Childcare Cost MapFree VPK, School Readiness help — what your family can get in Florida
Florida

Childcare costs more than rent. Some of it is free.

Every Florida 4-year-old gets free VPK. Families under the income line get School Readiness help with the rest. Most parents never apply because they don't know which coalition, which form, or whether they'd qualify. Tell us about your family; get the list and the door to knock on.

VPK · School Readiness · Head StartAll 67 countiesEnglish · EspañolNo family data stored
Plan active

Free check

Tell us about your family.

Children's ages, your county, who works or studies and roughly how much comes in, and what you pay for care now if anything. No names.

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Free. About 15 seconds.

Why this exists

Free for every four-year-old. Most families still pay.

Florida's VPK is universal and free, and School Readiness pays part of the bill for working families under the income line — but both run through 30 local Early Learning Coalitions with their own waitlists and paperwork. Parents skip it because nobody told them where to start.

How it works

Describe. See what applies. Knock on the right door.

01

Describe the family

Ages, county, work or school, income, what you pay now. No names. Nothing stored.

02

See what may cut the bill

VPK, School Readiness, Head Start / Early Head Start, employer or college programmes — what each looks at and the likely sticking point.

03

Apply through your coalition

Your county's Early Learning Coalition named, the Family Portal, what to bring — and on a paid plan a dated plan with provider questions.

Plans

Free for families. Licensed to providers and employers.

The check never goes behind a paywall. Providers and employers license a branded version to fill seats and keep staff.

Application plan
$4.99one time

Optional. A dated plan — coalition, portal, documents, the questions to ask a provider about VPK wrap-around hours and School Readiness rates.

  • Dated plan, programme by programme
  • Document checklist
  • Provider questions (VPK hours, SR acceptance, waitlist)
  • Print or save as PDF · 30 days on this device
Childcare providers
$59per month

Branded check for families touring your centre — shows them how to afford you.

  • Unlimited family checks via your link
  • Your centre named as a VPK / SR provider in answers
  • Spanish and English
  • Cancel any time
Employers & HR
$149per month

Hospitals, hotels, theme parks: a childcare benefit that costs nothing but a link.

  • Unlimited employee checks
  • Your HR contact in every answer
  • Spanish and English
  • Cancel any time

All prices in USD, handled by Stripe. Childcare Cost Map is independent of the Florida Department of Education and every Early Learning Coalition; eligibility is decided only by the coalition.

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