family values
Austin is the most expensive Texas metro for raising a child
Raising a child in Austin will cost parents nearly $25,000 this year.
Raising a child is not an easy or inexpensive feat, and a new study has determined Austin parents are saddled with the highest costs for childrearing in Texas, with expenses nearly reaching $25,000 in 2026.
SmartAsset's latest report, "Cost of Raising a Child in Major U.S. Metros – 2026 Study," calculated year-over-year changes in the annual cost of raising a child (factoring in childcare, additional housing costs, food, transportation, medical costs and other necessities) in the 48 largest U.S. metro areas. MIT's Living Wage Calculator was used to compare the living costs of a household with two working adults and one child to that of a childless household with two working adults.
Childrearing costs in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos have grown 2.91 percent since last year, totaling $24,891 for a family of three in 2026. That's over $700 more than what it took to raise a child in 2025, and it's almost $2,500 higher than what it took in 2024.
This is how SmartAsset broke down the annual cost for raising a child in the Austin area:
- Cost of childcare: $12,091
- Cost of food: $1,788
- Other expenses: $11,012
Austin is the most expensive place in Texas for raising a family, and the metro ranks No. 31 in SmartAsset's national list of cities with the highest childrearing costs in 2026.
San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont in California topped the list with the highest childrearing costs in the U.S., at $43,171. The cost for raising a child in this California metro soared nearly 11 percent higher since last year.
Memphis, Tennessee ranked dead last as the most affordable U.S. metro for raising a child in 2026. Families will spend less than $20,000 to raise a child in Memphis, only 3.24 percent more than what was needed in 2025.
Raising a child in other Texas metros
It may come as no surprise that childrearing is much more affordable for families elsewhere in the Lone Star State. In fact, three Texas metros are among the most affordable places in the U.S. for raising a child: San Antonio-New Braunfels (No. 3), Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands (No. 7), and Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington (No. 10).
San Antonio-New Braunfels is the most affordable Texas metro for raising a family, and parents will spend $21,393 on their childrearing costs. That's only $448 more than last year.
Childrearing costs in Houston add up to $22,605, and Dallas-Fort Worth parents will spend $23,340 to raise their children in 2026.
The top 10 most affordable U.S. metros for raising a child in 2026 are:
- No. 1 – Memphis, Tennessee ($19,922)
- No. 2 – Nashville, Davidson-Murfreesboro-Franklin, Tennessee ($21,216)
- No. 3 – San Antonio-New Braunfels ($21,393)
- No. 4 – Birmingham, Alabama ($21,684)
- No. 5 – Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, Virginia ($22,314)
- No. 6 – Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, Georgia ($22,470)
- No. 7 – Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands ($22,605)
- No. 8 – Richmond, Virginia ($22,658)
- No. 9 – Louisville/Jefferson County, Kentucky ($23,270)
- No. 10 – Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington ($23,340)
