Gen X parents won’t leave their tweens alone — and the babysitting bills are adding up. What’s driving this ‘strange’ and costly shift

The data backs up the anecdote. A Washington Post analysis of 2023–2025 Census data from the University of Minnesota found that 15% of parents whose youngest child is 10 years old and 11% of those with an 11-year-old pay for regular childcare — spending a median of $3,000 per year. That figure works out to roughly three hours of supervised care per week, though many families concentrate that spending in the summer months.

Why this generation of parents can’t let go

Researchers and experts point to a confluence of forces, not just the much-discussed trend toward overprotective parenting, the Post reports.

For example, car-dependent suburban layouts and shrinking public transit options mean many tweens simply can’t get themselves anywhere. Travel sports leagues — which in some areas have largely displaced neighborhood games and school teams — require adult transportation to games and practices scattered across multiple towns.

According to the Aspen Institute’s Project Play, the average American family spent $1,016 on their child’s main sport in 2024 — a 46% jump since 2019, or twice the rate of general inflation. That figure doesn’t include the cost of getting kids to and from practice, which someone has to handle.

And genuine concern about adolescent mental health has made many parents reluctant to leave kids unsupervised for extended periods, even as some studies suggest that limited independence may itself be contributing to the crisis.

“One thing you can say is true about latchkey parenting is it’s very low-cost,” psychologist and tween expert Lisa Damour told the Post. “If we as a culture are less inclined to be okay with latchkey children, there’s going to be a cost associated with keeping those kids busy.”

Middle school teacher Douglas Haddad, who has taught in Connecticut for 26 years, sees the comparison culture driving it further: “Social media allows parents to see what everyone else’s children are doing,” he told the Post. “Modern American life has really raised the expectation placed on parents.”

The cost is rising and accelerating

The financial pressure is compounding. Babysitter median hourly rates on the platform Sittercity were around $12.50 from 2018 to 2020, according to Post reporting. Today, that figure sits at $22.50 an hour — an 80% increase in roughly six years.