Babysitting Rates

[LG123]

Wasn't sure where else to ask this so if this is the wrong forum please move it to the correct one.

What is the going rate for a babysitter these days? In home for a 6 & 3 year old.

Do you pay more for someone older?

 

[CBRorBust]

I think it all depends.

How long would this person be sitting? 1 evening for a few hours (like a Saturday night while you go out for dinner/movie?) Or like everyday for a few hours a day?

For instance, if I'm going to sit for a couple with children 3 & 6 on like a Saturday night while they go out, they would normally give me just a flat fee of like say $40 for the night.

I sat this summer 5 days a week for about 8 hours/day for $125 a child.

So I think it depends.

 

[LG123]

We take a dance lesson a couple of nights a week. Is 2-3 hours a night. So that would be 6 hours a week at the most. I didn't realize baby sitters were so expensive.

 

[Dopey Sharon]

Back when I used to babysit, I got paid $1 an hour! I had one family, who only paid .50, but they had a lot of snacks to eat and drink! Of course, this was when I was 13 years old...30 years ago! Wow, I'm getting old! LOL

 

[Evil Princess]

A few years ago as a teen I was payed 5 dollars an hour starting out. The average amount was 7 dollars an hour. I had one family that would pay me 10-12 dollars an hour!!! (They also lived in a gated community with a four car garage, so you figure that one out )

The rate depended on how many kids and the ages of the kids usually. The family with three kids, 6, 3, and 1 paid more than the family with 9 and 7.

 

[Kimberle]

The going rate here (Fairfield cnty, CT) is $10/hour.

One reason we never use a sitter.

 

[aprincessmom]

I have one child and pay anywhere from $7-9/hour depending on the day (more on the weekend when it's harder to find someone), the time of day/night (after midnight I pay more) and experience.

That's pretty standard in our area and sitters are really hard to find.

 

[Lars624]

My DD babysits for a couple families. The one she works for most often has a 7 y/o & a 2 y/o...........she makes $5.00 an hour. That seems to be the going rate around here.

 

[KimRaye]

On Friday night, I paid our sitter $6/hour. My brother also left his DD here for a few hours and, paid my sitter separately. I don't know what he paid her but, I told him at least $5/hour. My DD is almost 6 and, niece is 2.

 

[cgcw]

When we need a sitter for our DS3 & DS9, we pay the girl across the street $6.00 per hour. We don't expect the babysitter to do anything except make sure the kids are safe and make sure they get ready for bed if its getting towards bedtime (both our kids can do it themselves). If the kids need to be fed, we either order a pizza for them or bring fast food in feeding our sitter as well as our own kids. They are free to have snacks if they wish. The one thing I don't permit is talking on the phone with friends or having friends visit. They can't be supervising very well if they are -- JMO.

If your looking at a daily basis, that's another story. I'm a licensed home daycare provider. In our area, the full time rates can vary anywhere from $120 per child to $200 per child PER week. There are people who are just "babysitters" and then there are those who are true "daycare providers". There is a big different between the two which explains the large difference in the weekly rate.

 

[Jiminy102]

When I was babysitting I would usually just accept whatever the family gave me. I had no "rates" so to speak.

 

[4greatboys]

Going rate around here is $5 per hour for 1 or 2 kids, then $2.50 added for extra kiddo. This is what I pay my 16 yr old to babysit his 2 youngest brothers and what my friends pay him to watch their kids. One of my friends pays a little bonus for a job well done.

 

[disykat]

Are you talking teenagers?

Here it seems to run slightly less than minimum wage. When I was babysitting it ran about 1/3 of minimum wage. That difference bothers me more than the actual amount. Even when I was working in high school at the Dairy Queen for minimum wage of about $1.80, I still accepted babysitting jobs for 50 -75 cents an hour. That's just the way it was.

If that ratio held true today, we'd be paying 2.50 an hour instead of $6! I think it's kind of sad that the free time of our teenagers has become so valuable.

I haven't paid a sitter for several years. Now that our kids are older, trades are pretty easy to arrange. Twice a week would be tough though!

 

[legs22]

I pay a sitter $5/hr for DD6

 

[Pin Wizard]

Originally posted by Dopey Sharon
Back when I used to babysit, I got paid $1 an hour! I had one family, who only paid .50, but they had a lot of snacks to eat and drink! Of course, this was when I was 13 years old...30 years ago! Wow, I'm getting old! LOL

I'm with you...30 years ago and 13 years old. I also got $1 an hour...and babysat a 3 year old and probably a 10 year old for a DENTIST! Not bad...he only paid $.50 per kid per hour. When my long time friend watches my son, she gives me a "break" at $5 an hour.

 

[whirlsy]

Do you have someone in mind yet? Maybe you could ask them what the going rate is before you hire them on, but I would expect to pay at least 5.00 an hour or a flat fee of 15.00. I always pay my babysitters well, I am a day care provider, and I want them to come back. There are only a few sitters in our area and they are good so I want them to come back.

 

[Tigger&Belle]

Babysitting rates really vary by region. My 16yo daughter pretty much leaves it up to the parents to pay what they think is fair and what they can afford, but a starting rate would be $5/hour. She sits a lot for next door neighbors and they pay $10/hour for their 2 and 5yo kids. We live in an area with a high cost of living and you might be able to pay less. Ask friends what they pay their sitters and ask some sitters what they charge. Since you need someone twice a week you might be able to pay a little less an hour since it would be a regular job.

 

[justhat]

The last time I babysat in NJ, which was over 2 years ago, it was $8-$10 an hour. Here in DC, I often babysit for kids from my daycare class (they're 15-30 months), sometimes it's just the one kid, other times a sibling too, and the rate is between $10-$12 an hour. Additionally, the parents who live far away (20-30 minute drive) pay for travel time to and from the house as well. Now, I'm a preschool teacher and currently in graduate school for a doctorate in child psychology so I would expect to get more than a 15 yo babysitter, and they typically get aabout $8/hour. We're expecting our first baby in March and having worked in a day care and babysat for years, I know that I want the best person I can find for my child so I'm more than willing to pay them $12/hour so that they're happy and willing to come back.

 

[zurgswife]

My DD 12 yrs old gets paid $5 here in suburban Philly....

When she was a toddler I paid $3 per hour...that's pretty good inflation in 8 years....

I pay more for older teens and college age people to babysit for me (don't need it very often) but I think the going rate is about $9-11

 

[aprilgail2]

When it is just for an evening or a few hours out during the day its 10.00 a hour but if its for a full work day usually my friend will watch her with others she watches and that runs 50.00 a 8-hour work day.