How much would you pay for child care per hour?

$20

Your children are your most precious and important thing. You should spend as much as you can to ensure you get the best care you can.

I’m an in-home child care provider. If this thread takes off, I’ll probably have a lot to say on the matter :D

I did a little bit of research on the internet one day, looking up minimum wage laws for the state of Ohio, and I found that (unless I was misunderstanding something) babysitters should make at least minimum wage.

I guess it depends on how much you value your kids.

@jmah- are you asking about in-home care like nannies, the price for an occasional babysitter, or day care? Or is it more of a hypothetical question?

I think we spent around a thousand dollars per month; maybe more. Between 12k and 18k per year. I think in-home care is a good deal more expensive. If you assume $20 per hour and 45 hours per week, or maybe 50, you’re talking $900 to $1000 per week, which would come to as much as 48k per year. That seems excessive to me, but hey, if you can afford it, go ahead.

I said $20 if I could afford it which I can’t
besides I dont believe in babysitters and try to do anything i can to have either myself or my partner watch them when they are young

And to think, I worked all those years for $.50 per hour. And I was a GREAT babysitter!

@Likeradar I posted this question because my sister is looking for someone to watch (babysit) my niece (in my sister’s home) part-time during the week. This is new to her, and she has no idea how much to charge. Just wanted to get some ideas here on how much people would be willing to pay.

When I was in Berlin, I had to pay 8e (almost $10) which I thought was a lot, since I was making 11 myself ($13). But it was a very educated young man (from England) who actually taught my daughter stuff, and it was temporary anyway.

In Poland (where everything is cheaper, and especially labour), I only paid 5z, which is a bit more than $1. I was making 29z per hour in the same time ($8). That was worth it financially, though the old woman that was doing it could not cope with the language barrier and eventually quit.

@jmah How much she’ll pay depends on a LOT, including where she lives, the experience and education of the care provider, other household duties, blah blah blah. A great starting point for finding a regular PT provider is at a local college- suggest that she put up fliers in buildings that HD and education majors spend time in. Also, asking her friends and neighbor’s sitters or nannies if they know anyone who’s looking for PT work. Good providers often flock together.

She needs to figure out her budget, what the job actually entails (is she looking for a “don’t let my kid get too hurt and feed it” kind of sitter, or more of a Mary Poppins kind?). I’d recommend that she ask potential candidates how much they charge before meeting in person, and see what the general consensus is as far as how cost aligns with quality.

I know this is getting off of your original question, and I’ll shut up if you want :D

@Likeradar haha, nah, you’re fine. You have been really helpful and so has everyone else. Thanks!

I think it depends on where you live. When I was living in NH it was normal to pay your baby-sitter minimum wage, when I was living in NYC I was making anywhere from $10–20 an hour.

Depends on what you need.

Part time during the week? You need a higher pay rate. I’d go with $8–10/hr (where does she live? how old are the children?)
I personally can’t afford a lot, but I pay my friend $5/hour to watch my son. She doesn’t complain.
Also, if you get someone with lots of experience, they will want more money. I wouldn’t do childcare for less than 10/hr, but my going rate is 12/hr.

Ugh… such a tough problem for working parents. Do you know any stay-at-home- moms who would want to make some extra cash? I watched my niece for about 6 months during the day. My brother and sister-in-law paid me $50 per day which ranged from 6–10 hours. It was less than I would’ve charged if I was a pro, but it I was grateful to get anything, especially from family. If you know anyone, just ask them. It’s worth a shot.

The part-time hourly rate for inhome care is considered to be the minimum wage here in California. It is possible to get someone for less, but would you want to?

@Yarnlady- you get what you pay for if you pay minimum wage. Do you really want someone who’s other options are fast food and similar jobs helping raise your child? (no offense to fast food workers)The legal minimum may be minimum wage, but most educated and experienced care providers will likely charge close to twice that, if not more.

With three school aged children I pay my sitter $6.00 an hour.

@Likeradar Many students are unwilling to work for someone else, and are much better suited to child care than the “average” minimum wage loser. What you say is true of professional Nannys, but not the casual part time child care provider.

The Foster program pays about half of minimum wage, and yet many people are willing to take a child in full time. It’s not that cut and dried.

We don’t get babysitters often, usually, my mom watches my son, if necessary or my daughter – she’s old enough to watch our son. We generally pay a sitter $7 an hour. When I had in-home care, while I was at my worst point, it averaged $15 an hour; however, part of the cost was covered by a dread disease insurance plan that I’ve had for years. It pays the extras and really helped!