2025 State of Motherhood Report

Motherhood in 2025 is marked by resilience—and deepening challenges.

In our annual State of Motherhood survey, more than 2,000 U.S. mothers told us loud and clear: the pressures of caregiving, economic uncertainty, and balancing career ambitions have only intensified over the past year. Childcare costs continue to soar, with over half of all mothers now finding care barely affordable or entirely out of reach. Workforce participation remains tenuous due to ongoing caregiving burdens. Additionally, mothers’ feel their voices go largely unheard by policy-makers as they struggle to prepare their children for an uncertain economic future.

Yet despite these deepening struggles, the strength and determination of mothers remains undeniable. These insights are a powerful reminder of the urgent need for meaningful change at home, at work, and in society. Here’s what motherhood looks like today, and why action matters now more than ever.

54%

of mothers rate childcare as "barely" or "not at all" affordable

In 2025, child-care costs significantly influence nearly every major family decision—from career choices to budgeting, financial security, and even family size. Across all income brackets, mothers consistently rank child-care expenses as a leading source of financial stress, surpassing housing, healthcare, and debt.

39%

of mothers cite childcare costs as one of their top two financial burdens, second only to general financial uncertainty at 44%

50% of Millennial and 52% of GenZ moms have considered leaving their jobs

because the cost and related stress of childcare outweigh earnings.

Economic unease colors nearly every parental decision this year. Almost two-thirds of mothers say they are worried their children will not be able to afford the life they hope for them. And that anxiety is shared across generations.

70%

of respondents find motherhood lonelier than imagined—the most pervasive unmet expectation in the survey to date.

Motherhood has always had solitary moments, but the 2025 data show isolation is no longer a side note—it is a defining feature of the experience. Seven in ten mothers report that motherhood is lonelier than they imagined; one in five feels that loneliness every single day.

Faith in the broader K-12 system is faltering. The skepticism spans every generation, with the youngest mothers least convinced.

54%

Only slightly more than half of women of childbearing age are
interested in having more children.

Cost drives the hesitation. Among respondents who answered “no” or “unsure” to the question of having plans to have more children, the leading deterrents are financial strain, a sense that the family already feels complete, and lack of support. Those same mothers report the highest rates of child-care costs exceeding $1,000 a month and the lowest confidence in long-term financial security.

Only 9 percent of mothers believe their voice is heard in the policymaking process, while a whopping 74 percent say it is not. The sentiment spans generations and pay scales.

Ethnicity shifts the margin only slightly. Hispanic mothers feel the least represented indicating 78 percent “No”, followed by white mothers at 76 percent and other/multi-ethnic mothers at 76 percent. The through-line is clear: no major demographic breaks above a 20 percent confidence threshold.

But as in previous years, the data capture both struggle and hope. One particularly bright spot shows a pulsing determination and underscores the brilliant tenacity that is the very heart and soul of motherhood. Moms aren't waiting for Congress to rescue them. They’re stitching together communities and they’re reporting progress in one important area: community.

What’s driving the rebound?

Comments reveal three repeating themes:

Organically formed support groups, some named “parent pods” that help relieve some of the pressures like rotating child-care
Finding ways to gather in person, like hybrid meet-ups sparked online but solidified offline, and
Renewed extended family support, specifically grand-parent involvement

The data imply that when mothers stitch together micro-communities, loneliness softens and confidence rises.

Put differently: policy may be lagging, but mothers are prototyping their own social infrastructure—and it’s starting to work.

METHODOLOGY STATEMENT

Motherly designed and administered this survey taken by 2,230 respondents through Motherly subscribers list, social media and partner channels. This report focuses on key insights gleaned from data weighted to reflect the racial and ethnic composition of the US based on available US Census data.