What's the going rate for date night babysitting?

[Anonymous]

Are you talking about now, or in the future?

Because, if it's now - where are you possibly going? I understand that for work, people need to hire sitters. Absolutely. But for a "date night"? Not only are you putting yourself at risk by bringing in an outside person to your home, but then you're putting yourself at risk by doing the date, and then thereby putting the sitter at risk, too.

If this in the future, disregard the above.

[Anonymous]

Its $20/hr and it doesn't matter if your kid is asleep or not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Its $20/hr and it doesn't matter if your kid is asleep or not.

This. They are keeping your child safe, and if they wake up soothing them. Do you get paid less on lighter work days?

[Anonymous]

We pay 25/hr for 3 kids. I made a buck an hour per child when I babysat as a teenager. Ugh.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you want an adult who's had a background check, a car, and has good reviews, like on Urban Sitter, it's $20/hr for one kid, $22-$24 for two kids.

But as my kids are getting older, I believe I will try to get one of the neighborhood high school girls to do it for $15.

Why do you care about the car? As long as the teen has their own ride to and from your house, how they get their is none of your business.

If the couple is going to be out late at night (past 10 pm or so) no parent of a teen babysitter is going to want to go out to pick their teen up. They'd make them refuse the job.
So either the employer couple needs to provide a ride home for the teen, or choose a sitter that has their own car.

[Anonymous]

OMG. We're not in the DMV any more, and my 14-year-old makes $10 an hour for two awake children. I can't tell her this; she'll be sorry we moved!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are you talking about now, or in the future?

Because, if it's now - where are you possibly going? I understand that for work, people need to hire sitters. Absolutely. But for a "date night"? Not only are you putting yourself at risk by bringing in an outside person to your home, but then you're putting yourself at risk by doing the date, and then thereby putting the sitter at risk, too.

If this in the future, disregard the above.

Most of us live in states that have outdoor restaurant seating and 50% capacity indoor seating. Yes, my husband and I are going on date nights to sit outdoors with tables spaced 8 feet apart at our favorite restaurant. We also go on long distance runs and long bike rides on the weekend without our child. Yes, the high school neighbor is watching my daughter and has been for 12 weeks. My house is the only place she has been, I know the parents well and they have been home. FFS Judgy Judy, live and let live. If you don't want to go out, don't go. I am a mask wearer and very careful. No one has caught corona virus outdoors, that has been medically documented. I would never put my family or any other person at risk. I am in the medical field, and am very aware at what is going on and what areas are hotspots.

[Anonymous]

$20/hour whether the kids are awake or asleep. Unless it’s like a 15 year old watching your kids- then you can get away with $15-$18/hour.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you want an adult who's had a background check, a car, and has good reviews, like on Urban Sitter, it's $20/hr for one kid, $22-$24 for two kids.

But as my kids are getting older, I believe I will try to get one of the neighborhood high school girls to do it for $15.

Why do you care about the car? As long as the teen has their own ride to and from your house, how they get their is none of your business.

If the couple is going to be out late at night (past 10 pm or so) no parent of a teen babysitter is going to want to go out to pick their teen up. They'd make them refuse the job.
So either the employer couple needs to provide a ride home for the teen, or choose a sitter that has their own car.

I picked up my babysitting DC literally dozens of times at 10pm-12am when dc was 14-15. It was a non-issue.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OMG. We're not in the DMV any more, and my 14-year-old makes $10 an hour for two awake children. I can't tell her this; she'll be sorry we moved!

We just moved to the dmv and our minimum wage in our previous jurisdiction was $7.25/hr. I’m going to have a really hard time grasping that a teen *deserves* $20/hr so they can sit on their ass and text for 2-3 hours.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you want an adult who's had a background check, a car, and has good reviews, like on Urban Sitter, it's $20/hr for one kid, $22-$24 for two kids.

But as my kids are getting older, I believe I will try to get one of the neighborhood high school girls to do it for $15.

Why do you care about the car? As long as the teen has their own ride to and from your house, how they get their is none of your business.

If the couple is going to be out late at night (past 10 pm or so) no parent of a teen babysitter is going to want to go out to pick their teen up. They'd make them refuse the job.
So either the employer couple needs to provide a ride home for the teen, or choose a sitter that has their own car.

Yeah the PP for some reason jumped all over me "it's none of your business." What a stupid response. The reason I want an adult with a car is because I have had experiences where an ADULT expects ME to come and pick them up and then take them home. Get outta here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OMG. We're not in the DMV any more, and my 14-year-old makes $10 an hour for two awake children. I can't tell her this; she'll be sorry we moved!

We just moved to the dmv and our minimum wage in our previous jurisdiction was $7.25/hr. I’m going to have a really hard time grasping that a teen *deserves* $20/hr so they can sit on their ass and text for 2-3 hours.

“Deserves” has absolutely nothing to do with it. It’s market rate like everything else. Why should a teen accept $10 an hour from you when he/she could get $20 with another family?

[Anonymous]

Pay a teen $15 an hour with a 3-4 hour min.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:$20 before COVID. Now I’m charging $25. Supply and demand.

You are a teenager charging $25/hr to just sit on a couch for a few hours??

Capitalism baby, very shrewd.

[Anonymous]

Pre-covid, $20 an hour with a four hour minimum. Not a young teen through - she is 19 and in college.