Babysitter/Nanny: What is the cost of hiring?

What is a babysitter?

A babysitter is an individual who looks after children while their parent(s) or guardian is away or occupied in the home. This can involve cooking meals, organising play time, cleaning up after the children and arranging activities for them. Babysitters also make sure children are safe and comfortable in their own home in the absence of their family. They may be required to drive them to or from school or activities.

Why recruit a babysitter?

Hiring a babysitter provides parents or guardians with flexible support when their schedules change or they need occasional childcare. A dependable babysitter helps ensure children are cared for in a familiar environment, reducing stress and allowing families to maintain their routines.

Contributions of a great babysitter:

• Responsible for setting schedules for playing, napping, food, homework and other aspects of a child’s daily routine
• Preparing suitable meals and snacks as recommended by the child’s parent(s) or guardian, taking into consideration dietary needs
• Supervising and helping children with their homework or any tasks expected of them at home

Defining your recruitment needs for a babysitter

Babysitters are typically recruited on a temporary, part-time basis when a parent or guardian needs extra support for a few hours a week. This might be to cover longer workdays, late meetings or unexpected schedule changes. For families needing full-day or ongoing childcare, a nanny may be more appropriate, as babysitters usually work on a more casual or occasional basis.

What are the types of babysitter?

There are several types of babysitter roles, depending on when and how often families need support, as well as the level of responsibility involved. These may include:

• Au pair
• Evening babysitter
• Weekend babysitter
• Childminder
• After school babysitter

When writing your babysitter job description, consider including some or all of the following keywords to improve the visibility of your job posting. These are the most popular search terms leading to clicks on babysitter jobs, according to Indeed data:

• Nanny
• Cleaner
• Babysitter
• Housekeeper
• Childcare
• Housekeeping
• Live in nanny
• Nanny housekeeper
• Cleaning

Want more recruitment insights for your babysitter role? Sign in or create your free Indeed account.

Where to find a babysitter

To find the right babysitter for your home, consider trying out a few different recruitment strategies:

• Posting flyers on community boards: posting flyers with description of duties, hours and contact details can help you reach the right Babysitter candidates in your local community.
• Sharing a post on social media: advertising for a babysitter on social media can help you reach candidates who live locally to you and may already be in your network.
• Reaching out to people in your network: people in your personal and professional network may be able to recommend a great babysitter based on personal experience.
• Searching on online local community groups: babysitters might advertise their services on online message boards or groups. Likewise, you can reach babysitters in your community by making a post requesting one.

Post your job online: try posting your babysitter job on Indeed to find and attract quality Babysitter candidates.

Skills to look for in a babysitter

A successful babysitter candidate will typically have the following skills and competencies, which may be gained through a variety of experiences, training or education:

• Ability to plan age-appropriate activities
• Strong time management and routine setting
• Basic first aid knowledge
• Conflict resolution or de-escalation techniques
• Familiarity with common allergies or food prep for children

Writing a babysitter job description

Now that you know the key skills, salary expectations, popular jobseeker search terms and recruitment insights for a babysitter, you’re ready to write a job description.

A babysitter job description typically includes a compelling summary of the role, a detailed list of duties and responsibilities and the required and preferred skills for the position. You may also want to include information about your company culture, benefits and perks to attract candidates to your open role.

Ready to get started? See our full guide for writing babysitter job descriptions.

Interviewing babysitter candidates

Strong candidates for babysitter positions will be confident answering questions regarding:

• How they would resolve conflicts or calm anxious children
• Experience supporting children with different learning or behavioural needs
• Organising a child’s bedtime routine or after school schedule
• Creative approaches to planning fun, engaging activities

Need help coming up with interview questions? See our list of housekeeper interview questions for examples (with sample answers).