How to Find Daycare Openings in Ontario

Most Ontario parents start their childcare search the same way: joining waitlists, searching government directories, and getting put on hold. These approaches were designed for long-term enrollment placement, not for finding a licensed daycare opening this month or this week.

Waitlists for infant care in Ontario can run four years or longer. Government directories show which centres are licensed and which participate in CWELCC, but not which ones have openings available today. The information gap is enormous and it costs families their jobs and their savings.

Licensed daycare and childcare centres across Ontario have short-term and part-time openings every single week. A family goes on vacation. A child transitions to school. A schedule changes. These openings are real and available now, but invisible to parents searching through traditional channels.

The Auditor General of Ontario found that approximately 27 percent of licensed childcare spaces sit vacant on any given day. That availability exists across CWELCC and non-CWELCC centres alike. The challenge is that it has never had an efficient way to reach parents who need it.

ChildSpot is a real-time licensed childcare and daycare marketplace for Ontario. Operators post openings directly through the app as spots become available. Parents search by date, location, and age group and see only centres with actual openings right now, both CWELCC-enrolled and non-CWELCC licensed.

Every listing holds an active licence with the Ontario Ministry of Education. CWELCC-enrolled centres offering the $22/day maximum rate are clearly labelled. When you find a spot that works, book and pay securely through the app in minutes.

CWELCC is the Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care program. Enrolled centres in Ontario charge eligible families a maximum of $22 per day in 2026 for children under six. ChildSpot lists both CWELCC-enrolled and non-CWELCC licensed centres with clear labelling so you can filter based on your budget and your child's age group.

ChildSpot is free to download and search. A platform fee applies when you book a spot, comprised of the centre's daily fee and the ChildSpot booking fee. Parents keep 100 percent of any CWELCC subsidy they are eligible for.