CCS calculator: childcare subsidy and gap fee

This childcare subsidy calculator works out your Child Care Subsidy (CCS) and the gap fee you pay for daycare (long day care), family day care or before and after school care, using the 2026-27 rates from 6 July 2026. Free, no signup.

Combined family income per year ($)

Use your family's estimated adjusted taxable income.

Care type Child is school age

Hourly rate cap: $15.19 per child.

Your fee I know my daily fee I know my hourly fee

Daily fee per child ($)

Session length in hours

Use the full session you are charged for. Hourly fee: $14.60.

Days per week

Children aged 5 or under in care

For one child, the standard rate applies regardless of age. For multiple children, this estimate assumes the same fees, sessions and school age setting for each child. The 3+ option estimates three children.

Subsidised hours per child per fortnight Up to 48 hours of work, study or other recognised activity per fortnight (72 hours) Both parents do more than 48 hours, or you have an exemption, or Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander child (100 hours)

For a single parent, use your own recognised activity hours.

Show 5% withholding

Your estimated gap fee

On $120,000 a year, you'd pay about $23.36 a day for 3 days of long day care, or $3,504.00 a year.

Your child

84% CCS standard rate

Full fee per day: $146.00
Subsidy per day: $122.64
Gap fee per day (you pay): $23.36

Per week

Full fee: $438.00
Subsidy: $367.92
Gap fee (you pay): $70.08

Per year (50 weeks)

Full fee: $21,900.00
Subsidy: $18,396.00
Gap fee (you pay): $3,504.00

60 of 60 booked hours are subsidised per child per fortnight, up to your 72 hour entitlement. Daily figures are averages across your booked sessions. Annual totals assume 50 weeks of care.

How the calculation works

Subsidy = your CCS percentage multiplied by the lower of your hourly fee and the hourly rate cap, multiplied by care hours, up to your subsidised hours. Your gap fee is the full fee minus the subsidy paid to your provider.

For a daily fee, we divide the fee by the session length to get the hourly fee. We calculate your subsidy over a fortnight, then average it across your booked days. Hours beyond your entitlement are charged at the full hourly fee. All totals include those hours and any fee above the cap, without counting either cost twice.

The Child Care Subsidy replaced the Child Care Benefit and the Child Care Rebate on 2 July 2018, so a childcare rebate calculator for today's fees is a CCS calculator (Services Australia).

See average childcare fees by state and what families pay after subsidy, or compare centres near you.

Hourly rate caps for 2026-27

From 6 July 2026, the following maximum hourly fees are used to calculate CCS.

Hourly caps by care type
Care type	Below school age	School age
Long day care (centre based day care)	$15.19	$13.30
Outside school hours care	$15.19	$13.30
Family day care	$14.08	$14.08
In Home Care (per family)	$41.31

In Home Care has a cap per family and is included here for reference. This calculator estimates the care types available in the form.

Standard CCS income table

Standard rates for 2026-27
Combined annual family income	CCS percentage
Up to $88,520	90%
Above $88,520 to below $538,520	90%, less one percentage point for each full $5,000 above $88,520
$538,520 or more	0%

Higher CCS income table

For families with more than one child aged 5 or under in care, the higher rate applies to eligible second and younger children. The older child receives the standard rate.

Higher rates for 2026-27
Combined annual family income	Younger child's CCS percentage
Up to $146,437	95%
Above $146,437 to below $191,437	95%, less one percentage point for each full $3,000 above $146,437
$191,437 to below $270,727	80%
$270,727 to below $360,727	80%, less one percentage point for each full $3,000 above $270,727
$360,727 to below $370,727	50%
$370,727 or more	Higher rate does not apply; use the standard rate

The 3 Day Guarantee

Eligible families can access at least 72 hours of subsidised care per child per fortnight, including when they do no recognised activity. This is an hours entitlement; how many days it covers depends on your session length.

The entitlement is 100 hours if both parents (or the single parent) do more than 48 hours of recognised activity per fortnight, an exemption applies, or the child is Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander.

5% withholding

Services Australia generally withholds 5% of your subsidy to help reduce the chance of an overpayment. Select “Show 5% withholding” to estimate the higher gap you pay during the year. The withheld amount is reconciled after your family income is confirmed.

Sources

Estimate only

This calculator is an estimate only. Services Australia determines your entitlement based on your circumstances and confirmed family income. It does not calculate Additional Child Care Subsidy. Contact Services Australia or phone 136 150 for help.