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Everett is the seat of Snohomish County, 25 miles north of Seattle. Center-based infant care runs $1,700 to $2,100 a month in 2026. That sits below King County, above the Washington state median. Boeing's Everett plant anchors the local economy. Free public pre-K is income-targeted; everyone else pays the private rate below.
Full-time center-based infant care in Everett runs roughly $1,700 to $2,100 a month in 2026. Preschool-age care runs roughly $1,275 to $1,625. Licensed family child care, regulated under WAC 110-300, charges about 15 to 25 percent less than centers. These ranges come from the U.S. Department of Labor National Database of Childcare Prices for Snohomish County and the Washington DCYF 2024 market-rate study, not single-point averages.
Infant care prices about 25 to 35 percent above preschool care. The driver is the ratio. Washington sets the center infant ratio at 1:4 under WAC 110-300, then loosens it with age. Staff wages are the second driver, and the 2025 BLS OEWS records Seattle-metro child care pay near the top of the state range. Everett rates sit a notch below King County because Snohomish rents run lower.
| Area | Infant, center | Preschool, center | Family child care |
|---|---|---|---|
| Silver Lake and South Everett | $1,950–$2,100 / month | $1,500–$1,625 / month | $1,600–$1,775 / month |
| Harborview and Seahurst | $1,900–$2,050 / month | $1,450–$1,575 / month | $1,550–$1,725 / month |
| Bayside and Riverside | $1,825–$1,975 / month | $1,400–$1,525 / month | $1,500–$1,675 / month |
| North Everett and Delta | $1,750–$1,900 / month | $1,350–$1,475 / month | $1,450–$1,625 / month |
| Lowell and Holly | $1,700–$1,850 / month | $1,275–$1,400 / month | $1,400–$1,575 / month |
Everett prices follow the local map. The Silver Lake and Harborview corridors carry the top rates; the older north-end and Delta tracts sit below. These ranges represent licensed, Early Achievers-rated care, not subsidized seats or unrated providers. The spread from top to bottom runs about 15 to 20 percent. Even the Everett floor sits above the Washington median because Seattle-metro wages reach into Snohomish County.
Partly. Washington has no universal pre-K. Two free public programs cover income-eligible three- and four-year-olds: the Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program (ECEAP), the state preschool run through DCYF, and Head Start, the federal program. The Everett Public Schools district also runs Transition to Kindergarten (TK) classrooms for age-eligible children where space allows.
Washington's free seats are income-targeted, not universal. ECEAP serves the highest-need families under the Fair Start for Kids Act of 2021, and Head Start uses federal poverty guidelines. Everett Public Schools and neighboring Snohomish County districts run the local public-school programs, and the seats fill. A family above those income lines, without a Transition to Kindergarten seat, pays the full private rate for a three- or four-year-old.
Heads up. Free public preschool in Washington is income-targeted, not universal, and the income lines exclude many Everett households where both parents work at Boeing or Providence. ECEAP and Head Start seats are limited and means-tested. Families with infants and toddlers carry the full private rate. Plan for the full bill until a free seat is confirmed in writing.
Washington's main subsidy is Working Connections Child Care (WCCC), administered by DCYF under the federal Child Care and Development Fund. Eligibility sits at 60 percent of state median income, and co-payments are eliminated for households at or below that line. On July 1, 2025, DCYF moved WCCC base rates to the 75th percentile of the 2024 market-rate survey.
State law (RCW 43.216.828) directs WCCC base rates to reach the 85th percentile of the 2024 survey by July 1, 2026, which shrinks the gap between the subsidy and an Everett center's full charge. Approved families must use a licensed or certified provider, often an Early Achievers-rated site. Apply through DCYF at washingtonconnection.org or the local Community Services Office.
Washington has no state income tax, so the savings are federal. Three stack on top of any WCCC subsidy or ECEAP seat: the federal Child and Dependent Care Credit on IRS Form 2441, a Dependent Care FSA at most employers (up to $5,000 per family per year, pre-tax), and the federal Child Tax Credit of up to $2,000 per child. At Everett infant rates, the $5,000 FSA cap covers roughly a quarter of a full year.
Major Everett-area employers, including Boeing, Naval Station Everett, Providence Regional Medical Center, Funko, and Everett Public Schools, generally offer a Dependent Care FSA through payroll. A two-earner household that funds the full $5,000 FSA typically recovers about $1,100 to $1,600 in federal tax, then adds the federal Child and Dependent Care Credit of $600 to $1,200 and the federal Child Tax Credit per child. With no state income tax, there is no state child care credit to add.
A two-income Everett family with a one-year-old in full-time licensed center care spends roughly $1,800 to $2,050 a month, or about $21,600 to $24,600 a year, per the National Database of Childcare Prices for Snohomish County and the Washington DCYF 2024 market-rate study.
If the family qualifies for Working Connections Child Care, with household income at or below 60 percent of state median income, the co-payment is $0. As base rates rise to the 85th percentile in July 2026, more Everett centers should accept the WCCC rate without a balance bill.
If the family is over the WCCC ceiling, the full private rate stands. A Dependent Care FSA recovers $5,000 in pre-tax savings, the federal Child and Dependent Care Credit recovers another $600 to $1,200, and the federal Child Tax Credit applies per child. Washington has no state income tax, so there is no state credit to add.
Four levers move an Everett daycare bill, roughly in order of size. The subsidy and the Dependent Care FSA carry the most; provider type and timing carry the rest. None of them make daycare cheap. They make the bill smaller.
Model your own Everett year in the cost calculator with WCCC, the FSA, and the federal credits factored in. Read our Washington ECEAP explainer, the Washington childcare subsidy guide, and the Washington state cost overview. Compare nearby Seattle and Bellevue, or return to the cost pillar.
How Everett compares with Seattle to the south, by age, neighborhood, and care type.
Read → Pre-KHow Washington's ECEAP state preschool, Head Start, and Transition to Kindergarten work and who qualifies.
Read → ToolModel your Everett daycare year with subsidies, the FSA, and the federal credits factored in.
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