Chloe Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 What do teenage babysitters in your area charge? My 13yo dd has her first "official" babysitting job and is not sure what a reasonable fee is. She has babysat for her younger siblings, but we only pay her sporadically (it's an unexpected treat). And I'm sure we don't give her as much as she would get babysitting for someone else. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seraphina Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 I would like to know the answer to this too because my ds (15) only has one steady babysitting job and he gets paid in cookies. Kind of a weird arrangement but he is a bit of a homebody and gets enough money from chores and refereeing soccer games, and apparently he doesn't feel he gets enough baked goods. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clementine Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 We rarely had a sitter, but would pay approx. $10 per hour for 2 kids. We never planned on that set amount, but by the time we rounded up the amount to the nearest dollar, that's about what it came to. I think the average is around $8. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prairie~Phlox Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 My daughter took a babysitting class through the red cross and has babysat for three different families. She goes by what they suggested. She charges $4/hour for the first child and $1/additional children/hour. Guess her rates are low, but people really can't afford to be paying big bucks, at least not the ones she babysits for. She's only 13, so I think that's pretty good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brightside Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 I would like to know the answer to this too because my ds (15) only has one steady babysitting job and he gets paid in cookies. Kind of a weird arrangement but he is a bit of a homebody and gets enough money from chores and refereeing soccer games, and apparently he doesn't feel he gets enough baked goods. My son gets paid in baked goods for mowing the neighbors lawn. I had never heard of anybody doing that until now. :) Guess it is not as strange as I first thought. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starr Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 $8.00 - $10.00 We are not in a city. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ottakee Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 There is a HUGE range--esp. on this board. I would take into consideration the area you live in and the family's personal situation. Not that I want her to be paid too low but many families are struggling and paying a sitter more per hour than they make at their job just isn't feasible. Then again, I was the sitter that got $1/hour (and very rarely up to $2/hour) about 25 years ago when the minimum wage was $3.50/hour. I would get that little $1-2/hour for up to 6 kids that I would feed, bathe, entertain, clean up after, put to bed, etc. I also got $20-25 for a 24 hour period (doing weekends) for a family of NINE kids---3 foster teenagers, one with her baby (all with special emotional needs) and then the rest of the kids including 2 more infants--one of which was on a heart monitor. I think the mom got off cheap :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emmy Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 Factors that I consider in paying sitters: - number of kids they are watching - will my kids be sleeping most of the time we are gone - will she have to do a meal - do I have to pick her up and take her home or does she have her own transportation (I really dislike having to provide transportation) - age of sitter (I do not pay a 13yo as much as I would pay a 16 or 18yo) For a 13yo I think the $4 an hour plus $1 an hour for each additional kid is a good idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dolphin Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 Babysitting Wages Ages 11-13 I start at a base of $3 an hour for one child 14 years old $4 15 years old $5 16 years old $6 17 years old $7 18 years old $8 add $2 and hour for a second child add $1 per each additional child add $1 for high energy children or a child in diapers. My wage working for you will be $_______________/an hour Once they hit 18, if they are still babysitting (which our wonderful neighbor is) they are getting at least $8 an hour, which is a reasonable wage. We pay ours $10 as have 2 kids. This is actually the formula that I made when I was 11 and went through the American Red Cross course and started my babysitting business. I wrote it all out and passed it out in the neighborhood. When I showed it to our neighbor girl MANY years later, she said it was great and that some people were only paying her $2 an hour. She printed it up and is using it now. The nice thing is, that when parents see how it works: a. it is hard to argue with b. I got some respect for stating my worth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MinivanMom Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 I pay $10/hr for sitters between 13-16 yrs of age to watch my four kids. That's pretty average for our area (the suburb of a major city). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KungFuPanda Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 I pay $10/hr for sitters between 13-16 yrs of age to watch my four kids. That's pretty average for our area (the suburb of a major city). :iagree: This is exactly what my 14 1/2 year old gets for chasing one toddler, feeding, diapers etc. She's only ever watched one at a time, but she has a reputation for being the kid who is available on school nights :-) Babies and little kids love her. We live between Baltimore and D.C. Sitters here can expect $5 for each additional child. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MamaAkins Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 Here in NC, my 14 year old dd charges $6-7 per hour for the first child and $1 per hour for each additional child. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chepyl Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 $10 is high! I pay $5 for a 13 year old. I pay 16 year olds a little more if they clean up and cook. As a worker in a daycare center, I was paid minimum wage for 4 infants or up to 12 - 2 year olds. With babysitting, no taxes are taken out of the check, and generally no taxes are ever reported. The lower pay per hour is fine. I pay above minimum wage when they are old enough to get a job at minimum wage but continue to babysit instead. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JFSinIL Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 My youngest charges about $5/hour for one or two kids - she may ask for a bit more for more kids but so far the jobs have been scant anyway as most folks can not afford a sitter. When she is 16 this spring she can ask a bit more...but odds are the jobs will still not be there. I will have her apply to be a library page at the local library (her big sister got in there last month so she can recommend her sibling). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seraphina Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 My son gets paid in baked goods for mowing the neighbors lawn. I had never heard of anybody doing that until now. :) Guess it is not as strange as I first thought. So glad someone else does this. I think it's a win-win situation. He originally started sitting for my friend when she was going through a horrible divorce and went suddenly from being a homemaker to a single working mom. She says she still feels bad because he will sit for her once a month and never wants cash. When my kids were young we often had kids from church help us out and not charge, stating it was considered service hours. Now I try and have my kids do the same thing. This isn't something they do often, only a few times a year but I feel good about them having a sense of helping out another person. Especially if it's giving a young couple a few hours together when that time is so difficult to come by. I think though the $6-$10 pay range is about right, depending on how many kids and how long they are sitting for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TravelingChris Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 In DC area, my 16-17 you dd was getting $10 an hour. SHe did do one job and the lady with three kids gave her essentially 7 an hour. She didn't work for her again because it was way too low. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LidiyaDawn Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 I don't think it's fair to pay a younger teen less than you'd pay an older teen if they're doing the same job. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tutor Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 $8.00 - $10.00 We are not in a city. Same here, and my girls are usually watching 2 kids at a time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starr Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 I don't think it's fair to pay a younger teen less than you'd pay an older teen if they're doing the same job. It might not be fair but it happened to my dd. It didn't hurt her at 12 and 13 to be paid hardly anything to build her resume. I told her if she could cook and keep track of those 4 for $3.00 an hour she would be able to handle anything. All in all it beats the fifty cents I was paid even with inflation factored in. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dolphin Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 I don't think it's fair to pay a younger teen less than you'd pay an older teen if they're doing the same job. For us, they aren't. As kids get older they do a different job. I would not hire a 12 year old for an evening job, or if we were more than 10 min away and out of reach. I would also not expect a 12 year old to cook, I would leave prepared food. At 18, our babysitter cooks, can drive the kids to activities, cleans up after the meal etc... I want to set our babysitters and our kids up for a positive experience, so I don't expect as much out of younger kids. But, that's just me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emmy Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 I don't think it's fair to pay a younger teen less than you'd pay an older teen if they're doing the same job. People with more experience typically make more money (or at least they should lol) - that's my reasoning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iamrachelle Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 We live in a big city (Las Vegas) and pay our babysitter $10/hour. I checked around when we moved here a couple of years ago and that seems to be the going rate, irregardless of the age of the babysitter. When we lived down South we usually paid $8/hour but would "round up" at the end of the night (ie: if we owed the babysitter $38 we would pay $40) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cindy in C-ville Posted September 15, 2011 Share Posted September 15, 2011 Adelyn, sitting beside me, says that for two kids she would want to get paid $8/hour and add .50 for every additional child. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joker Posted September 15, 2011 Share Posted September 15, 2011 I've always paid about $8-10/hour. I've never understood the argument that we pay too much because of what daycare workers or other adult min. wage workers earn. They are teenagers. My babysitters are not earning a regular income and some weeks they won't earn anything. I pay more than min. wage because I don't use them on a regular basis but I want them to return when I do need them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommymilkies Posted September 15, 2011 Share Posted September 15, 2011 I've always been told I overpay, and I pay far less than most of you! Of course I get a babysitter maybe once a year. I pay a flat $20. And that's with no babies, dishes, or work. The kids are always in bed. And I never go out more than 3 hours. Usually just to the movies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greenvneck Posted September 15, 2011 Share Posted September 15, 2011 Mine charge $8/hr + $2/hr for additional kids, but usually the pay is rounded up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThatCyndiGirl Posted September 15, 2011 Share Posted September 15, 2011 I would like to know the answer to this too because my ds (15) only has one steady babysitting job and he gets paid in cookies. Kind of a weird arrangement but he is a bit of a homebody and gets enough money from chores and refereeing soccer games, and apparently he doesn't feel he gets enough baked goods. OMG, this cracked me up!! It's like they have Scooby Doo babysitting for them! (Didn't he get paid in Scooby Snacks?) :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chepyl Posted September 15, 2011 Share Posted September 15, 2011 I don't think it's fair to pay a younger teen less than you'd pay an older teen if they're doing the same job. People with more experience typically make more money (or at least they should lol) - that's my reasoning. :iagree:I made less when I started teaching dance than I do now. I made more as a babysitter as I got older, had more experience, and was "in demand" so to speak. I had multiple people wanting me to babysit on the same night for a while. They paid more for the sitter their kids really wanted. Plus, I don't have 12-13 year olds late at night, I don't go farther than the studio (10 minutes away) with them that young. Plus, they don't drive. Sometimes I have to pick the babysitter up and usually take them home. A 16 year drives to my house and generally cooks. They also clean more than a 12 year old. My gas money, they get less; their gas money, they get more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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