The Institute of Statistics of Buenos Aires City (IDECBA) updated its measurement of child-rearing costs for June, and the numbers confirm the heavy pressure that spending on children exerts on family budgets. According to the report, the monthly cost of raising a child in the federal capital ranges between $966,505 and $1,563,485, depending on the household's income level and the child's age.
The IDECBA measurement segments households into three socioeconomic levels and three age groups (0-3 years, 4-6 years, and 7-12 years). For the lowest range —middle-income households— the monthly cost for a child aged 0-3 amounts to $1,563,485, while for the same age group in lower-income households the figure drops to $966,505. In all cases, food and beverages, education, and housing account for more than 60% of total spending.
In the breakdown by category, food is the main component of child-rearing costs, with a share exceeding 30% in lower-income households. It is followed by education —including school fees, materials and extracurricular activities— and housing expenses, which in Buenos Aires City include rent, building fees, and public services. The report also includes items such as clothing, health, transportation, and recreation.
The IDECBA survey is based on the Child-Rearing Basket, a methodology that combines price data from the Basic Food Basket (CBA) and the Total Basic Basket (CBT) with information from the National Household Expenditure Survey (ENGHo). This approach allows estimating the cost of goods and services necessary for child development, adjusted by age and socioeconomic level.
The June update reflects the impact of inflation on the prices of food and educational services, which have shown increases above the general average in recent months. IDECBA officials noted that the data serves as input for the design of public child protection policies, although they clarified that the Child-Rearing Basket is not an official indicator of poverty or indigence lines. The full report is available on the agency's website.
