Babysitter rates?

[KristinCB]

Just curious what the going rate ( i guess?) is these days.. we have a teenager coming to watch the kids while DH go skiing and just sorta wondering what the typical price / hour is?

We asked her and she said she doesn't have a rate... hehe

[jessica31876]

I would say somewhere between 3 and 5 dollars an hour? IDK when I babysat I charged 1 dollar an hour per child

ETA:I was CPR certified as I had a niece who was a preemie and on a heart monitor so I had to take the classes in order to take care of her. Still only charged 1 dollar an hour per child. I do live in the country though and most of the parents who had me babysit were people who did not make much money

[Valgal]

We're gone for about 3 1/2 to 4 hours on Wed nights and our babysitter gets $25. We're generous with sitters though. I used to be one... I know what it's like! lol!

[Misty Cato]

We don't ever get one, lol. Our friends pay $8-12/hr for two kids for a qualified babysitter (teenagers, CPR certified, taken babysitter classes).

[Amy Bleser]

I pay our babysitter on average $8 per hour. Sometimes it is a little more, sometimes less honestly depending on the amount of cash I have and what bills I have. I have three kids between 5 - 9.

Now, during the Summer when I have someone come into the house to play with the kids while I work, I usually do about 5 - 6 per hour then.

HTH!

Amy

[hmlentz]

I pay our sitter 8-10 per hour. It depends on how experienced they are and if the kids are awake. I do have 3 kids though. And they are high energy. No sitting around coloring for hours. These kids will wear out a sitter. And I expect them to be up and playing not sitting in front of a tv. Our "favorite sitter" is a lifeguard who is almost a big brother to my kids. He gets 10 until the kids go to bed and then it is 8. It's a tough one...

[Stacey42]

$7-10 an hour for 2 kids plus $5 for gas money since we live in the boonies & anyone coming here generally has to drive a bit. Depends on whether the kids need fed or whether it is day or night. $7 to sit & watch a couple movies with them at night, $10 if it's daytime & the kids are really active.

We actually pay a bit above teh going rate because we suck at advance planning & I like to 'encourage' the sitter to be willing to take a last minute request. Put off her Friday night plans for a couple hours in exchange for decent money in her pocket. We're always home by 9pm & she can take off with $35-40 for her evening.

[mpatry]

I pay 5$ for 1 child which is a bit high, but she's totally worth it... spends all her time playing with my daughter. Most kids charge about 4$ per hr for 1 child.

[lovely1m]

I have always wondered this, too. Never just hired a babysitter before, but have had friends watch him recently. All refused to take any money from me. I know one of the drop in place in town charges $5/hr/child.

[Jengerbread88]

As a sitter (CPR certified, first aid trained, skilled in infant and child Heimlich, etc) it honestly depends on the family.

I sit for a low income family that pays me $1/hour total. I sit for another family that is well off and they pay me $15/hour. Another family I make $2/kid/hour. I just go by what they pay me, so I have NO idea what the going rate is. Sorry I'm no help. I make a little bit more for a family I sit for where the kids have major food allergies and serious health problems, because there is a lot more effort and monitoring involved with their kids.

I do know some sitters in my area actually set a specific rate, and they tell the family when called "My rate is." I personally will take what I can get. I know which families tend to pay well, and which tend not to pay well, and choose my jobs based on that, or based on how well the kids behave

[mlrw70]

Around here, it's about $10 per hour for a qualified sitter.

[nun69]

I have never had a set rate, but I have been known to pay some girls like $40 for watching 2 of my kids for about 6 hours {when we went to a party or something}...other than that I have a 17 y/o DD until she has a vehicle and I can't depend on her. it's all her....

[kristijoy]

I paid $7 this summer for a teen to watch our 1 kid. She's also a friend of the family.

Oh...and as a comparison: The drop in nanny from the certified nanny service gets $12/hour. That's set by the service we hire the nanny from. We also pay a daily rate to the nanny service for each day we hire her.

[dana]

we moved last summer to boston and i haven't had a sitter here b/c we have an au pair living with us ... but where i lived in chicago we paid our babysitters $12/hour, which was the same price charged by the nanny service that we used a lot. we lived near a college, so all our babysitters were in college or recently graduated ... i probably overpaid a bit b/c i always rounded up too .. LOL ...

[luckyme]

The teen sitters here all seem to charge $9/hr, Canadian. (CPR, babysitting course)

[sprauncey1]

Depending on the night/hours we usually pay between 7-10 an hour.

We really love our babysitter and want to keep her happy so we tend to hang around the $9 region. There is nothing worse than not having family/good friends to be able to call on to watch your precious kids when you "have" to go out for a work related function. That is when the best babysitter is priceless.

[robinforman]

We just moved, so I haven't figured out the going rate in our new state, but we paid $10 an hour when we lived in WA. We paid $8 when we only had one kid, but upped it when we had my youngest. We fell into the category of keep your babysitter happy- I want her to WANT to come and WANT to do a good job. I feel both of those are aided by a higher hourly wage.

[SarahMD]

seems like the balls in your court if she doesn't have a rate. i think $5/kid an hour is all around reasonable... if it's at least 2 hours... I'd say... Its weird though, sometimes I feel like I should pay a sitter more because I have 3 kids. The sitter I used to have didn't even charge me (credit card kid) but I felt bad for her working for free so I'd kick her $15 or $20 (she usually watched them over night after bed times)....

[SarahMD]

Originally Posted by robinforman

We just moved, so I haven't figured out the going rate in our new state, but we paid $10 an hour when we lived in WA. We paid $8 when we only had one kid, but upped it when we had my youngest. We fell into the category of keep your babysitter happy- I want her to WANT to come and WANT to do a good job. I feel both of those are aided by a higher hourly wage.

thats very true.

[Milmomma]

I offer 5$ per hour per kid. I have two kids and usually average 3 hours out on date night or such. So usually about 30$. Our local daycare/drop in service usually is around 12-15$ per hour per kid. So yes I look cheap, we come from KC where everything is pricey it seems. Over here its usually about 8-10$ for CDC(daycare). We are not rich folks and if I'm paying 30$ for babysitter, 30$ for dinner, 15$ for a movie, plus gas and snacks... it adds up to quick. Guess that's part of the reason we only do date night once a year. If grandma watches them its free

[clearskies]

For two kids I pay $10 per hour if they drive. $7 per hour if they don't and I have to go get them.

[Jengerbread88]

Originally Posted by Milmomma

I offer 5$ per hour per kid. I have two kids and usually average 3 hours out on date night or such. So usually about 30$. Our local daycare/drop in service usually is around 12-15$ per hour per kid. So yes I look cheap, we come from KC where everything is pricey it seems. Over here its usually about 8-10$ for CDC(daycare). We are not rich folks and if I'm paying 30$ for babysitter, 30$ for dinner, 15$ for a movie, plus gas and snacks... it adds up to quick. Guess that's part of the reason we only do date night once a year. If grandma watches them its free

Getting $30 is a lot more than what I got from MOST families. Guess that's a KC thing But I don't mind it at all... I'm happy with $30 for a night, especially when a lot of times I get $10-20 for watching 5 kids for 5 or 6 hours... I think what you pay sounds perfect!

[newfiemountiewife]

I pay mine $10/hr, for 3 kids. My kids are older, and really don't need much "sitting", but it keeps them happy, and they keep coming back whenever I ask. I use two teenagers (whichever is available for me when I need them), and they never say no. They usually just get a couple of hours on Tuesday and Thursday when I have to go skating, and mine and Tony's schedule overlap.

[kresta]

My cousin babysat all day and into the evening for us on Saturday, three kiddos, we gave her a $100 bill. I think that was fair, as she fed them two meals, supervised and/or gave baths and put them to bed.

[lovely1m]

Originally Posted by kresta

My cousin babysat all day and into the evening for us on Saturday, three kiddos, we gave her a $100 bill. I think that was fair, as she fed them two meals, supervised and/or gave baths and put them to bed.

erm, need a babysitter? I could totally do it for that amount.

[kresta]

Originally Posted by lovely1m

erm, need a babysitter? I could totally do it for that amount.

hehe!