Personal Care
Childcare Workers
SOC 39-9011
Care for and supervise children when parents are away.
The job
Median pay
$35k
$29k to $39k typical range
Outlook, 2025 to 2035
Declining
-2.0% projected
Openings a year
150k
BLS projection
Typical education
High school
Our model
AI displacement risk
Low
How much of this job AI may do instead of the person
Works with AI
18/100
AI alongside the person rather than instead of them
AI exposure
30th pct
More exposed than 30% of occupations · modeled estimate · 56th pct in Microsoft's data
Future-proof
47/100
Key skills
- Monitoring
- Active Listening
- Speaking
- Critical Thinking
- Learning Strategies
- Reading Comprehension
Pay and jobs by state
BLS OEWS May 2025, 51 states. Sorted by jobs; per 1,000 is jobs per thousand workers in the state; vs national compares that rate with the country's. A tilde marks a figure estimated from the parent occupation group where BLS publishes none.
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | 52,780 | 2.9 | 0.9× | $40k |
| New York | 44,020 | 4.5 | 1.4× | $38k |
| Texas | 34,160 | 2.4 | 0.7× | $29k |
| New Jersey | 25,070 | 5.8 | 1.8× | $36k |
| Illinois | 23,900 | 3.9 | 1.2× | $36k |
| Florida | 21,760 | 2.2 | 0.7× | $34k |
| Georgia | 21,040 | 4.3 | 1.3× | $28k |
| Michigan | 14,010 | 3.2 | 0.9× | $31k |
| Virginia | 13,930 | 3.4 | 1.0× | $34k |
| Tennessee | 13,650 | 4.2 | 1.3× | $30k |
All 51 states
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colorado | 13,310 | 4.6 | 1.4× | $41k |
| Massachusetts | 13,140 | 3.6 | 1.1× | $41k |
| Pennsylvania | 13,000 | 2.1 | 0.6× | $30k |
| North Carolina | 12,550 | 2.5 | 0.8× | $29k |
| Missouri | 12,430 | 4.2 | 1.3× | $31k |
| Connecticut | 12,020 | 7.1 | 2.1× | $37k |
| Minnesota | 11,570 | 3.9 | 1.2× | $36k |
| Ohio | 11,300 | 2.0 | 0.6× | $30k |
| South Carolina | 10,660 | 4.6 | 1.4× | $30k |
| Maryland | 9,750 | 3.5 | 1.1× | $36k |
| Nebraska | 9,390 | 9.2 | 2.8× | $31k |
| Indiana | 8,280 | 2.6 | 0.8× | $30k |
| Louisiana | 8,000 | 4.1 | 1.2× | $23k |
| Oklahoma | 7,590 | 4.4 | 1.3× | $28k |
| Kansas | 7,430 | 5.2 | 1.6× | $29k |
| Iowa | 6,020 | 3.9 | 1.2× | $28k |
| Kentucky | 5,820 | 2.9 | 0.9× | $29k |
| Wisconsin | 5,560 | 1.9 | 0.6× | $32k |
| Arizona | 5,530 | 1.7 | 0.5× | $35k |
| Mississippi | 5,420 | 4.7 | 1.4× | $22k |
| Arkansas | 5,400 | 4.1 | 1.2× | $28k |
| Oregon | 5,240 | 2.7 | 0.8× | $39k |
| Maine | 4,990 | 7.8 | 2.3× | $36k |
| Utah | 4,830 | 2.8 | 0.8× | $32k |
| Alabama | 4,580 | 2.2 | 0.7× | $23k |
| Idaho | 4,430 | 5.2 | 1.6× | $30k |
| Washington | 4,340 | 1.2 | 0.4× | $42k |
| New Mexico | 4,120 | 4.7 | 1.4× | $36k |
| North Dakota | 4,030 | 9.4 | 2.8× | $30k |
| Nevada | 3,740 | 2.4 | 0.7× | $30k |
| New Hampshire | 2,820 | 4.1 | 1.2× | $37k |
| South Dakota | 2,370 | 5.2 | 1.6× | $28k |
| Montana | 2,190 | 4.3 | 1.3× | $35k |
| West Virginia | 1,930 | 2.8 | 0.8× | $28k |
| Hawaii | 1,870 | 3.0 | 0.9× | $37k |
| Rhode Island | 1,800 | 3.6 | 1.1× | $37k |
| Washington DC | 1,350 | 1.9 | 0.6× | $47k |
| Alaska | 1,340 | 4.1 | 1.2× | $36k |
| Delaware | 1,230 | 2.5 | 0.8× | $33k |
| Wyoming | 1,110 | 4.0 | 1.2× | $28k |
| Vermont | 1,108 | 3.6 | 1.1× | $38k~ |
Top metro areas
- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ48,780 jobs · $38k median
- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN17,540 jobs · $37k median
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA16,530 jobs · $40k median
- Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA13,220 jobs · $29k median
- Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV11,650 jobs · $38k median
- Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH10,440 jobs · $42k median
- Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX8,690 jobs · $30k median
- Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX8,660 jobs · $31k median
Explore the rankings
Explore Childcare Workers interactively →Pay and outlook from BLS (OEWS 2025, Employment Projections 2025-2035). Skills and work activities from O*NET 30.3. AI exposure and future-proof scores are modeled estimates. How these numbers are made.