A very common question for babysitters is, how much should I charge for babysitting?
Babysitting is not rocket science but it does demand a fair amount of babysitter know-how and some amount of common sense to be able to come up with a reasonable rate.
Unfortunately, it’s not easy to answer the question especially if you are a new babysitter.
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It’s best to explore all the critical factors of personalized childcare service. That way, you will be able to answer the question, how much should I charge for babysitting?
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How Much Should I Charge For Babysitting?
Each babysitter has her own specific qualities. You want to highlight whatever qualities you have to offer to your clients. However, it goes without saying that your priority must be safety.
Keep in mind that parents want to hire someone that can provide safety for their child as well as ensure their child’s needs are being met. Some babysitters may be licensed while others may not.
A licensed babysitter can also demonstrate patience, dedication, and understanding. They are more likely to adhere to all of the household rules and requests.
Aside from being licensed, babysitters must also have clean background checks. Parents want someone who is honest and responsible.
Needless to say, a clean background check is what every parent wants. It gives them peace of mind.
Parents avoid hiring babysitters who have a criminal past or have been involved in any type of abuse or neglect. The best way for parents to know the sitter is by running a background check on her.
Needless to say, a clean background check is what every parent wants. It gives them peace of mind.
Given all that, you have to take some time to really come up with a reasonable babysitting fee. Hence, the answer to the question, how much should I charge for babysitting is not something you can just answer randomly.
Truth be told, if you’re not licensed and you have no idea what to offer parents, then it will be pretty hard for you to come up with a reasonable rate.
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Even if you do have a reasonable rate but you don’t have a background check on yourself, some parents might not even consider you.
For some who will, they’re most likely to run a background check on you. In that case, you’d have to make sure that your rate is worth it for them. There’s a big chance that they might expect a lower rate for your services.
Just so you have a good idea as to how much should you charge for babysitting, you can refer to Sittercity. According to their website, the hourly rate for sitters in 2021 is $17.00.(1)
How Much Should I Charge For Babysitting Per Hour?
More often than not, parents opt to pay per hour. Given that, you’re probably going to wonder, how much should I charge for babysitting per hour.
As previously mentioned, Sittercity hourly rate for sitters in 2021 is $17.00. You can use that as a basis for your rate.
However, you would also have to start with an honest assessment of your abilities and experience before setting your rates.
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… Sittercity hourly rate for sitters in 2021 is $17.00. You can use that as a basis for your rate.
Furthermore, you would have to look carefully at what the job entails you to do. Do you have to pick up the kids at school? Do you have to drive them home or somewhere else? Are you expected to help them with their homework?
Again, you would have to factor in how many kids you’d have to take care of. As a result, these factors can change how much you should charge for babysitting. Truth be told, dealing with younger children, requires more patience and work.
How Much To Charge For Babysitting Per Day?
Some parents need a lot of help. They don’t just need an hour or two for childcare. With their busy schedules, they would rather hire a sitter and pay them per day.
If this works for you, you’d have to consider another nagging question. How much to charge for babysitting per day?
There’s a big chance that parents who are willing to pay per day would want a lower rate. If not a lower rate, they might expect you to do render more services. For example, tutoring or pick-up services.
It’s hard to give a rate per day for babysitting services. Truth be told, that’s something you must work out with the parents.
If the parents expect you to show up during the weekend, then you’d have to consider a weekend rate. In some cases, that would be higher.
However, there are lots of things to consider to come up with a reasonable rate for both you and the parents.
First, decide how many days you’re willing to babysit. If you’re offered to babysit five days a week, then you might not mind a lesser rate.
If you do decide to charge per day, make sure the days are clear. Are you going to be babysitting on a weekday? If the parents expect you to show up during the weekend, then you’d have to consider a weekend rate. In some cases, that would be higher.
Second, think about the number of children you have to watch at one time. If there are three kids between the ages of three and nine years old, then you probably have to talk about a rate that’s beneficial to both you and the parents.
Now, if you have three children between the ages of twelve and sixteen, that wouldn’t be too much work for you. Hence, the rates are going to vary depending on the age of your kids and the number of kids you have to look after during a single day.
To give you an idea of how much to charge for babysitting per day, look at some of the babysitting agencies in your area. Inquire and check out their rates. That will give an idea of how much to charge for babysitting.
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Find out what services they offer, the minimum wage they pay their workers, and what their customer service policies are. Furthermore, consider looking at childcare services online. They offer a wealth of information for both sitters and parents.
How Much To Charge For Babysitting Per Week?
There may also be opportunities for you to babysit weekly. The good thing about this is that you are assured of a job. Also, you can plan your life easily. You won’t be worrying about finding the next babysitting job.
Parents, who don’t like to hire at the last minute, would prefer to hire a sitter on a weekly basis. If they have a sitter on a weekly basis, anything that pops up during the week is not going to be a problem for them. They know they can count on you. Then again, you’d be asking the question; how much to charge for babysitting per week?
The first thing to consider is your own situation. Will you have time to babysit the entire week? One thing is for sure, you would have to be committed to a weekly schedule.
Again, you would have to look into the various tasks of your weekly babysitting schedule. Keep in mind that you can charge extra for services such as housekeeping, light cleaning, and dog walking.
The first thing to consider is your own situation. Will you have time to babysit the entire week? One thing is for sure, you would have to be committed to a weekly schedule.
You can also charge extra if you have to drive the kids to their extra-curricular activities. Make sure to write down all the tasks that you’re required to deliver. These tasks will give you a good idea how much to charge for babysitting per week.
The number of kids and their ages can also help you gauge as to how much to charge for babysitting per hour. Make it clear that you will only be babysitting a certain number of kids. That means if other kids come over, they are not your responsibility.
Of course, older children are a lot easier to babysit. That can also be a great consideration as to how much to charge for babysitting per week.
Given all these considerations and the base hourly rate of Sittercity, you’ll have a good idea as to how to answer the question, how much should I charge for babysitting.
Source:
(1) https://www.sittercity.com/parents/using-sittercity/how-much-should-you-pay-your-sitter-or-nanny
It used to be the case that I would babysit for families. These days, I’m the one hiring sitters to watch over my little girl. LOL! How time flies. My mission now is to share some of my insights so that other moms get to benefit from my experience with babysitting. Read More
New sitters shouldn’t worry about their hourly rate. It will be pretty easy to figure that out once you focus on what you can really give. Keep this mind. Parents can get very generous if they like the sitter. Hope that helps.
The rates of the babysitters I usually hire from Sittercity are a lot higher then $16/hour. I don’t mind paying more. The babysitters I hire are more than wonderful. They don’t mind watching more than one kid at a time. I have two kids and the babysitters I hire are more than willing to watch them for a fixed rate. They don’t charge per number of kids. That saves me a lot of money.
Sixteen dollars an hour is just an average rate for Sittercity. But there are still sitters who charge 15 per hour. Of course, there are some who charge more than that. The important thing is to study the profile of the sitters first. Look at their level of experience and see if their rate per hour matches it. 😊
Two months have passed since I gave birth to my second son. I thought it would be easy since my husband is working from home. But with a toddler and a new baby, it can get pretty chaotic even with both parents at home. So we decided to try Sittercity.
The rate per hour for each sitter is listed on her profile. That helped us a lot. Some sitters were charging quite high but their qualifications and badges justified their fee. Since we wanted someone who was experienced with newborns, we didn’t mind paying the price. In reality, we actually got more than we paid for. The sitter was not just a pro with our newborn (thanks to her, I finally got some sleep!) she was also amazing with my other son. She didn’t mind taking care of my other son. Despite that, she didn’t adjust her rate. Now she’s a regular and I love her to bits.
You’re right! Babysitting isn’t rocket science but it’s not easy to give a rate especially if you’re friends with the parents. To avoid such situation, it’s always better to be signed up with a service like Sittercity. That way, no one undervalues your service.
If you are a serious sitter, I suggest you sign up with a childcare service. As a mom, I feel a lot safer hiring from a childcare service than from nowhere.