Home. If you have another kid, when one is sick at home you may still send the other.

Daycare near home for all the reasons already mentioned. I would only choose near work if 1) I was a single parent who never worked remotely. (Never get stuck in traffic on the way to daycare pick up) or 2) both parents work near the daycare. Or 3) the commute is short. Even if one parent both drops off and picks up, do they ever travel or work from home?

Anonymous wrote:Also remember, that is 30 min in the car per day for your LO. Anytime I can not put my kids in the car, especially at rush hour, I dont.

This. If it's a good daycare and they are happy there, it is better for them to spend 30 extra minutes at daycare than sitting in a car in traffic.

If your kid is happy somewhere right now and you are happy with them, stay there.

Anonymous wrote:I would always choose closer to home, even without covid. Having it by one partner's office obligates that person to be the full time drop off/pick up/sick call parent and that's not really fair. The only way I would switch right now is if you really needed the $3K and the partner is definitely going to the office every day.

Another thing to consider is whether your current or the new alternative daycare is a longer term fit. A lot of daycares are good for the infant and toddler years but not great for preschool. If you're going to be looking at a new place for preschool in a year that's another reason to stay put for now.

+1 also if you are close to home it is easier to make friends with the other parents and do playdates

Mine is near my home (walking distance). I was working from home when we started and I don't have a car

Home

Also remember, that is 30 min in the car per day for your LO. Anytime I can not put my kids in the car, especially at rush hour, I dont.

Picked Home, in case wfh, kid getting sick staying home, laid off, less travel time in car seat, emergency pick up or whatsoever.

I would always choose closer to home, even without covid. Having it by one partner's office obligates that person to be the full time drop off/pick up/sick call parent and that's not really fair. The only way I would switch right now is if you really needed the $3K and the partner is definitely going to the office every day.

Another thing to consider is whether your current or the new alternative daycare is a longer term fit. A lot of daycares are good for the infant and toddler years but not great for preschool. If you're going to be looking at a new place for preschool in a year that's another reason to stay put for now.

Home, unless you have a very short commute.

You mentioned partners office, but does partner go to the office everyday and do pickup/drop off? Where do you work?
I would stay close to home if 1) Someone works from home and 2) the $3k savings is not a deal breaker. If you both work outside the home 5 days a week, then go the nicer, cheaper daycare.

Unless your office is over an hour away from home, and you go there every day, stay where you are.

1) most centers ask that you arrive within an hour if your child is sick. Can you do that better from one or the other location?
2) are you willing to drive downtown to drop off on days when you're sick, you have a dr. appt., your kid has a doc. appt., etc.?
3) are you meeting neighborhood kids and families in your current program that will contribute to your / your kid's social life?

Close to home. You want the flexibility to easily take your child if you’re not going into the office.

I'm sure I've seen discussions about this on here but can't find via the search... Looking for input on choosing a daycare location close to home vs close to the office. We are currently at a daycare that is about a 15-minute walk from our home; it's small and we love the teachers, and our kid is very happy there. The easy commute is really great. We've been offered a spot at a daycare downtown, relatively close to my partner's office, so about a 15-minute drive. In "normal" times we'd switch to this one in a heartbeat: The facility is nicer and it's about $3k a year cheaper. But it's not "normal" times and quite frankly I'm not sure if/when we'll ever get back to normal. We are leaning towards staying with our current close-to-home location but curious if others have thoughts on considerations we may be missing or could think about differently. Thanks!