What is the normal going rate for babysitting? I have 2 kids 8 and 3. I just want to go out on the town every once in a while with my husband without braking the bank. How much is the going rate? When I babysat I use to make 2$ per child an hour... what is it now?
Thank you ladies for the input. I will keep it in mind for those times we decide to use a babysitter. Thank God my aunt does it for us for free. I had no idea that was the going rate. When I babysat it was not that expensive, granted that was 21 years ago and things have changed alot. :) To the ladies that have added the comments recently...THANKS!!! I felt that some of the moms are truly over paying! WOW!
I would say $7-10 an hour. I am very fortunate that my older ones can watch my younger ones. We would never be able to afford to go out without them. That reminds me to thank them again ;)
I babysit very often, more than I did as a teenager. I have a 2 year old son and work at a MDO at church so I am watching kids from there. I dont give a rate but I tend to get paid 10 dollars a hour for 2 kids. And I bring my son along usually, depends on my husbands schedule. But its always 2 kids Im watching. So 5 bucks a kid per hour. One lady I help pays me 50 bucks a day for 6 hours to watch her granbaby shes raising. But I even watch over night at times and that varies. One mother pays me 100 bucks a day including overnight for her 2 kids. So its up to you. I dont complain because it helps our little family right now so I can stay at home with my son. Maybe find a friend that yall can trade off on. Thats what my best friend and I do. She has 2 kids and we trade off. Even overnights sometimes! Thats the cheapest and easiest for the kids when they are friends! Good luck!
I'm in Texas and I pay about $10 an hour for my 15 month old.
I have always just kept track of the minimum wage and paid that. What other job gives you access to a tv, refrigerator, unmonitored breaks and time to do your homework ON THE CLOCK. You people who are paying a teenager $10 an hour are getting RIPPED OFF!!! They're playing you like a fiddle :)
I think it depends on who the sitter is and when you're having them sit. We primarily use a teenage daughter of a friend of ours. If we're going "out on the town" then she usually comes over around 7:00. The kids are in bed by 8:30, and the rest of the night is hers to watch TV, listen to our CD collection, etc. My general rule of thumb is $10/hr when they're awake and $5/hr after they're asleep, but I have rarely given her more than $25 total. When we have used a college student, I pay her more, since she drives herself and has more that she could/should be doing with her time. I know people who pay more for sitters who are trained child care providers, but we don't feel the need for that (particularly when the hands-on time is so brief). I would reconsider for daytime hours or a special night, e.g. New Year's Eve...
I used this site when I lived in the UK : http://www.mynightoff.com
I hope it works here too. Its free , it was made by some parents who wanted to help mothers form their own baby sitting circles. You place a request and get "virtual credits" you earn and pay with them. Its a great way to be organised and fair, if you have enough friends its a great way of keeping costs down.I also use sitbaby , I ring to pay the fee as the site is not very secure, you pay the sitter in cash, its around $10 an hour plus the fee ( you can get a membership)
$10 an hour or maybe $8 an hour for one child during the day for a younger sitter. But nightime, I would at least pay $10 an hour and perhaps even $12 for two kids.
I would find out what the going rate is for your area. I have found where you live determines the rate. What I pay in the country is less than what they pay in the city. Just like the cost of living, babysitting rates vary by region.
Good luck.
R.
I also pay around $10/hour, but that's the minimum, and assumes that some of the time the sitter is there the kids are asleep. If it's a daytime thing, I pay closer to $15/hour, but there are huge regional differences, so I'd check with someone who lives near you if you can.
Wow, I just read through the responses for babysitting and was floored! We pay $1 an hour per child that is being babysat with the first hour being a flat $10.
Many public schools offer the Red Cross babysitting course as an elective in Junior High, they may also have a service where parents can call and get a list of qualified sitters. In all likelihood they will have an idea what the going rate is in your area. From what I understand, it can vary greatly! I've heard some kids in my neighborhood are charging $10 an hour!
I pay a flat rate depending on the sitter. My adult friend who nannies babysat my 2 and a friends 3 from 9pm until 2am and she received $80, plus pizza, drinks, and snacks. Depending on who it is, how they arrive at your home, and what you provide for them while sitting, you can get away with less than $10.
I find all of you clueless if you are not requesting a babysitter who is not already teacher certified or just certified in CPR, or has not had experience with children in a school or tutoring position.My daughter is 16, she has had a job for the past 3 yrrs as a teachers aid in summers at Montessori,tutors a 7yr old 4 days a week for 2 hrs. Her rate is 10.00-12 pr hopur one child.You get what you pay for now she is interning at Peperdine university and is only 16!If you live near Malbu call her.She has no texting on her phone,no Facebook page and her mohter is a teacher.Remember you get what you pay for and your infant of young childs life and development doesn't stop when you go get your hair done.....
Her name is Hanna and if you wish e mail at ____@____.com references impeccable although hard to get on weekends without advance notice.
For a night out babysitting is like $10 hr. Maybe $8 depends. You pay more for teenage night outs versus daily care!
Good Luck!
M.
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maybe i'm a little late on the imput but we pay our sitter $20 (it was $15 before she got her licence and we had to pick her up and take her home)- she stays the night so we don't have to worry about being home by a certain time since she lives in a different town.
Mind you she only really watches our daughter for a couple of hours- from when she gets here till bed time. Then she gets to watch movies, surf the net on her laptop, or hang out with her friend that lives down the street.
She also usually gets up with our daughter in the morning and makes her breakfast so we can laze about for a little bit too.
There are times that we are home far earlier and she does go home that same night- we still pay her the same amount, and if we cancel on her with less than 12 hrs notice we still pay her- although maybe not the full amount on that. We treat her well and she is usually willing to sit for us at the drop of a hat.
In the suburbs of Chicago I pay $10 per hour. Nobody has ever told me what they charge. I like to pay more than minimum wage. It helps when you want a repeat sitter. I've had teenage sitters call me first to ask if I need them before they take another job... because they know I pay better than others.
