Hourly Rate for Babysitting by a 14 Year Old

Updated on August 09, 2015
J.M. asks from Skokie, IL
18 answers

Hi, My daughter is interested in being a babysitter. She is a mature teenager who really is good with little kids. She would like to start babysitting or being a mommy's helper. I was just wondering what a fair hourly rate would be for her babysitting services. I would only want her to work 2 or 3 hours a day during the summer or on weekends. Thanks!

P.S. We live in the Chicagoland area, if that helps.

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P.K.

answers from New York on

$7.00 the most. Then if she proved to be an excellent sitter with good references, she can ask for a bit more.

4 moms found this helpful
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N.S.

answers from Denver on

Honestly, I look at experience and qualifications. If they are Red Cross certified then I would pay more.
Other then that, for someone who had no or very little experience I feel hard pressed to pay more then minimum age. If they get a job making minimum wage then they would still have to pay taxes, etc. thus, why would I pay someone with no experience more then minimum wage.
The more experienced a person is, or is in college with many years baby sitting experience then I am more then happy to pay quite a bit for their service and I do.

2 moms found this helpful

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N.B.

answers from Oklahoma City on

I don't pay a CHILD more than an adult can make working for minimum wage. Geesh!

A child can be a good babysitter BUT they are a kid. Kids today learn entitlement from their parents and any parent who thinks a KID should earn $10 an hour....I simply don't get it.

Example.

One of our friends teens decided to take some babysitting classes so she could make money for college.

She took the classes and put out ads and was soon very disappointed because no one would pay her $20 per hour per child for babysitting. Her parents had taught her she was special and that she was worth $20 an hour.

Did she ever get hired to babysit? Not one time. Why? She felt entitled to make money that wasn't deserved. Is she still expecting money to fall into her lap? Yes, because her parents give her everything and tell her that if she's pretty or nice or has special training that she will get anything she wants.

I think kids who expect more than a normal adult can make are not worth my time.

I can HIRE AN ADULT for $5 an hour and they're glad for the extra money. So no, I won't hire a babysitter for anything over $5 per hour and when I post on FB that I need a babysitter for X hours and this is the amount, $XX that I'll pay them, in cash, I have multiple people offering to babysit and they say anytime I need them they'll try to be available.

Kids today expect too much. Parents who pay teens that much to babysit confuse me.

5 moms found this helpful
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J.B.

answers from Boston on

$10 an hour, but she should check with her friends and your friends to know the market in your area. Too low and people will wonder why she's selling herself short. Too high and they'll pick someone else.

4 moms found this helpful
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M.S.

answers from Portland on

I"m sorry, but I have a Master's Degree, and am working at a very prestigious learning center, and I am making $14 an hour. I realize this is just summer work until school starts again, but how the hell am I supposed to pay a babysitter $15 or $20 an hour? It just isn't going to happen! Also, I am supporting our entire family. Even when I am working full time I am only earning $22 an hour....I just don't see how a babysitter should earn as much as me. Maybe it is because I am in Portland, but I don't think so. I agree with the $5 an hour or so.

4 moms found this helpful
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J.C.

answers from Anchorage on

I used to pay the teenage girl who babysat for us $5 to start and then $5 an hour for my two kids, so 1 hour was $10, 2 would be $15, ect. She said we paid better then most in the area. Part of it really depends on where you live, but I don't know of anyplace were $15-20 an hour would be considered the norm.

4 moms found this helpful

S.G.

answers from Los Angeles on

The hourly rate for a sitter here is $10. They take the babysitter certification course when they are 12 and that is the rate the instructor suggests they charge. I think a mommy's helper would be less, as there is less responsibility if the mother is at home. Our minimum wage is $11/hour.

ETA: I am an adult who has babysat for less than $10/hour. The difference is that when I babysit I do it in my own home, while I care for multiple kids, as well as my own, and do my housework etc. When my child babysits he is in the childs home exclusively caring for that child. It's a very different situation.

4 moms found this helpful
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D.N.

answers from Chicago on

In Chicago, the going rate for a sitter is about 10 to 15 an hour. However, for a younger sitter, especially without experience, it will be less. I would suggest starting with maybe a couple friends or neighbors. Maybe she could babysit while mom or dad runs errands.

When I was 11, I started sitting for family, watching my nieces and nephews. When I was 12, 13, 14 I sat for my sister's kids in the summer. Then a guy my brother did things for knew someone looking for a sister and I "expanded" from there, mostly eveing sitting. I eventually had 4 families outside my own family. I made about $20 to $30 a night. That is still the going rate for a teen.

My daughter was watching kids a few weeks ago and she made $20 a day because that is what the mom could pay. My d is 16, kids are 8.

3 moms found this helpful

B.K.

answers from Chicago on

Gamma, I'll tell you why people pay $10-$15 for a babysitter. I was one of those parents once.

I found young girls I trusted with my kids and if I liked them and wanted them back, I paid them more than other people paid them because I know that money talks and I would be able to get them back the next time I wanted them. I had one girl who was a great sitter. She would often call me if she had another offer to babysit to make sure I didn't want her that night ..... because I paid more. Plus it's my kids I'm entrusting her with so I figure they're worth it too.

My daughter is 17 and we live in the Chicago suburbs and she makes about $10 an hour. Depending on the people and the hours it could be a little less or a little more.

She did babysit for a family friend once. She was there for about 6 hours and they paid her $10 total. And their kids were unruly. She didn't go back. And they still have trouble finding sitters to this day. Wonder why.

My daughter also never set a rate. She just takes what people pay her. She likes kids and likes the extra money. Most people pay her around $10 an hour.

3 moms found this helpful

B.C.

answers from Norfolk on

She needs to check out the going rates for her area at SitterCity.com.

3 moms found this helpful
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J.T.

answers from New York on

We live in a major metro area and had a 13 year old sitter who charged I think about $7/hour. We always tipped very well. $15-20 is what adult nannies are often paid. I think about $10 seems fair. And a college girl down the street charged $12.

3 moms found this helpful

T.F.

answers from Dallas on

ETA: Gamma, I get where you are coming from, however, it is mostly based on the area as far as the $/hour. When we had weekly date night while daughter was little, we spent anywhere from $60-$100 a night for a sitter and that was with a guaranteed minimum of $40.. sitter was paid if we cancelled, etc because good sitters are hard to find and you pay to keep the good ones. My daughter has never suggested an hourly rate. I was fortunate because we found a great sitter and she had 2 younger sisters. All 3 girls were sitters at one time or another as they eventually moved away for college and that family to this day is a part of ours.

Now, I just got home from a trip to rural AL and MS and sitting came up because one of the teens got a sitting job for one evening. They were floored that we paid what we did and the daughter gets paid what she does... I believe she was getting $5/hr. The area has SO much to do with it based on the economics of where you live more so than entitlement.

If my daughter went in and asked $20/hour I would laugh at her for having those expectations even though she is a damn good sitter.
************************************************************************************

It depends a lot on your area.

My daughter is almost 21 and she started babysitting around 14 and a mom's helper around 12. I believe she was 13 when she did the Red Cross sitter training through our Park and Rec system. She STILL babysits at east 1 night a week in our neighborhood since she has moved to her condo about 20 minutes away because the money is good.

She never set a rate, that is left up to the family she is sitting for at the time. Going rate here is minimum $10/hour and it is well known because good, reliable sitters are hard to find.

When she was a mom's helper, she got about $5/hour.

Now, as an almost 21yr old, she easily brings in $100+ (CASH) for 1 night a week babysitting. She has 3 regular families she sits for and just picked up 2 new ones from references. She takes activities for the children, helps them with homework, tutors when parents ask for specific help with a subject, and engages with the children.

It sounds like you are starting off on the right foot. In the beginning, especially when daughter would be sitting at night, the parents also knew that we were here if she needed anything and would step in to help. I believe that helped a lot in the early years. I know when we had a sitter for our daughter, I felt better knowing that the sitter's mom knew what was going on and was available if needed.

2 moms found this helpful

T.S.

answers from San Francisco on

$10 an hour is normal here, and most kids take the babysitting class at the community center to get officially certified.

2 moms found this helpful

S.T.

answers from Washington DC on

$10 per hour.
khairete
S.

2 moms found this helpful

C.T.

answers from Santa Fe on

I would say $7-$8 an hour. When she is older...say 16 and up she can go up to $10 an hour. We get a babysitter once a week. There are 4 teens on our street that are our beloved babysitters that our kids adore. They make a lot of money off of us! :)

2 moms found this helpful
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M.D.

answers from Pittsburgh on

Since she has no experience and has not taken any kind of babysitter class, if I were going to ask her to babysit, I would offer $8 per hour. Once he has more experience, or if I needed her to watch more than 1-2 kids, I would offer her $10/hour.

2 moms found this helpful
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*.*.

answers from New London on

My friends and I never left our kids with a sitter under the age of 17.

We all used to give our Mother's Helpers $5.00 an hour...

1 mom found this helpful
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J.B.

answers from Philadelphia on

15-20 per hour seems reasonable. higher end depending on number of kids

1 mom found this helpful
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