A two-child household must earn $400,000 a year for childcare to be affordable, study says. 'It’s easy to see why birth rates are falling'

Babies play with their teacher in day care (Credit: Getty Images)

The average American family doesn’t come close to having enough income to comfortably afford childcare, according to a LendingTree study last month.

Federal guidelines say that childcare is affordable if it consumes no more than 7% of household income. Citing data from Child Care Aware of America, LendingTree found that the average annual cost of care for an infant and a 4-year-old is $28,190 nationwide.