What Childcare Costs Per Hour in Denver
Monthly tuition is a misleading way to compare childcare. A short-schedule program at $400/month and a full-day center at $1,800/month look like a 4.5x gap. The real cost difference per hour of care tells a different story. This report normalizes every provider's price to cost per care hour — what you actually pay for each hour your child is in the program.
Denver’s range is the tightest of any Shortlist city. From Aurora at $3.96/hr to Park Hill at $15.40/hr, the 4x spread is less than half of Seattle’s 26x or Chicago’s 17x. Most Denver programs cluster between $4–$7/hr — the narrowest band we’ve seen across five metros.
How We Calculate Cost Per Hour
Formula: monthly tuition ÷ (days per week × 4.33 weeks × hours per day). We only show $/hr where we have schedule data for a provider — no defaults, no estimates. 35 of 45 Denver providers currently have complete data.
The Most Expensive Neighborhoods (by $/hr)
High $/hr doesn’t always mean high monthly bills. Park Hill averages $10.37/hr — the highest in Denver — driven partly by programs with shorter schedules, even though its $1,267/mo average looks unremarkable.
| Neighborhood | Providers | Avg $/hr | $/hr Range | Avg Monthly |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Park Hill | 3 | $10.37 | $7.39–$15.40 | $1,267 |
| Mayfair | 1 | $9.24 | $9.24 | $1,800 |
| Five Points | 2 | $7.39 | $5.54–$9.24 | $1,600 |
| Highlands | 1 | $6.72 | $6.72 | $1,600 |
| University | 3 | $6.71 | $4.16–$9.24 | $1,433 |
| Central Park | 8 | $6.53 | $4.62–$9.98 | $1,526 |
| City Park | 1 | $6.47 | $6.47 | $1,400 |
The Most Affordable Neighborhoods (by $/hr)
Low $/hr reflects programs that run longer hours or more days per week — spreading the monthly cost across more care hours. Denver's cooperatives appear at the bottom of this list for the same reason they do in Seattle: parent participation keeps tuition low.
| Neighborhood | Providers | Avg $/hr | $/hr Range | Avg Monthly |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Platt Park | 2 | $6.34 | $4.16–$8.53 | $1,050 |
| Sloan’s Lake | 2 | $6.00 | $5.54–$6.47 | $1,300 |
| Cherry Creek | 1 | $5.91 | $5.91 | $1,600 |
| Lowry | 3 | $5.76 | $5.39–$6.02 | $1,433 |
| Wash Park | 1 | $5.54 | $5.54 | $240 |
| Lakewood | 4 | $5.38 | $4.16–$6.30 | $1,200 |
| Aurora | 3 | $4.13 | $3.96–$4.40 | $967 |
Central Park: Denver's Largest Childcare Market
Central Park has the most providers with $/hr data of any Denver neighborhood — 8 providers and the widest hourly range in the city ($4.62–$9.98/hr). At $6.53/hr average with a $1,526/month average, it sits in the upper-middle of the Denver market. The range reflects real program variety: Montessori, nature-based, and traditional center-based care all coexist here, with meaningfully different schedule structures driving the spread.
Key Findings
Denver’s $/hr range is narrower than Seattle or Chicago. The $3.96–$15.40 spread reflects fewer part-time enrichment programs in the Denver market. Most programs cluster between $4–$7/hr. In Seattle, part-time preschools push the top end past $26/hr.
Park Hill tops Denver on a per-hour basis. At $10.37/hr average, Park Hill is the most expensive Denver neighborhood by hourly rate — despite a moderate $1,267/mo average. The driver: Montview Community Preschool at $15.40/hr runs a shorter schedule that inflates the per-hour cost even when monthly tuition looks reasonable.
Central Park has the widest range and most options. With 8 providers and a $4.62–$9.98/hr spread, Central Park gives families more to compare than any other Denver neighborhood. Montessori, nature-based, and traditional centers all coexist here with meaningfully different schedule structures.
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Explore DenverMethodology
Cost per hour = monthly tuition ÷ (days per week × 4.33 × hours per day). We only calculate $/hr where we have schedule data (days and hours) — no defaults or estimates. 35 of 45 Denver providers have complete data. Pricing data comes from provider websites, licensing records, and direct provider contact. All prices as of March 2026. For full scoring methodology, see shortlist.guide/methodology.html.
Source: Shortlist original research, March 2026. 35 providers with schedule data across 14 neighborhoods in Denver. Data available for media use with attribution to Shortlist (shortlist.guide). Contact: [email protected]