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For a household like the one you describe, the biggest policy differences are not just about tax rates. They are about whether support is tied to working, how quickly benefits reduce as earnings rise, childcare costs, and whether parties target food and power prices directly.

I’ve treated this as a 2026-election comparison, using policies published by the parties during 2026 where available. I’m not ranking the parties or telling you how to vote.

The main options relevant to your situation

Party	Food / essentials	Power	Childcare	Sole-parent / part-time-work implications
National	More supermarket competition; $45m community food support	Home Energy Fund; existing power-credit scheme	FamilyBoost: up to 40% of eligible ECE costs, max $120/week, household income up to $229k	Strong emphasis on moving sole parents into work; Budget 2026 allocated $93.3m for employment assistance for 25,000 sole parents
Labour	Ban price gouging on essentials; reform supermarket wholesale market	SolarSaver, including support for renters	No comparable new universal childcare subsidy announced in its 2026 platform	Has proposed broader cost-of-living measures rather than tighter welfare conditions
Greens	KiwiMart/public supermarket proposal; expanded free school lunches	Kiwipower, warmer-home measures, community solar	Move toward free ECE for up to 35 hours/week	Income Guarantee, higher benefit/work-income thresholds and removal of sanctions proposed
NZ First	Break up supermarket duopoly	Break up large power companies/gentailers	Kiwi Kids Grant for NZ-citizen children aged 0–3	More emphasis on reducing household prices than changing the sole-parent benefit/work trade-off
ACT	Welfare payments directed toward essentials for some long-term beneficiaries	Less direct household subsidy emphasis	No major childcare-cost policy comparable with National/Greens identified	Would make electronic money management mandatory for certain long-term Jobseeker recipients

National

For childcare, National's existing FamilyBoost is particularly relevant to a working sole parent. It currently reimburses 40% of eligible ECE costs, up to $120 a week, with eligibility extended to families with average household income up to $229,000. National says more than 97,500 families have received it. Wedd's Weekly - 30 July 2026 | National Party

National's 2026 Budget also allocated $93.3 million to help 25,000 sole parents access employment assistance, including work-placement and career support. Incentivising work and independence | National Party

For food, National proposes further supermarket competition, including separating New World and PAK'nSAVE so they compete more directly. 2026 Election Policy | National Party

For electricity, its Home Energy Fund is intended to help households electrify their homes and reduce power bills. There is also an industry-funded Power Credit Scheme for eligible households affected by changes to low-use electricity pricing. 2026 Election Policy | National Party

Who this particularly matters to: a sole parent who is working and paying significant ECE fees may get substantial direct help from FamilyBoost, provided the childcare arrangement and income meet its rules.

Labour

Labour's 2026 platform concentrates more on reducing the price of essentials directly. It proposes making price gouging illegal for large companies with significant market power, covering groceries, energy, fuel, telecommunications, banking and insurance. It also proposes restructuring supermarket wholesale access to increase competition. Labour's 2026 Election Policies

For a renter, Labour's SolarSaver is notable because the programme is explicitly intended to include renters and communities, rather than only homeowners. Labour's 2026 Election Policies

Labour's 2026 policies also include a $20 weekly public-transport fare cap, free prescriptions from July 2027 and three free GP visits a year. Those aren't food or power payments, but could reduce other unavoidable household expenses. Labour's 2026 Election Policies

The important qualification is that I don't see a new Labour 2026 childcare policy that matches National's current FamilyBoost or the Greens' proposed ECE expansion in scale. So for someone whose ability to work is constrained by childcare, that distinction matters.

Greens

The Greens have the most explicit proposals aimed at the combination of low income + childcare + basic living costs.

Their proposed Income Guarantee is designed to establish a minimum income, including for people who are working. Their published figures include a minimum of $735 a week after tax for a sole parent, with additional child-related payments; the Greens also propose increasing the amount people can earn from part-time/casual work before losing support. GDP figures show why Greens’ Income Guarantee is essential - Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand

For ECE, the Greens propose initially capping charges at $10 per day per child on top of the existing 20 free hours, moving toward free ECE for up to 35 hours per week by 2029. Their more recent material says higher ECE funding would be directed toward public/non-profit provision. Green Budget: Early Childhood Education for Everyone - Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand

For food, their 2026 programme includes a publicly owned supermarket, KiwiMart, intended to increase competition and put downward pressure on grocery prices. They also propose restoring and expanding Ka Ora, Ka Ako, with around 150,000 additional children receiving school lunches. Greens launch plan to break up the supermarket duopoly and bring down the price of food - Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand

For power, the Greens propose Kiwipower, community energy investment, zero-interest clean-energy loans and expanding Warmer Kiwi Homes. Importantly for a renter, their policy explicitly includes a renter's right to solar and expanded support for low-income households to make homes warmer and more energy-efficient. Green Party launches plan to cut power bills and take power back from the big energy companies - Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand

New Zealand First

NZ First's 2026 policies focus heavily on structural changes to food and electricity prices.

It proposes splitting up the supermarket duopoly, including restructuring Foodstuffs and giving the Commerce Commission stronger enforcement powers. NZ First Campaign Policy Announcement: NZ First Will Break Up the Supermarket Duopoly, Bring Food Prices Down for Kiwis - New Zealand First

On power, it proposes separating generation and retailing and changing the electricity-market structure, arguing that this would reduce prices and increase competition. "Power to the People" - Winston Peters - State of the Nation 2026 - New Zealand First

It has also announced a Kiwi Kids Grant for New Zealand citizens raising their first three children, covering the first three years of a child's life. The announcement says eligibility is restricted to New Zealand-citizen children and the first three children, but the precise payment amounts and detailed eligibility conditions are not yet as fully specified as existing MSD/IRD programmes. NZFirst Announces Policy to Encourage Kiwis To Have More Kids - New Zealand First

ACT

ACT's 2026 welfare policy goes in a different direction. For Jobseeker Support Work Ready recipients who remain on a benefit for more than four months, ACT proposes mandatory electronic money management, with benefit money directed toward essentials such as groceries, rent, power, transport, health and childcare and restrictions on other spending. ACT New Zealand

That's important to distinguish from a policy that increases household income: it is principally a proposed restriction on how some benefit income can be spent, rather than additional assistance.

The current rules are important for your calculation

If you're currently receiving Sole Parent Support, the existing rules already create the work/childcare interaction you're describing.

As of June 2026, a sole parent can earn $160/week before tax before Sole Parent Support is reduced. Earnings between $160 and $250 reduce the benefit by 30 cents per dollar, and earnings above $250 reduce it by 70 cents per dollar. There is a special provision where childcare costs can raise the amount you can earn before the benefit is affected, depending on your circumstances. Sole parent support - deduction tables | Work and Income

And if your youngest child is aged 3–13, current rules require you to look for and prepare for suitable part-time work; if the child is under 3, the obligation is generally to prepare for work rather than look for a job. Sole Parent Support obligations | Work and Income

You can also receive childcare assistance separately. Current 2026 Childcare Subsidy rates depend on family income; for one child, the highest rate is $6.72/hour, up to $336/week for 50 hours, with lower rates at higher incomes. Benefit rates at 1 April 2026 | Work and Income

Working for Families is another important piece: you generally qualify if you're the principal caregiver of a dependent child, with payments determined by family income. Working for Families overview

What I'd compare in your position

Rather than asking "which party is best?", I'd put the policies through these four practical tests:

1. How much of an extra dollar earned do I actually keep?
   Look closely at benefit abatements, Working for Families and tax credits.

2. What happens to my childcare bill if I increase my hours?
   National's FamilyBoost and the Greens' proposed ECE changes work very differently.

3. Does the policy help a renter, rather than primarily a homeowner?
   This matters for power policies: Labour's SolarSaver and the Greens' renter/solar and warmer-home proposals explicitly contemplate renters. Labour's 2026 Election Policies

4. Is the benefit immediate and household-specific, or is it expected to reduce prices generally?
   A childcare rebate is relatively direct; supermarket/power competition policies depend on the proposed market changes actually reducing prices.

If you want, I can take the next step and make this much more concrete: give me your approximate weekly take-home pay, hours worked, weekly rent, childcare hours/cost, child's age, and whether you're currently receiving Sole Parent Support/Working for Families, and I can show how the documented 2026 proposals could affect your household budget—without recommending which party you should vote for.