New data from the federal education department shows families on average saved an extra $2768 since the changes came into effect in 2023.
The percentage of childcare fees subsidised by the government has also increased, rising to as much as 90 per cent for those earning under $80,000.
Wages for workers in the sector are being boosted by 15 per cent over two years under laws that passed parliament in November.
Pay packets rose by 10 per cent from December, with the remaining five per cent boost to come into effect at the end of 2025, as part of a $3.6 billion measure.
But it will only apply to centres that agreed not to push up fees by more than 4.4 per cent.
Asked how many childcare centres had pushed fees up to the cap, Education Minister Jason Clare said it was too early to tell.
"I suspect that most centres will increase their fees somewhere between zero and up to that four per cent over the next 12 months," he told reporters at a Goodstart centre in Jerrabomberra, near the ACT-NSW border, on Tuesday.
"The key thing is, they can't get it beyond that and that's a big part of this deal. We want to make sure that the money goes to the worker, not the centre."
Mr Clare said the childcare worker exodus is starting to turn around. (Mick Tsikas/AAP PHOTOS)
Mr Clare said the government's policies were making a real difference for families by allowing them to keep more of their money.
"When we were elected two-and-a-half years ago, childcare workers were leaving the sector in droves. That's the truth of it, and we're now starting to see that turnaround," he said.
Opposition early childhood education spokeswoman Angie Bell said the coalition backed increases to wages, but the extra pay "wouldn't touch the sides" during the cost-of-living crisis.
"The out-of-pocket costs for early childhood education have gone up by 11 per cent in the last 12 months, so these increases in wages are well deserved by the educators," she told ABC Radio.
Under the subsidy, the income cap for eligibility for the scheme rose from just over $356,000 to $530,000.
The average saving under the subsidy was based on a family earning $120,000 a year paying for 30 hours of childcare a week.
Families on average have saved an extra $2768 since childcare subsidy changes took effect in 2023. (Paul Miller/AAP PHOTOS)
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the subsidy boost for parents had helped pave the way for expanding childcare affordability and access.
"We want to make sure we are putting in place the building blocks for a universal childcare system, while providing immediate cost-of-living relief for families and educators," he said.
Australia's largest early childcare provider Goodstart reported job applications had risen by 35 per cent year-on-year.
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