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For me and my partner, hiring a nanny is one of the best decisions we’ve made as parents. Our nanny has nurtured our kids, helped manage our household, and given us both time for self-care and date nights. Having her support and expertise has freed up time and mental load for us to be more present parents and partners. It is a large financial commitment to make, but it’s been worth the investment in our children’s development, our marriage, our careers, and the health of our household in general.
To help you decide if hiring a nanny is right for your family, we break down the cost of a nanny, whether you’re looking to hire a nanny full-time, part-time, live-in, or on the weekends. We also look at other nanny costs to be aware of, like taxes and benefits, and the true value of hiring a nanny, so you can better decide if the return on investment is worth it for your family.
Quick Answer: Most families pay $20–$40+ per hour for a nanny, plus employer taxes (~7.65%), paid time off, and possible agency fees.
Skip Ahead: The Cost Of A Nanny
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Cost Of A Nanny: Full Time
The cost of a full-time nanny is between $20-$40/hour. That comes out to an annual salary range of $41,600-$83,200. Here are some of the factors that affect the hourly rate:
- Years of experience: As a nanny, not a babysitter
- Education: Do they have a background in early childhood education? Are they certified as a newborn care specialist or have other relevant educational experiences?
- Driver's license & clean driving record: Can they run errands or drive your kids around?
- Number of kids you have and their ages: A newborn requires more skills than caring for an older child
- Where you live: Average nanny rates vary depending on the cost of living in your city
- Skills: Things like offering bilingual language immersion, the ability to swim, managing a household, or other specific skills desired by a family can all raise the hourly rate
- Certifications: CPR and first aid training are crucial
If you want your nanny to take on additional duties, like those of a family assistant, then you should add $3-$5 more per hour for those tasks (roughly $6,250-$10,400 more per year). This can include things like light meal prep, household tasks, running errands, or computer and research-related tasks. Check out my guide, 6 Steps to Promoting Your Nanny into a Family Assistant, for all the steps to take to either hire a nanny in this capacity or promote your current nanny into this role.
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Cost Of A Nanny: Part Time
A nanny is considered part-time when they work 35 hours or less each week. The hourly cost of a part-time nanny is the same as a full-time nanny at $20-$40/hour, but you will pay less annually with the reduced hours (~$36,400- $72,800 annually for 35 hours a week). Below are some examples of the yearly cost of a part-time nanny, depending on how many hours they work.
Interestingly enough, it’s harder to find a part-time nanny than a full-time nanny for two reasons:
- The exact schedule you need doesn’t always match their schedule.
- Some of the best nannies out there are career nannies and prefer long-term and full-time positions.
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Cost Of A Nanny: On The Weekend
The cost of a weekend nanny is between $30-$45/hour. Weekend nannies have a higher hourly rate since Saturday/Sunday hours are in higher demand and lower supply.
Like other nanny positions, a weekend nanny can also help with meal prep, errands, and generally assist with duties that help the entire family thrive, in addition to looking after the kids.
Through Proxy, we’ve vetted several companies that will match you with qualified, background-checked weekend nannies. Text us — (820) 732-2625 — what you're looking for, and we'll respond in minutes with a trusted provider in your area.
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Live-In Nanny Cost
The hourly rate for a live-in nanny typically costs the same as or more than a full-time, live-out nanny. This fact really stumped me when I was first looking for a nanny. I assumed that it would be less expensive to hire a live-in nanny since we would be providing a place for them to live, and they would save money on rent. But I quickly learned that the value of a live-in nanny is that they’re more accessible and therefore more available, and once you are a parent, that is worth its weight in gold.
Expect to pay between $20-$40/hour, or $41,600-$83,200 annually for a live-in nanny. In most states, live-in nannies are exempt from overtime pay. They still need to be paid for all hours worked, but it’s at their standard rate rather than time and a half.
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You will, of course, need to provide a private room for your nanny if they are living with you. We personally charge our current nanny rent, because I think it’s important to assign a value to the cost savings she gets compared to her peers who pay full price for rent. Here’s what we currently charge our nanny per month for room & board in the San Diego area:
- $450 in rent (compared to ~$1,500 in the area)
- $50/mo for utilities (highly discounted)
- $200/mo for cleaning service + access to our laundry
Though a live-in nanny is by no means on call all the time, having your nanny live with you does offer more flexibility with the schedule and makes it easier for them to handle early mornings or late evenings if needed. Live-in nannies can be especially ideal for those with varied work schedules, like hospital workers, but also for those built-in date nights or early morning wakeups.
Proxy Tip:
We pay our live-in nanny a bonus to stay home 3 nights/week while the kids are in bed so that my partner and I have the option of going to a movie, dinner out, or meeting up with friends. Having those built-in nights on our calendar pushes us to think about getting out of the house for a bit. The bonus is nominal (an extra $50/night), and there is not much expected of our nanny since the kids are asleep, but she is being paid to be “on call” if the kids need anything and to essentially block her calendar to stay in that night. The nice thing about her being a live-in nanny is that she can hang out in her own space, with the monitors on, have a friend over if she chooses, watch her own shows, and enjoy her night as she normally would, whether we were home or not.
Cost Of A Nanny: Employee Benefits
In addition to paying your nanny an hourly rate, it’s also customary to offer certain employee benefits. Here are some extra things to consider when calculating the cost of a nanny:
- Paid holidays: We provide our nanny 5 paid holidays per year, such as Memorial Day, Columbus Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas Day.
- Paid sick days: We provide our nanny 5 paid sick days per year. There’s no federal mandate for paid sick days, but many states and local jurisdictions have their own requirements.
- Paid vacation days: We offer our nanny 10 paid vacation days per year in addition to her paid holidays.
- Health insurance: Some families will purchase their nanny’s health insurance or offer a partial reimbursement. I prefer to pay a higher wage and not manage additional paperwork. But it is worth noting that there are ways to contribute to your nanny's health insurance that will lead to lower taxes for both of you (more on taxes below).
- Cell phone stipend: If your nanny regularly uses their phone for job-related tasks, you can consider reimbursing their cell phone expenses or give them access to a home iPad or computer.
- Mileage reimbursement: This is for when a nanny uses their personal car on the job. We provide a car for our nanny to drive during working hours and pay for its maintenance and gas. It’s way easier and more convenient than tracking mileage.
- Annual bonus: We always give a holiday cash bonus of $2,000 along with a physical gift valued at $500. (Check out some of the nanny gifts we love, here.)
It might seem like a lot, but treating your nanny as a professional will help establish a long-lasting relationship that benefits your entire family. Not only will they be a trusted person who cares for and nurtures your kids, but a modern nanny can also help manage the household and take additional low-joy tasks off your plate. In those early years especially, children sleep so much that there’s plenty of hours that your nanny can devote to supporting the household, whether it be prepping a crockpot for when you get home, emptying the dishwasher so it’s ready to be loaded with dirty dishes after dinner, or transferring dry cleaning to cloth hangers in your closet. There are a ton of ways they can help your entire family thrive that are worth every penny, including perks!
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Cost Of A Nanny: Taxes Related To Medicare, Social Security, and Unemployment
Another cost to factor in when hiring a nanny is the taxes you’ll both owe. You will need to deduct the required amount for social security, Medicare, and federal and state income taxes from each of your nanny’s paychecks and pay it to the IRS and state on behalf of the nanny. Some people think this is just extra work on your end, and not an additional cost of having a nanny, but as their employer, you’re also responsible for paying a portion of the taxes related to Medicare, Social Security, and unemployment.
The biggest chunk you’ll owe as an employer is for Medicare and Social Security. It comes out to ~7.65% of their salary, so if you pay your nanny $35/hr, that’s about $4,775 each year to be tax compliant. You'll also owe a few hundred dollars in state and federal unemployment taxes.
You can see a sample nanny tax estimate below, courtesy of GTM’s nanny tax calculator:
Of course, taxes can be complicated, so I recommend hiring a payroll service that specializes in household employees, like GTM Payroll, to take care of this for you. It will save you so much time each month, plus give you peace of mind that everything is being handled correctly. They’ll ensure that all the proper forms (W4 and I9s) are complete, and get your bi-monthly payroll processed automatically so you don’t have to lift a finger. They will also register you as an employer with the federal and state governments, obtain your employer tax IDs, handle your new hire reporting to the state, and provide required forms for your employee to complete.
If a payroll service isn't the right fit for you, you could use your own bookkeeper to submit paychecks through QuickBooks or any other accounting software tool.
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One major advantage of using a professional service is that they can help you figure out if you’re eligible to reduce the amount of nanny taxes you owe, whether that’s through tax credits, flexible spending accounts, or pre-tax benefits.
Not sure which option is best for you? Text Proxy — (820) 732-2625 — what's on your mind, and we'll help you think through the best solution for your situation.
Proxy Tip:
I do not recommend paying your nanny under the table in cash, no matter how good of a relationship and understanding you think you have with them. If you choose to pay cash only, you run the risk of being audited down the road when your nanny files for unemployment and doesn’t have any pay stubs to prove that they were an employee. Many states also require that you have workers' compensation for your nanny, which you can only purchase if you have a legally-employed nanny. If you don't have coverage and an accident or illness happens, you can be fined thousands of dollars. It's not worth the risk.
Don’t skimp and try to save a few bucks when it comes to the person who will be caring for your child every day. Instead, have a formal contract that includes clear expectations for the role and established rules for paid time off, holidays, and hours.
Check out our sample nanny contract customizable template for an example.
Cost Of A Nanny Agency
As I go over in detail in my article, 5 Reasons to Use A Nanny Agency, using a nanny agency will save you 40+ hours in headaches, worry, and stress. They help with all parts of the process and also guarantee placement, which means you’ll only be matched with someone who is the right fit because the agency also has a skin in the game. The standard cost of a nanny agency is to charge 20% of their yearly salary. This means, if you hire a full-time nanny at a rate of $35/hr, you’d pay $14,560 to the nanny agency.
Cost Of A Nanny: Is The Investment Right For Your Family?
When adding up all the costs of a nanny, it may seem like a lot, but it’s important to also consider all of the benefits you get beyond the physical time saved of not driving back and forth to daycare drop-offs and the extra hands to help manage your home.
Above all, having the peace of mind that someone you trust is giving your kids individual attention, helping teach them fine motor skills, and tracking their developmental milestones means you won’t spend time worrying when you’re not there. It also ensures that when you are spending time with your kids, it’s quality time and you’re able to give them your full attention to do the fun stuff rather than multitasking or being distracted by all the things that need to get done around the house.
In our article, The Top 6 Fears of Hiring Household Help, one perinatal therapist shared with us that she had several clients who initially opted for daycare instead of a nanny because of the cost.
“But what we see over time is that sometimes the rigmarole of the morning and the chaos that comes with getting lunches packed, kids out the door, and having everything ready is so stressful that it’s taking you away from enjoying the time that you do have with your kid,” Kylie Hempy with California Perinatal Therapy told us. “Whereas being able to leave them in their pajamas with a nanny ends up being priceless because it gives you back enjoying the morning and the commute time home. It’s a very small change in terms of time, but it makes a big difference to how you feel in your home and with your family.”
Need more guidance? Check out our additional nanny articles below. Or, text Proxy — (820) 732-2625 — whatever question you have, and we'll respond in minutes with clear next steps. Proxy is your thinking partner for home life. Anything you are overthinking, wondering about, debating with your partner, or about to Google or research yourself, you can ask Proxy instead.
