How much do babysitters charge nowadays?

[Soliloquy]

I'm primarily looking for responses from people in the US.

Sorry if this isn't in the right forum. Feel free to move it.

I've always been a reliable pet/housesitter for neighbors when they went away on vacation. Now I'm looking to extend my services to babysitting to earn some extra money. I was wondering how much is fair for a babysitter to charge per hour (in US dollars) nowadays. Any help is appreciated! Thanks, guys!

[Aletheia*]

When I would babysit for my neighbors down the street, I charged $5/hour. I think anything over $10 is stretching it, considering that the economy is so bad right now and many people can barely even afford to have a babysitter.

[Le bonheur*]

I charge $5 an hour.

[daisyduck]

my neighbors pay me $7 and hour for just the infant, and $10 an hour for the infant and the 4 year old. I never really set a price to charge people, so i usually discuss it with the parents and see what they prefer/what is reasonable. 7 and 10 seem really high but the infant is really fussy all the time and they're both so young. it's what the mother offered, so i accepted.

[Whisperer]

I just say whatever you feel comfortable paying me because I would rather make a good connection with the family then overcharge them and not be asked back again. I make anywhere from 5-12 dollars per hour depending on the family and how many kids there are.

[escape_thereal_world]

In the area I live, it is $10/hour or more. I guess it just depends on the area. I've not gotten paid under $5/hour in years.

Then again, I live in a "richer" area, so I guess.

[Leah.sings24]

it all depends on the age of the kid, how many kids, how long the persons been babysitting, what neighborhood you're in. i charge $5/ per hour... you may want to charge more if you're babysitting than mothershelper-ing. hope i helped(:

[iHEAVENn]

Minimum wage.. or just below minimum wage depending on where you live.

[Illuminate]

I know I'm not from the US, but when I babysit for family and friends I discuss prices when I meet the parents.
Go in at a reasonable price, depending on how long you're babysitting. For example if you're doing an over-night stay charge a certain price for the whole night instead of hourly.

I hope this helps <3

[Always&Forever]

I usually take what they give me...so then i can be asked back. when i babysit i usually try to clean up there house a little bit all the mess that the kids made just to make it look nicer =)

[Fairy Poppins]

I live in the UK, but when I babysit I normally charge about £8 an hour before 10pm, £10 thereafter.

I therefore think that $10 an hour is a good rate.

It does depend on whether you know the parents or not though. I used to babysit for the children at work and because I liked the parents I used to charge a bit less.

[ReluctantPegasister]

I charge $6 for one child, and add one dollar per hour per kid.

So three kids = $8 per hour.

[TheBabyEater]

Depends on how many kids I think, and the time of day you're there. If it's just for a couple hours in the day, then like $5 an hour or so for one kid. But if it's staying up late, like almost midnight or so, then I'd bump it up to $8 or so for anything after 10:00pm. That's just me. Then I'd add a dollar or two for each kid, baby, ext.

Just make sure you know everything you need to when you babysit, numbers, food, emergency contact, ext. Once, I was convinced by a kid to walk him to the store to pick up more hot pockets. The parents didn't pay me back. -.-

[Soliloquy]

Thanks so much for all your replies, everyone! This has really helped a lot! I'll keep all your suggestions in mind! I see what some of you guys mean about making a connection with the family and such. I'm used to having firm prices when it comes to pets and houses, but I figured kids would be a different issue. Thanks so much!

[colie18]

I say it depends how much experience you have and the area you live in. Considering I have been babysitting since I was 8 and getting paid since I was between 10 and 12 and the area I primarily babysit in is high end and those parents do not need to worry about money and such. I charge around 15 dollars an hour for one child. 17 dollars an hour for two to 3 kids and anymore after 3 I charge 20 dollars an hour. But like I said it all depends on experience and where you babysit.

[Justin Bieber]

Oh, wow. Definitely depends where you live. You can easily make $20 an hour here. At LEAST $15. I've never HEARD of anyone paying just $5.... Yikes.

I suppose it also depends on how many kids, how old, what you did during your time with them, meals, etc.

[ellabelly]

i use babysit for wealthy people usually and i charged 10/hr per kid. i worked on a scale though depending on how many kids and the parent's income. that was about 3-4 years ago

[Tigerlily.]

Well with me I have a semi-steady babysitting job, meaning if they are going out, they call on me and it's only a few feet from our place to theirs. They have a toddler, less than 2 and I charge $5/hour basically but if they fall a bit short it's ok and they usually make it up the next time in pay.

[udontno]

I have never once discussed price with someone that I was babysitting for. I take what they give me. I've never been underpaid though.

[LittleMiss]

I charge $10-15 an hour, however, my usual charges have two doctors as parents so they tend to overpay me. ($50 from 6:30pm-10pm)
I have had a police background check (annual) and a working with children background check as well as a senior first-aid certificate.
These factors mean that I can charge a little more because it proves to parents that I'm a very safe choice.

It also depends on the number of kids. My usual job is three kids between 6 and 12 so they're very manageable and obedient.
Age is important too, if your looking after a couple of three year olds, it's a lot harder than 10 year olds.

[Audacious]

I'm a babysitter and I work for 2 different families...both of them pay me 10 dollars an hour. I'm in Canada, though, so that might make a difference because of economy. Note that one of the families has 2 special needs children, and the other family has 2 babies. So ya, it's a handful haha. When I was younger I used to charge 5 dollars an hour though. That was before I was fun and actually had skills

[Soliloquy]

Thank you, everyone! You've all been such a big help! This thread can be closed now.