Childcare vs Stay Home Calculator

This calculator works out whether a second income truly covers childcare, or whether staying home stacks up better financially, once tax and the costs of working are taken into account. You enter the working parent's annual salary, the weekly childcare cost for all children combined, weekly commuting costs, and any other weekly working costs. The calculator works out net pay after PAYE tax and the ACC earner levy, converts it to a weekly figure, then subtracts childcare, commuting and other costs to show your net weekly gain, or loss, from working rather than staying home. It also shows net pay per week and total childcare and costs per week separately, so you can see exactly where the money goes. A headline salary can look generous until childcare for one or more young children, tax and commuting are stripped out, and the real gain from working can be surprisingly small in the early years, sometimes even negative, before growing once children start school and childcare costs fall away. Use it to see the money side clearly, then weigh that weekly figure against the non-financial parts of the decision, such as career progression, KiwiSaver contributions and long-term earning potential. This is an estimate based on standard tax rates only, and does not include Working for Families or the childcare subsidy, both of which could lift the numbers.

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Net pay uses the current PAYE brackets and the ACC levy (1.75% up to $156,641, from 1 April 2026). This is the money side only; Working for Families and the childcare subsidy can lift the gain, and staying home has long-term career effects. Estimate only, not financial advice.