22/day and Alberta at $15/day — both above the $10 target.
• British Columbia, Nova Scotia, Yukon, and the Northwest Territories still use market-based fees that vary by provider and by child’s age.
• Toronto-area parents of infants are saving the most in the country — over $1,800 a month compared to inflation-adjusted 2019 fees.
• B.C. cities have the highest fees in Canada, with infant care ranging from $28/day (Kelowna) to $52/day (Richmond).
• Ottawa boosted CWELCC funding in June 2026 by $5.4 billion over two years, bringing federal investment to roughly $11 billion annually through 2027-28.

What Is CWELCC and the $10-a-Day Promise?

The Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care program was announced in the 2021 federal budget with two specific affordability targets: cut parent fees by 50% in the first year, then bring the average fee down to $10 a day per child by 2026. Every province and territory signed bilateral agreements with Ottawa between 2021 and 2022 to work toward this goal, along with commitments to expand not-for-profit and public child care spaces.

Critically, the original wording promised an average of $10 a day — not a guaranteed maximum. Only six jurisdictions chose to turn that average into an actual price cap. Everywhere else, fees can — and do — run well above $10.

Which Provinces Have Reached $10-a-Day? (2026 Status)

Infant Child Care Fees by City, 2026

Infant spaces are the most expensive and hardest to find, since they require the highest staff-to-child ratios.

Only 11 of the 35 cities surveyed have reached $10-a-day (or lower) infant care.

Preschool-Age Child Care Fees by City, 2026

How Much Are Parents Actually Saving?

Comparing 2026 fees to inflation-adjusted 2019 rates shows CWELCC’s biggest wins are concentrated in provinces where pre-program fees were highest:

• Toronto infants: savings of $1,800+/month
• Toronto suburbs (Mississauga, Brampton, Vaughan, Markham, Oakville, Richmond Hill): $1,300–$1,500/month
• Iqaluit infants: $1,374/month
• Calgary preschool-age: $1,300+/month — the biggest preschool-age savings in Canada
• Most other cities: $500–$1,000/month for infant spaces
• B.C. cities: smallest savings despite highest fees — only $300–$500/month
• Quebec: almost no savings, since its low fees predate CWELCC

If British Columbia adopted a hard $10-a-day cap for infants today, families in Richmond would save over $900/month — the largest potential gain of any city studied.

Provinces Still Using Market Fees: B.C. and Nova Scotia

British Columbia and Nova Scotia never adopted a province-wide set fee. Instead, individual centres set their own “gate” fees, offset by a government subsidy:

• British Columbia: the flat-rate subsidy has been frozen since December 2022, while underlying fees rise up to 3% a year — meaning parents absorb the growing gap. Only about 12,400 spaces (12%) qualify for the true $10-a-day ChildCareBC rate, concentrated mostly in Vancouver (45% of preschool spaces) versus Fraser Valley (just 3%).
• Nova Scotia: fees were frozen for providers who joined CWELCC in 2021, but new spaces enter at a regional/age-based schedule. The province reports a system-wide average of $12.13/day, but that figure blends in subsidized and school-age spaces.

For-Profit vs. Non-Profit: Why Ownership Matters

CCPA’s B.C. data shows for-profit centres consistently charge more than non-profits at every point in the fee range. In Vancouver, for-profit centres charge roughly $30/day more than non-profits. In Burnaby, non-profit fees top out around $42/day while for-profit fees reach as high as $80/day. Ontario and Alberta don’t show this gap because their set-fee systems apply equally to all providers.

What’s Next for Canada’s Child Care System?

Federal transfers were budgeted at roughly $8 billion a year through 2030-31, and Ottawa added another $5.4 billion over two years in June 2026 — pushing total federal investment to about $11 billion annually for 2026-27 and 2027-28. Policy researchers argue the next phase requires provinces to match federal commitment, convert “average” $10-a-day promises into hard caps, and rein in cost pressures from for-profit expansion.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is child care actually $10 a day across Canada in 2026?

No. Only six jurisdictions — Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Nunavut, and (pre-dating CWELCC) Quebec — guarantee $10 a day or less as a hard cap. Ontario ($22/day) and Alberta ($15/day) also have set fees, but above $10.

Which province has the cheapest child care in 2026?

Quebec, at $9.65 a day for both infant and preschool-age spaces — a rate that predates the national CWELCC program.

Which province has the most expensive child care in 2026?

British Columbia, where infant fees range from $28/day in Kelowna to $52/day in Richmond, due to its market-based fee system.

Why do Ontario and Alberta charge more than $10 a day?

Both provinces set a fixed maximum fee ($22/day in Ontario, $15/day in Alberta) rather than a $10 hard cap, describing their fees as averaging closer to $10–$19/day once subsidies are factored in.

Are British Columbia and Nova Scotia part of CWELCC?

Yes, but both retain market-based fee structures where individual providers set their own rates, offset by government subsidies, rather than adopting one province-wide set fee.

How much has CWELCC actually saved parents?

It varies widely by city. Toronto-area parents of infants save the most (over $1,800/month versus inflation-adjusted 2019 rates), while B.C. parents — despite paying the highest fees in Canada — save the least, around $300–$500/month.

Source & Further Reading

This article summarizes and analyzes data from: David Macdonald and Martha Friendly, “The $10-a-Day Divide: Child Care Fees in Canada in 2026,” Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, August 19, 2026.

You can now check the walk-in wait times at Passport Canada offices only

Recommend Read: 4 quick steps to speak to Passport Canada agent

More read: How to Renew your Canada Dental Care Plan benefit