Report reveals how much families in each state really need to earn for one parent to stay at home in 2026. How you can make your budget work

The report looks at how much a single working parent needs to earn in every U.S. state to support a household with a nonworking partner and one child.

The takeaway? Where you live can make or break the stay-at-home option. But even if you can make the math work, there are broader implications you should consider.

A six-figure reality in some states

One of the factors that plays into whether one parent can afford to stay home is where you live.

CNBC reported that a recent SmartAsset analysis (2), using the Massachusetts Institute of Technology living wage calculator, added up the basics (like housing, food, health care and transportation) leaving out extras like entertainment, to see how much a single-income parent would need to make to support their family.

Hawaii topped the list, where a working parent needs to earn at least $102,773 a year to support a family of three on one income. Massachusetts, California, New York, Connecticut and Washington also ranked among the most expensive, with single-income families of three needing more than $90,000.

On the other end of the spectrum is West Virginia, where one parent needs to earn about $68,000 a year for the other to stay home. While it’s lower than some Southern states, the average earnings in West Virginia lag behind the national average so that is important to remember (3).

Another big reason that families consider dropping to one income is the cost of child care. In 38 states and Washington D.C., full-time child care costs more than public college tuition, according to the Economic Policy Institute (4).

So on paper, staying home can look like a straightforward cost-saving move. If one paycheck barely covers day care, why not just cut out that expense altogether?

But eliminating child care costs doesn’t automatically make a one-income household affordable.

As CNBC reported, in Hawaii, a family where both parents work needs to earn about $115,814 a year to cover basic expenses, including child care. That’s only about $13,000 more than what’s required for a single-income household, a smaller gap than many families might expect.

Hawaii’s median household income is just more than $98,000 according to Census Bureau data (5), meaning many families fall short in either situation.

Monthly bills aren’t the only factor families need to weigh. There’s also the long-term cost to the parent who steps away from work to care for their child.

Leaving the workforce for several years can have lasting consequences, especially when it comes to future earnings and career growth, Emily Green, head of wealth management at Ellevest told CNBC.

Women are especially affected. About 84% of stay-at-home parents are women, according to Pew Research Center, making them more likely to experience career interruptions, missed raises and slower retirement savings (6).

“In households where there’s a little more financial wiggle room, women often don’t think about what they may give up in the long term — say in 5 to 10 years — by leaving their jobs now,” Green said (1).

And when the stay-at-home parent is ready to head back to work, they may find it challenging after taking a long break. Résumé gaps can limit job opportunities or lead to lower pay than before (7), a hidden cost that doesn’t show up in a monthly budget.