Playground pricing is quote-based for its paid plans. Playground offers a free account to get started, but subscription prices for centers come from a sales quote.
What Playground does publish, unlike Brightwheel and Procare, is its payment processing fees: 3% plus $0.30 per card payment and a flat $1.00 per ACH payment. It also states there are no contracts, no hidden fees, and no cancellation fees.
This guide covers what Playground confirms, how its processing fees work out in practice, how it compares with Brightwheel on pricing, and what changed after Procare acquired Playground in September 2026.
Best for
Centers comparing Playground quotes
Covers
How the quote works, published processing fees, the Brightwheel comparison, and the Procare acquisition
Based on
Playground's website and help center, plus Capterra
Updated
November 2026
Key takeaways
- Playground offers a free account, and paid plans are priced by quote for home-based, center, and multi-location programs.
- Unlike Brightwheel and Procare, Playground publishes its processing fees: 3% plus $0.30 per card payment and a flat $1.00 per ACH (automated clearing house) payment.
- Playground states there are no contracts, no hidden fees, and no cancellation fees.
- Playground does not publish a per-student price, so treat figures on comparison sites as unverified until you have a quote.
- Procare acquired Playground on September 14, 2026, and neither company has announced pricing changes.
Playground pricing at a glance
Here is what Playground's own website and help center confirm as of November 2026.
| What Playground confirms | |
| Free option | A free account to get started |
| Paid plans | Priced by quote, tailored to home-based, center, or multi-location programs |
| Contracts | No contracts and no cancellation fees |
| Card processing | 3% + $0.30 per transaction |
| ACH processing | $1.00 flat per transaction |
| Offline payments | No fees for cash, check, or other payments recorded outside Playground |
| Onboarding | Account manager onboarding and data migration help |
You will see per-student figures for Playground on some comparison sites. Playground's own pages do not publish a per-student price, so treat those numbers as unverified until you have a quote.
Playground childcare software pricing: how the quote works
Playground's pricing page is a demo request form. It asks whether you are a home-based program, a center, or a multi-location operator, and tailors the demo and quote from there.
Its sign-up page lists pricing questions about cost, free trials, setup fees, and device limits, and promises:
- No contracts
- No hidden fees
- No cancellation fees
- Account manager onboarding and data migration help
When you get your quote, ask how the price is calculated. Whether it is per child, per site, or a flat rate makes a big difference as you grow.
Playground payment processing fees
Unlike Brightwheel and Procare, Playground publishes its processing rates. According to its help center:
| Payment method | Fee per transaction |
| Credit or debit card | 3% + $0.30 |
| ACH bank transfer | $1.00 flat |
| Offline (cash, check, Venmo) | No fee |
| Refunds, sweeps, failed payments | No fee |
Administrators choose whether the center or families cover these fees. One exception: Playground's help center notes that processing fees on application fees collected through an enrollment listing are always charged to the program.
Two more details worth knowing. Processing fees still apply to autopay, and they are not refunded if you refund a payment.
What the fees look like on a real tuition payment
The gap between card and ACH is large on tuition-sized payments. Using Playground's published rates:
| Monthly tuition payment | Card fee (3% + $0.30) | ACH fee ($1.00) |
| $800 | $24.30 | $1.00 |
| $1,200 | $36.30 | $1.00 |
| $1,800 | $54.30 | $1.00 |
That is why many centers nudge families toward bank transfers, or pass card fees on to families who choose to pay by card. If most of your families pay by card and you absorb the fees, this line can easily exceed the subscription itself.
Brightwheel vs Playground pricing
Brightwheel and Playground are often shortlisted together. Here is how their pricing compares based on what each company publishes.
| Brightwheel | Playground | |
| Free option | Free plan, limited to 1 staff member and fewer than 20 students | Free account |
| Paid plan pricing | Custom quote for Premium | Custom quote |
| Card processing rate | Not published, discounted on Premium | 3% + $0.30, published |
| ACH processing rate | Not published | $1.00 flat, published |
| Who pays processing fees | Families may see service fees, per Brightwheel's help center | The program chooses whether it or families pay |
| Contract terms | Not stated on pricing pages | No contracts, no cancellation fees |
| Ownership | Independent | Owned by Procare since September 2026 |
The practical difference: with Playground you can model your processing costs before the sales call. With Brightwheel, you need the quote to see them. For more on Brightwheel's model, see our full guide to Brightwheel pricing.
What changed after Procare acquired Playground
Procare Solutions acquired Playground on September 14, 2026. Both products are still sold separately, and neither company has announced changes to Playground's pricing.
If you are signing with Playground now, or renewing, it is reasonable to ask:
- Is our subscription price locked, and for how long?
- Will the published processing rates stay the same?
- Is there any plan to move Playground customers onto Procare's platform or pricing?
Our Procare acquires Playground FAQ covers what has been confirmed about the deal. For a feature comparison, see Procare vs Playground, and for Procare's own model, our guide to Procare pricing.
For a side-by-side look at how Playground's pricing model compares with other platforms, including Famly, Storypark, Daily Connect, and more, see our full guide to childcare software pricing.
What reviewers say about Playground's value
Playground scores well on review sites, including on value.
- On Capterra, Playground is rated 4.8 overall across more than 190 reviews.
- Its Capterra sub-scores are 4.7 for value for money, 4.7 for ease of use, and 4.9 for customer support.
- Reviewers frequently praise its billing tools and responsive support.
The review count is much smaller than older platforms like Procare or Brightwheel, so weigh the scores alongside your own demo.
Questions to ask on your Playground quote call
- How is our subscription price calculated: per child, per site, or flat?
- What does the free account include, and when would we need a paid plan?
- Is payroll included in our plan, or priced separately?
- Are there any setup or migration fees for a center our size?
- Is our price locked after the Procare acquisition, and for how long?
- Can we export all family, billing, and attendance data at any time?
Where illumine fits
If the acquisition has you looking at independent options, illumine is an AI-native childcare management platform used by more than 4,000 centers across 60+ countries. Our plans are structured by the number of centers you run:
Essentials, for 1 to 2 centers
Parent communication, attendance, billing, and enrollment
Growth + AI, for 3 to 10 centers
Adds learning and assessment tools, multi-site management, and advanced CRM automations
Scale, for 10+ centers
Adds a multi-site command center, advanced reporting, API access, SSO (single sign-on), and custom onboarding and migration
See the full breakdown on our pricing page, or compare eight options in our guide to the best Playground alternatives.
Why trust this article
This article is built from public sources only: Playground's pricing and sign-up pages, its help center articles on processing fees and payment settings, Brightwheel's published pricing information, and review data from Capterra. We have not used Playground hands-on, and we have not received a Playground quote.
Where Playground does not publish a figure, such as its subscription price, we have said so rather than repeat unverified estimates from third-party sites.
Frequently asked questions on Playground pricing
How much does Playground cost?
Playground does not publish its subscription prices. It offers a free account to get started and quotes paid plans based on your program type and size. Its payment processing fees are published: 3% plus $0.30 per card payment and $1.00 per ACH payment.
Is Playground free?
Playground offers a free account, and its sign-up page states there are no contracts, hidden fees, or cancellation fees. Paid plans are priced by quote, so confirm what the free account includes and when you would need to upgrade.
What are Playground's payment processing fees?
According to Playground's help center, card payments cost 3% plus $0.30 per transaction and ACH bank transfers cost a flat $1.00 per transaction. Offline payments, refunds, and failed payments have no fee, and the center can choose whether it or families cover processing fees.
Is Playground cheaper than Brightwheel?
It depends on your quote, because both companies price their paid plans individually. Playground publishes its processing rates, which makes payment costs easier to estimate up front, while Brightwheel does not publish its rates on its pricing page.
Does Playground have contracts?
Playground's sign-up page states there are no contracts and no cancellation fees. Confirm this in writing on your quote, especially if you are signing after Procare's acquisition of Playground in September 2026.
Did Playground's pricing change after the Procare acquisition?
Procare acquired Playground on September 14, 2026, and no pricing changes have been announced. If you are signing or renewing, ask whether your subscription price and processing rates are locked.
