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Does parenting get less expensive or more expensive?

161 replies

SwizzlesTwizzles · 29/10/2026 13:10

I'm wondering about our future trajectory! Life got a lot cheaper when my 8 year old left nursery and since then the only things that have gotten more expensive are the amount of food she eats, the fact that we have to pay for school dinners now she's in year 3, and she's signed up to a couple of expensive hobbies. But generally she's much cheaper now than she was as a toddler.
I have a 2 year old as well and I'm looking forward to the end of nursery fees as something that will give us more financial wiggle room, but I'm feeling a sense of foreboding that I'm wrong about that.
Is there stuff that gets more expensive later on besides general uptick of groceries consumed?

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BeOchreDog · 01/11/2026 14:36

Our nursery fees are £75 a day with the funding or £92 without. I think it’s difficult for people with older teenagers/adult children to compare to costs now vs the cost 15-20 years ago.

I can’t fathom that even a uni child or teenager would cost £1.5k/£2k per month each on top of the other costs like clothes, food, clubs that we pay for our nursery aged children.

raindroplets75 · 01/11/2026 14:38

Wehaditsogood · 01/11/2026 14:26

University accommodation is catered ensuite, but we had no choice. This is what DS had been allocated. No catering at weekends.
It is not a new student flat, it is basically a shared house. Old-fashioned uni accommodation.
It is in the North.
Room is awful. I can't believe we pay over £10K for it.

Yes same for us. Cheapest was £5000. But her accommodation is £12000
wasn’t her choice of accommodation she didn’t get allocated any of her choices. Her choices id of said were midrange 6-8000.

She had an unconditional offer so she applied for accommodation as soon as it became available to do so as well.

it’s not even catered accommodation she is in.

TiredShadows · 01/11/2026 15:21

As others have mentioned, there are a lot of variables. Many you won't know now, but some of it you can influence.

My younger two children are the same age was one of my colleague's two children. She goes on about girls are so expensive with the hair products, make up, and shopping trips she does with her daughters. That's entirely because my colleague likes doing that with her daughter, not because all teenage girls are like that. My colleague encourages her girls into expensive brands, hobbies and trips - she gave her kid for a post-GCSE gift was a two week trip in the Americas. On results day, mine got a cookie cake from Millie's and new steel-toe cap boots to meet the requirements of the Level 3 course she got into. They're worlds apart, and the expenses show.

I found clothes hardest between about 9ish and nearly adult size, there is far less secondhand and even lower price stores seem to go out of those sizes faster than the younger sizes plus growth spurts can ruin best laid plans. Having a secondary school with a strong secondhand options can help a lot for blazers and jumpers. Once adult size, their clothes are lasting longer and there are more options across more price ranges.

As for uni - there are a lot of options, and there maybe more when your child gets to be that age. My oldest spent a year working between college and uni, went the cadetship route, similar to a degree apprenticeship, so tuition and monthly bursary paid so even though the required halls for the first year ate most of that bursary, our only expense was his phone and visiting him. I know a lot of young people taking on additional Level 3 qualifications or taking council courses that lead to direct employment rather than going the traditional uni route.

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Vegetablespringrolls · 01/11/2026 21:10

TiredShadows · 01/11/2026 15:21

As others have mentioned, there are a lot of variables. Many you won't know now, but some of it you can influence.

My younger two children are the same age was one of my colleague's two children. She goes on about girls are so expensive with the hair products, make up, and shopping trips she does with her daughters. That's entirely because my colleague likes doing that with her daughter, not because all teenage girls are like that. My colleague encourages her girls into expensive brands, hobbies and trips - she gave her kid for a post-GCSE gift was a two week trip in the Americas. On results day, mine got a cookie cake from Millie's and new steel-toe cap boots to meet the requirements of the Level 3 course she got into. They're worlds apart, and the expenses show.

I found clothes hardest between about 9ish and nearly adult size, there is far less secondhand and even lower price stores seem to go out of those sizes faster than the younger sizes plus growth spurts can ruin best laid plans. Having a secondary school with a strong secondhand options can help a lot for blazers and jumpers. Once adult size, their clothes are lasting longer and there are more options across more price ranges.

As for uni - there are a lot of options, and there maybe more when your child gets to be that age. My oldest spent a year working between college and uni, went the cadetship route, similar to a degree apprenticeship, so tuition and monthly bursary paid so even though the required halls for the first year ate most of that bursary, our only expense was his phone and visiting him. I know a lot of young people taking on additional Level 3 qualifications or taking council courses that lead to direct employment rather than going the traditional uni route.

Thankyou for this. My MIL is always going on about "poor SIL and BIL" who have girls who are so expensive with their hair stuff, designer clothes, nails and make up. I have boys who mostly don't care what they wear. In our house clothes are basic stuff from ebay or asda, anything else is a birthday or Christmas present. My dc know that. I'm the same, I get nice bubble bath for Christmas and when that runs out it's tesco own brand stuff.

My MIL is convinced that if I had girls I would end up buying expensive hair stuff, clothes etc.

Babybear260 · 01/11/2026 21:16

SwizzlesTwizzles · 29/10/2026 13:10

I'm wondering about our future trajectory! Life got a lot cheaper when my 8 year old left nursery and since then the only things that have gotten more expensive are the amount of food she eats, the fact that we have to pay for school dinners now she's in year 3, and she's signed up to a couple of expensive hobbies. But generally she's much cheaper now than she was as a toddler.
I have a 2 year old as well and I'm looking forward to the end of nursery fees as something that will give us more financial wiggle room, but I'm feeling a sense of foreboding that I'm wrong about that.
Is there stuff that gets more expensive later on besides general uptick of groceries consumed?

I’m only 8 months in but so far more expensive. I still breastfeed BUT he’s starting to eat more solids which ultimately means more food. I don’t eat breakfast. But on the shopping list now is eggs , avocado, Greek yoghurt. All things I defo should’ve been eating but it adds to the food bill.

As of maybe a month ago he would just be in baby grow but now we’ve branched out to outfits which are more expensive I think… think it’s only gonna get more expensive from here in out!

blueshoes · 01/11/2026 22:59

I can’t fathom that even a uni child or teenager would cost £1.5k/£2k per month each on top of the other costs like clothes, food, clubs that we pay for our nursery aged children.

We pay £2,200 per month for ds at uni. But this is everything - tuition fees, accommodation, clubs and basic spending money.

BertieBotts · 01/11/2026 23:45

BeOchreDog · 01/11/2026 14:36

Our nursery fees are £75 a day with the funding or £92 without. I think it’s difficult for people with older teenagers/adult children to compare to costs now vs the cost 15-20 years ago.

I can’t fathom that even a uni child or teenager would cost £1.5k/£2k per month each on top of the other costs like clothes, food, clubs that we pay for our nursery aged children.

Yes but bear in mind you will be paying the costs 15-20 years in the future as well.

TallagallaPenguin · 02/11/2026 12:33

Vegetablespringrolls · 01/11/2026 03:56

I've just paid £25 for a ticket to watch 20 year old dc1 playing the piano. In primary school it was free!

Just wondering those of you paying 10k a year for student accommodation, are your dc in expensive areas or are they in some kind of luxury student flat? Just curious as dc2 pays around £6k a year for his accommodation in Buckinghamshire which I thought was a fairly expensive area.

Ours is £9.8k for 9 months ish (academic year only), shared bathroom, shared kitchen (with 22 others in a large flat), sink in room, single bed. We had no real choice on the accom costs - he’d asked for one at 8k or less, but was allocated this one and it’s take it or leave it. It’s 45 mins walk from lectures etc. It’s more or less in the middle of student room costs at the uni from what I could see.

So not luxury at all - this is Bristol and famously v expensive for accom so we did know what we were letting ourselves in for, and if it were prohibitive for him he’d have had to just not apply there and focus on places that are generally less expensive to live.

He only gets minimum maintenance loan, which covers living costs well (not including accom). So effectively we are paying the £9.8k accom, he uses maintenance loan £5k for living costs, and tuition fees loan to pay that.

daffodilandtulip · 02/11/2026 12:36

Driving lessons, phones, laptops, uni accommodation. I’m paying more than I ever have in my life 😭

StrippedTowel · 02/11/2026 12:39

Parenting definitely gets more expensive

daffodilandtulip · 02/11/2026 12:43

HewasH2O · 01/11/2026 14:34

Everyone always says that 18 year olds should get the cheapest uni accommodation and a PT job. They can't.

There is also a certain naivety that families have been able to squirrel away at least £60k per child to fund 3 years at university. Back in the real world....

Yes this! My DD course is 9-5 most days, with the expectation that you match each hour in uni with personal study. And work when?

She’s in the cheapest self catering accommodation, c3k per term. It’s a science course so lots of extras to buy for labs etc.

Driving lessons (currently two children!!) £70 a week for an eternity with the tests fiasco.

Why are 18yo being assessed on their parent income? Why the expectation that we can just provide the “loan”?

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