How many childcare assistance resources are in Minnesota?

Women's Corner tracks 18 childcare assistance resources for women in Minnesota.

Are childcare assistance resources in Minnesota free?

17 of the 18 listed childcare assistance resources in Minnesota are explicitly free or low-cost.

Which cities in Minnesota have childcare assistance resources?

Listings span cities including St. Paul, Minneapolis.

What are some examples of childcare assistance resources in Minnesota?

Featured entries include Minnesota Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP), Parent Aware — Minnesota Quality Ratings, Child Care Aware Minnesota, Minnesota Head Start, Way to Grow — Minneapolis.

Do these listings include phone numbers?

9 of 18 Minnesota childcare assistance listings include phone numbers.

How do I get help paying for daycare?

Apply for CCDF (Child Care and Development Fund) subsidies through your state's child care assistance agency — eligibility is typically up to 85% of state median income for working or in-school parents. Wait lists exist in some states. Head Start (ages 3–5) and Early Head Start (0–3) are free for income-qualifying families and include education, meals, and family services.

What's the difference between Head Start and daycare?

Head Start is a free federally-funded program for low-income kids ages 3–5 that includes early education, free meals, health and dental screenings, and parent involvement — typically 3–6 hours/day during the school year. Daycare/CCDF subsidies cover full-day, year-round care at licensed providers. Many families use both: Head Start morning + wrap-around CCDF-funded daycare.

Can I get childcare while I'm in school or job training?

Yes — CCDF subsidies cover parents in education and job training programs, not just employed parents. The CCAMPIS federal program funds free on-campus childcare at hundreds of colleges. WIOA-enrolled trainees often receive childcare support through their American Job Center case manager. TANF includes childcare as part of work activities.

Are there options for night-shift or weekend childcare?

Limited but growing. Search Child Care Aware (1-800-424-2246) for 'non-traditional hours' providers in your state. Some states have specific non-traditional-hour subsidies. Family Child Care homes are often more flexible than centers. The military Child Care Aware program serves National Guard, Reserve, and DoD-eligible families with 24/7 backup care.

Best Childcare Assistance in Minnesota — 18 resources

About Childcare Assistance for Women

Childcare assistance for mothers is delivered primarily through the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG/CCDF), Head Start, Early Head Start, and state pre-K. CCDF subsidies are administered by each state's lead agency (usually the Department of Human Services) and help families pay for licensed care while parents work, attend school, or participate in training — eligibility typically up to 85% of state median income. Head Start serves children 3–5 from families below the Federal Poverty Level; Early Head Start covers birth to 3 plus pregnant women. Child Care Aware (1-800-424-2246) and state Resource & Referral agencies match families to providers. This directory includes each state's CCDF office, Head Start programs, and R&R agencies.

Childcare Assistance in Minnesota

Minnesota district courts hear family matters across its 87 counties. The Child Support Enforcement Division operates under DHS. Minneapolis-Saint Paul anchors the state; Rochester, Duluth, and Bloomington follow. Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid, Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services, and Violence Free Minnesota (the statewide DV coalition) serve women.

18 Resources

1. Minnesota Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP) — Free

CCAP is Minnesota's subsidized childcare program, run by DHS at 444 Lafayette and delivered through county agencies. Two tracks exist: MFIP Child Care for parents on cash assistance, and Basic Sliding Fee for working low-income families. Call 651-431-4000 weekdays or apply through your county to be screened and waitlisted.

651-431-4000 · 444 Lafayette Rd N, St. Paul, MN 55155 · Mon-Fri 8am-4:30pm · Visit Website

2. Parent Aware — Minnesota Quality Ratings — Free

Parent Aware is Minnesota's quality rating system for childcare providers, rating programs from 1-4 Stars based on staff training, curriculum, and learning environments. Call 888-291-9811 to reach Child Care Aware MN for free help searching for highly-rated MN providers near you, with details about each program's hours, fees, and openings.

888-291-9811 · Statewide Service · Online 24/7 · Visit Website

3. Child Care Aware Minnesota — Free

Child Care Aware Minnesota at 10 River Park Plaza in St. Paul offers free childcare-referral services, CCAP application help, and the Parent Aware rating system. Mothers can call 888-291-9811 Mon-Fri 8am-5pm to be matched with licensed and registered providers in their zip code who have current openings.

888-291-9811 · 10 River Park Plaza Suite 820, St. Paul, MN 55107 · Mon-Fri 8am-5pm · Visit Website

4. Minnesota Head Start — Free

Minnesota Head Start and Early Head Start serve about 14,000 low-income MN children ages 0-5 each year through 35 grantee programs, with comprehensive health, nutrition, and family-support services included. Call 651-431-4000 weekdays to find the Head Start grantee covering your county; income limits typically follow federal poverty guidelines.

651-431-4000 · Multiple MN locations · Mon-Fri 8am-4pm · Visit Website

5. Way to Grow — Minneapolis — Free

Way to Grow at 2400 Park Ave S in Minneapolis runs home-visiting, early-literacy, and family-support programs in the Phillips, Powderhorn, and north Minneapolis communities. Their bilingual family educators work intensively with mothers from pregnancy through kindergarten. Call 612-874-4740 weekdays to enroll.

612-874-4740 · 2400 Park Ave S, Minneapolis, MN 55404 · Mon-Fri 8am-5pm · Visit Website

6. Think Small — Twin Cities — Free

Think Small at 10 Yorkton Ct in St. Paul runs Minnesota's largest scholarship program for early-childhood education and operates Parent Aware in the Twin Cities region, plus provider training and parent education. Call 651-641-0305 weekdays to ask about scholarships that help MN mothers afford high-quality care.

651-641-0305 · 10 Yorkton Ct, St. Paul, MN 55117 · Mon-Fri 8am-5pm · Visit Website

7. YMCA — Twin Cities Childcare

YMCA of the North operates licensed before- and after-school care, preschool, and summer day camp at branches across the Twin Cities. Financial assistance is available for low-income families based on a sliding-fee scale. Call 612-230-9622 weekdays to ask about openings and Financial Assistance applications.

612-230-9622 · Multiple Twin Cities locations · Mon-Fri 6:30am-6pm · Visit Website

8. Boys & Girls Clubs of the Twin Cities — Free

Boys & Girls Clubs of the Twin Cities runs free and low-cost after-school programs and summer camps for K-12 youth at clubhouses across Minneapolis and St. Paul. Memberships are heavily subsidized and serve as affordable after-school care for MN working mothers. Call 612-351-1557 weekdays to find the closest club.

612-351-1557 · Multiple Twin Cities locations · Mon-Fri 2:30pm-8pm

9. Child Care Aware — National — Free

Child Care Aware of America at 800-424-2246 connects MN mothers to the state's CCAP and Parent Aware systems, plus military childcare subsidies for Guard and Reserve families. Useful when MN women relocate from another state and need help finding equivalent state subsidy programs.

800-424-2246 · National Service · Mon-Fri 9am-5pm · Visit Website

10. ChildCare.gov — Free

ChildCare.gov is the federal hub for understanding state-level subsidy programs (like MN's CCAP), licensing requirements, and quality indicators across all 50 states. Useful when MN mothers are choosing between in-state options or relocating with children.

Nationwide · Online · Visit Website

11. Office of Child Care (ACF) — Free

ACF's Office of Child Care administers the Child Care and Development Fund, the federal money that funds Minnesota's CCAP. Their site explains federal eligibility rules and how Minnesota's program compares to neighboring states' policies on copays, work requirements, and provider rates.

Nationwide · Online · Visit Website

12. Head Start Locator — Free

The federal Head Start Center Locator finds every MN Head Start and Early Head Start grantee, including programs in the Twin Cities, Duluth, Rochester, Mankato, and on the White Earth, Red Lake, and Leech Lake reservations.

Nationwide · Online · Visit Website

13. Early Head Start — Free

Early Head Start serves pregnant women, infants, and toddlers under 3 from low-income MN families with home visits, center-based care, and parent education. The federal portal lists each MN EHS grantee — especially valuable for mothers wanting comprehensive early support from pregnancy onward.

Nationwide · Online · Visit Website

14. Child Care Aware of America — Free

Child Care Aware of America's national helpline at 1-800-424-2246 supplements MN's state-level Child Care Aware system — useful when MN mothers need a national-perspective referral or are coordinating care across state lines for shared-custody situations.

Nationwide · Online · Visit Website

15. Zero to Three — Free

Zero to Three is the leading national source of research-based information for parents and providers on infant and toddler development. Useful for MN mothers in their first years of parenting who want evidence-based guidance on sleep, feeding, attachment, and early language development.

Nationwide · Online · Visit Website

16. USDA Child & Adult Care Food Program — Free

CACFP reimburses MN licensed childcare providers for serving nutritious meals to children — meaning higher-quality meals at participating Minnesota daycare centers and family child care homes at no extra cost to parents. Useful when comparing MN provider options.

Nationwide · Online · Visit Website

17. Boys & Girls Clubs of America — Free

BGCA.org links to MN clubs including Boys & Girls Clubs of the Twin Cities, Boys & Girls Clubs of Duluth, and clubs in greater MN cities. Memberships are typically $5-0/year, making it one of the most affordable after-school options for working MN mothers.

Nationwide · Online · Visit Website

18. National Association for Family Child Care — Free

NAFCC accredits high-quality family child care homes and provides MN parents with a directory of accredited home-based MN providers — useful for mothers seeking smaller-ratio, home-based care alternatives to center-based childcare.

Nationwide · Online · Visit Website

Frequently Asked

How many childcare assistance resources are in Minnesota?: Women's Corner tracks 18 childcare assistance resources for women in Minnesota.
Are childcare assistance resources in Minnesota free?: 17 of the 18 listed childcare assistance resources in Minnesota are explicitly free or low-cost.
Which cities in Minnesota have childcare assistance resources?: Listings span cities including St. Paul, Minneapolis.
What are some examples of childcare assistance resources in Minnesota?: Featured entries include Minnesota Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP), Parent Aware — Minnesota Quality Ratings, Child Care Aware Minnesota, Minnesota Head Start, Way to Grow — Minneapolis.
Do these listings include phone numbers?: 9 of 18 Minnesota childcare assistance listings include phone numbers.
How do I get help paying for daycare?: Apply for CCDF (Child Care and Development Fund) subsidies through your state's child care assistance agency — eligibility is typically up to 85% of state median income for working or in-school parents. Wait lists exist in some states. Head Start (ages 3–5) and Early Head Start (0–3) are free for income-qualifying families and include education, meals, and family services.
What's the difference between Head Start and daycare?: Head Start is a free federally-funded program for low-income kids ages 3–5 that includes early education, free meals, health and dental screenings, and parent involvement — typically 3–6 hours/day during the school year. Daycare/CCDF subsidies cover full-day, year-round care at licensed providers. Many families use both: Head Start morning + wrap-around CCDF-funded daycare.
Can I get childcare while I'm in school or job training?: Yes — CCDF subsidies cover parents in education and job training programs, not just employed parents. The CCAMPIS federal program funds free on-campus childcare at hundreds of colleges. WIOA-enrolled trainees often receive childcare support through their American Job Center case manager. TANF includes childcare as part of work activities.
Are there options for night-shift or weekend childcare?: Limited but growing. Search Child Care Aware (1-800-424-2246) for 'non-traditional hours' providers in your state. Some states have specific non-traditional-hour subsidies. Family Child Care homes are often more flexible than centers. The military Child Care Aware program serves National Guard, Reserve, and DoD-eligible families with 24/7 backup care.