The UK has the highest childcare costs of any country in the Western world. According to a recent OECD report , families in the UK spend about a third of their income on childminders and nurseries. That's over three times as much as families in France and Germany.Childcare costs in New Zealand and Ireland are also steep with families forced to spend at least 29 and 27 percent of their income respectively on full-time care for their children. In the United States, costs are slightly lower (just over a quarter of family income) while Swedes only have to pay about 4.4 percent towards childcare.