Nanny vs Daycare: Real Cost Comparison for Westchester Families

At some point in the first few weeks after your baby is born, you find yourself doing the math on childcare. Daycare sounds expensive. A nanny sounds more expensive. But then someone tells you about nanny shares, and suddenly nothing makes sense anymore.

Here's the honest answer: in Westchester County, a full-time nanny and a full-time daycare center are usually within a few hundred dollars of each other per month once you factor in everything correctly. The nanny often comes out slightly more expensive on paper, but the comparison shifts depending on how many kids you have, what kind of care you want, and whether you can split a nanny with another family.

This guide uses real 2026 numbers for Westchester. These are not national averages, which are significantly lower and will lead you astray.

This is where a lot of families get blindsided. When you hire a nanny, you become their employer. That comes with legal obligations and financial costs that significantly increase what you're actually paying.

Wages: Westchester experienced nannies charge $18 to $25 per hour. A 50-hour work week (typical for a full-time nanny with a little flexibility) at $20/hr is $1,000 per week, or about $4,300 per month in gross wages.

Payroll taxes: As a household employer, you owe the employer's share of FICA taxes -- 7.65% of gross wages for Social Security and Medicare. On $52,000 in annual wages, that's about $3,978 per year in employer-side payroll taxes. You also owe federal unemployment tax (FUTA) of 6% on the first $7,000 of wages, which is $420. New York State unemployment taxes add roughly $500 more. Total additional tax burden: approximately $4,900 per year, or about $408 per month on top of the gross wages.

Health insurance: Not legally required but increasingly expected by qualified nannies. A basic individual plan in New York runs $250 to $500 per month. Many families offer a $150 to $250 monthly stipend toward health insurance costs rather than adding the nanny to their own plan.

Paid time off: Standard practice is 2 weeks paid vacation and 5 paid sick days per year. If your nanny earns $52,000 per year, 10 days of PTO costs you approximately $2,000 in wages you're paying for time the nanny isn't working.

Holidays: Most nannies expect to be paid for major federal holidays (there are 10). That's another $2,000 in annual wages for days your nanny isn't there.

Year-end bonus: One to two weeks of extra pay is standard in Westchester. That's $1,000 to $2,000 more per year.

Add it all up: Base wages of $52,000 plus taxes of $4,900 plus benefits, PTO, holidays, and bonus of $6,000 to $8,000 puts your true annual cost somewhere between $62,900 and $64,900, or about $5,250 to $5,400 per month. That's the honest number.

A nanny share is where two families hire a single nanny together and split the cost. The nanny cares for both children simultaneously at one family's home (families rotate, or one house is designated as the primary location).

Here's why the math works: A nanny caring for two children charges more per hour than she would for one -- typically $25 to $32 per hour total rather than $20 to $25. But each family only pays half of that, so each family is paying $12.50 to $16 per hour for their portion. That's significantly cheaper than a solo nanny and competitive with a daycare center, while still getting the home-based, lower-ratio care a nanny provides.

Example: Two families share a nanny at $28/hour for a 50-hour week. Total weekly wages: $1,400. Each family's share: $700 per week, or about $3,000 per month. Add each family's share of employer taxes (roughly $200/month each) and you're looking at about $3,200 per month per family. That's cheaper than a solo nanny and in the same ballpark as a good daycare center.

The complications: Both families need to agree on schedule, location, discipline approach, sick day policies, and what happens when one child gets sick and the other doesn't. Nanny share agreements should be put in writing. When the share ends (one family moves, has a second child, gets a different job), you need to figure out what happens to the nanny.

Best case for a nanny share: Babies close in age (within 6 months is ideal), families with similar parenting philosophies, and enough trust to have a direct conversation when things need to change.