Subsidy tracking has a lot of moving parts: agency deposits, family copays, what shows up on statements, and how everything reconciles in your records. How you set it up at the start shapes everything that follows.. This article walks you through the planning steps so your setup matches how your center already runs.
How Subsidy Billing Works
Subsidies are tracked a little differently than regular tuition on the platform. Instead of one bill that mixes everything together, subsidy money and family money each live on their own track. Knowing how that works up front saves a lot of confusion later on.
The system splits everything for a subsidy student into two separate ledgers:
a. Private pay is anything the family is personally responsible for. Their copay, any regular tuition charges, payments they've made, and credits added directly through the billing portal. If it didn't come through the Subsidies dashboard, it's on the private pay side.
b. Subsidy is anything tracked through the Subsidies dashboard. Expected amounts the agency has agreed to pay, received deposits, and any balances tied to those agency funds.
The two sides stay completely separate. A credit on the subsidy side doesn't reduce what the family owes on private pay, and a family's payment doesn't show up on the subsidy side. They're parallel records for the same student.
What Each View Shows
When you open a subsidy student's billing profile, the Billing tab has a toggle at the top with three options:
a. All sources (the default). A combined view of everything: private pay charges, subsidy charges, payments, and credits in one place. Important to know: the current balance shown here is the total from both ledgers combined. If either ledger is off, that imbalance shows up here. Use this view for the full picture, but when something looks wrong, switch over to Private pay only or Subsidy only to find which side has the issue. That's how you'll know where to make the correction.
b. Private pay only. Filters out everything from the subsidy side. You see what the family is responsible for. This is essentially what they see on their statement.
c. Subsidy only. Filters out everything from the private pay side. You see only the agency-side records: expected amounts, deposits received, anything from the Subsidies dashboard.
Picture the End State First
Before you start setting up Subsidies, spend a few minutes thinking through how you want this to look when it's all in place. Most subsidy headaches come from providers diving in before answering a few key questions. Walk through these:
a. How detailed do you want your subsidy records to be? Some centers go for full reconciliation: every expected charge logged in Subsidies and matched to a received payment when it arrives. Others keep things lighter and only log one side of the subsidy. Both setups are valid, just different in scope.
b. How do you want subsidy money to show up in your records? Do you want subsidy funds tracked separately so you can report on them on their own, or blended into the family's account? This shapes how you record deposits.
c. Are you working with one agency or several? Each subsidy source (state, federal, local, military, grant-funded) is set up as its own agency in Playground. If you have several, give each a clear name so you don't mix them up.
The answers tell you which approach fits your center. The next section walks you through that.
Pick the Approach That Matches
Now that the two-ledger setup makes sense, the next question is how you want to handle the subsidy side day to day. Some providers stick to logging one side. Others prefer the full reconciliation with both. The right one for you depends on how predictable your subsidy payments are and how thorough you want your records to be.
Approach A: Record Just Charges OR Just Payments
Use this approach if you set up family billing plans as you normally would and choose to log only one side of the subsidy in Playground. Some providers record only the subsidy payments when they come in. Others record only the expected charges.
The two variants:
a. Payments only (most common). You record subsidy deposits in Subsidies when the money arrives, but you skip the expected amount step entirely.
b. Charges only. You record the expected subsidy amounts as charges, but you don't log the deposits in Subsidies. The actual money is tracked somewhere else, like an external accounting system.
When this fits:
a. Your copay (or whatever the family pays) stays relatively stable, so you know what to expect each cycle without needing the system to track everything.
b. You receive subsidy deposits inconsistently, in lump sums, or after long gaps. Recording both expected and received amounts and editing them as funds come in would mean a lot of work.
c. You'd rather track just one side of the subsidy in Playground and handle the rest in your records elsewhere.
What families see:
Their normal billing plan, the same as any private pay family. The subsidy side stays completely in the admin view and never affects what families see.
How it flows: (most common: payments only):
Family's billing plan is set up as you normally would (often the copay).
When the agency payment arrives, log the received amount only in the Subsidies dashboard.
How it flows (charges only):
Family's billing plan is set up as you normally would (often the copay).
In the Subsidies dashboard, enter the total amount of the charge as the expected amount.
What the views look like:
If you're recording payments only, the Subsidy only view will show a large credit balance (deposits coming in, no charges to offset them). If you're recording charges only, the Subsidy only view will show outstanding balances (charges with nothing paid against them). Either way, the All sources view combines that subsidy view with the family's private pay charges and balances, which can look unbalanced or unfamiliar at first glance. It's not wrong, just something to know about so you can read the views correctly.
Approach B: Charge Only the Copay, Track Subsidy Separately
Use this approach if you charge subsidy families only their copay portion AND you want to log both sides of the subsidy in Subsidies: the expected amount (the charge the agency has agreed to pay) and the received amount (the payment that actually arrived). The subsidy is tracked separately, not on the family's main billing.
When this fits:
a. You want family statements to show only what the family actually owes.
b. You report on subsidy income separately from private pay income.
c. The subsidy amount is steady enough that you can build it into the agency's records instead of the family's.
What families see:
A statement showing only their copay charges. The subsidy side stays in your admin view and never appears on the family's statement.
How it flows:
Family's billing plan is set to just the copay amount.
Record the expected amount in Subsidies (the charge the agency agreed to pay).
When the agency payment arrives, log the received amount against that expected charge.
The subsidy stays in your admin view as a separate ledger from the family's.
Quick Compare
Detail | Approach A | Approach B |
What you log in Subsidies | One side only (either charges or payments) | Both the expected amount and the received amount |
Family billing plan | Set up as normal (often the copay) | Just the copay |
Pros | Quick to log; ideal when you receive subsidy money all at once and can record it in one go without coming back to edit | Everything tracked in one place: the charge, what the agency paid, and the family's responsibility all visible together |
Cons | You have to track the other side separately elsewhere; the All sources view can look confusing | If a deposit is late or amounts change, you have to go back and edit. |
Set Up Your Subsidy Agencies
Once you know which approach you're using, the next step is creating the agencies that fund your subsidy families. Each subsidy source gets its own record under Subsidies.
To add an agency:
From your admin dashboard, navigate to the Billing tab and click Subsidies.
Click Add Agency in the top right corner.
Enter the Agency name. Use clear, specific names so you can tell agencies apart later. Examples: "CCDF," "State Tuition Program," "Military Childcare Subsidy," or the actual grant name.
Optionally add the Agency ID (a reference number from the agency) and a Description for your own notes.
Click Save.
Repeat this for every subsidy source you work with. They'll all live under the same Subsidies dashboard so you can track each one's deposits, debits, and credits separately.
Pro Tip: Create a Program for Each Agency
Under My School > Programs, create a Program named after each subsidy agency and enroll the students receiving that subsidy. When you record a deposit, filter the Distribution table by that Program so you only see the relevant students instead of your full roster.
Record Subsidy Deposits
Once your agency is set up and you know your approach, recording deposits follows the same general flow:
Navigate to Billing > Subsidies and click on the agency.
Click Add in the top right corner and select Deposit.
Enter the service period (start and end dates).
Check off This deposit has been received and enter the deposit date.
Optionally you can click the Set post and due dates to overwrite the existing post and due date on each debit.
Distribute the received amount across the students who received subsidy funds.
Review and click Finish and record.
For the click-by-click walkthrough with screenshots and videos, see the full
Track Subsidies article.
A Few Best Practices
a. Wait until you've received the funds before entering the deposit when you can. Entering an expected amount before the money arrives creates a debit on the student's account, which can throw off your records. If timing means you have to log it before the funds land, you can always go back and edit it once the actual amount comes in.
b. Use the Deposit date and Deposit number fields when you have them. The deposit date should match when the funds actually arrived, and the deposit number gives you a reference to match against the agency's records later. These small details pay off when you're reconciling.
c. Match service periods to your billing cycle when you can. If your billing runs monthly, log subsidies on a monthly service period. Aligning the two keeps your records easier to compare side by side.
Decide What Happens to the Difference
When you record a subsidy deposit, the expected amount and the received amount may not match. The agency might pay less than expected, or sometimes more. The platform asks you what to do with the difference on the Review differences screen.
You have three options. Each one does something different to the student's ledger.
Leave, Waive, or Charge
Option 1: Leave the balance on the student.
The system keeps a record that this amount was expected but never collected. The balance stays "open" on the student's account. In your admin view, you'll see this as an outstanding amount on the student's ledger.
When this fits: You're still expecting to collect the difference from somewhere. Maybe the agency is going to send a follow-up payment, or you're waiting on another funding source.
Option 2: Waive the difference.
The system officially closes the gap. It tells the ledger "we're not collecting this," and the student's account doesn't show an outstanding balance for this period. Your numbers stay clean.
When this fits: You don't expect to collect the difference from anyone. The waive option formally documents the gap as forgiven, which keeps your reporting accurate.
Option 3: Charge the family the difference.
The system creates a new charge on the family's account for the difference amount. The family sees this on their statement as a regular tuition charge.
When this fits: The agency only covered part of what was owed and the family is responsible for the rest.
Leave vs. Waive: The Key Difference
Leave and Waive often get confused because the end result can look similar. The answer is record keeping:
a. Leave keeps a record. The balance sits open on the student's ledger. It's similar to marking a bad debt that you won't collect on. Helpful when you need a clear audit trail, or when you're still waiting to see if the money comes in some other way.
b. Waive officially closes it out. The balance is gone from the student's ledger. Your numbers stay clean, and the gap flows into your subsidy or discount reporting properly.
What Each Option Looks Like
Say the expected subsidy was $1,500 and the received subsidy was $1,000, leaving a $500 gap.
Option | What admin sees on the student ledger | What the family sees |
Leave the balance | $500 still showing as outstanding on the student | Nothing |
Waive the difference | The deposit is closed out, no $500 outstanding | Nothing |
Charge the family | A new $500 debit on the family's account | A $500 debit on their statement |
💡 Don't leave a balance "open" by default thinking it's safer. Leaving the balance will show up in your reports as money owed and make it look like families owe you funds. Pick the option that matches what's actually happening with your funds.
Plan for Rates and Vouchers
If your subsidy agency sets specific rates and you want Playground to calculate subsidy amounts automatically, Rates and Vouchers is what you'll use. It's not enabled by default, so reach out to the Playground Support Team to turn it on first. For the full setup walkthrough, see Create Subsidy Rates and Vouchers.
Before we get into voucher setup, it helps to know how rates and vouchers relate to each other:
A rate is the dollar amount the agency pays for a specific type of care. You set rates up once per agency in the Rates section. They aren't tied to specific students yet, just to the types of care the agency funds.
A voucher is the agency's approval for a specific student to receive subsidy funding. Creating a voucher connects that student to one of the rates you've already set up, sets the start and end dates of the approval, and lets you decide how the family's co-payment is handled.
In short: rates define the prices. Vouchers apply those prices to specific students.
Because the voucher pulls from the rate, the rate has to be correct first. Before you create the voucher, double-check the rate matches what the agency has agreed to pay. A wrong rate means every voucher tied to it will calculate the wrong amount until you catch and fix it.
Start With Student Schedules
Before you create any vouchers, make sure each student's schedule is already set up in Playground. Rates are usually based on whether a student is full-time or part-time, and that status comes from the student's schedule. Having schedules in place lets you see at a glance what each child should be charged, how many days they're scheduled for, and how that lines up with what they actually attended. You can add a schedule during voucher creation if you need to, but it's faster and cleaner to have it done in advance for every student who'll get a voucher.
Pick the Right Co-Payment Billing Plan Option
When you're creating the voucher, one of the most important decisions is how to handle the family's co-payment. You'll see three options under Co-payment billing plan, and the math behind each is what trips most providers up.
The three options:
a. Don't create a co-payment billing plan. Use this if the family doesn't have a co-pay, or you handle the co-pay outside Playground.
b. Subtract co-payments from the rate. The agency rate already includes the co-pay portion. Playground subtracts the co-pay from the rate when calculating what the agency pays.
c. Charge co-payments in addition to the rate. The agency pays the full rate, and the family is charged the co-pay on top.
The math, with an example:
Say the agency rate is $100/day and the family co-pay is $25/day.
Option | What the agency pays per day | What the family pays per day | What the provider gets per day (agency + family) |
Don't create a co-payment billing plan | $100 | $0 (or handled outside Playground) | $100 |
Subtract co-payments from the rate | $75 (rate minus co-pay) | $25 | $100 |
Charge co-payments in addition to the rate | $100 | $25 | 4125 |
To pick the right option, start with the end in mind:
a. What total per day should you actually be receiving for this child? Work backward from that number to find the right option.
b. Is the agency rate meant to cover the FULL cost of care, with the family paying part of it? Use Subtract.
c. Is the agency paying their full rate AND the family paying extra on top? Use Charge in addition.
d. No co-pay at all? Use Don't create.
Match the Copayment Schedule to the Rate
When you're setting up the copayment during voucher creation, two pieces of alignment make life easier. Both are shown in the voucher details panel on the right side of the screen, so you can match them as you go.
a. Match the start and end dates. The right-side panel shows the rate's start and end dates. It's not required, but the cleanest setup is to have the copayment dates match those exactly. If the rate runs from May 1, 2026 to May 1, 2027, set the copayment to the same range.
b. Match the billing cycle. The same panel shows the rate's billing cycle (when charges post and when they're due). Set the copayment to follow that same cycle, and if you can, match it to the student's regular billing cycle for any other charges they have too. The goal is to have the rate, the copayment, and any other tuition charges all post and come due on the same days.
This alignment matters most when families are on autopay. When the rate, copayment, and the student's regular billing all line up, autopay processes everything at the same time. Families see one consistent set of charges hit on the same day instead of scattered pieces showing up on different days for different things. Less confusion, fewer questions, smoother billing for everyone.
Next Steps
With your subsidies planned out, the Track Subsidies article has the step-by-step for recording deposits and managing agencies. If you're using Rates and Vouchers, Create Subsidy Rates and Vouchers walks through that setup in detail.