Care.com

What: Employment site for baby sitters, pet-sitters, nannies, elder-care, housekeeping and home care nurses

Expected pay: $10 – $30 per hour (high-end of the range generally is for elder and nursing care)

Husl $core: $$$

Where: Major U.S. cities. 

Requirements: Be a legal resident;over the age of 18 (or over 14, with parental permission to baby sit); other requirements vary by the position sought

Review: With more than 14 million family members and 11 million caregivers, Care.com is the industry giant. That gives caregivers greater potential to find a job. Importantly, too, the site does not charge to sign up, but will encourage members to go for premium services, which are charged via monthly fee that’s automatically renewed until you cancel. You set up your profile and declare your hourly rate.

The main downsides: The pay for care-giving is often modest, and regardless of what you want to earn, the typical family will pay $10 to $15 per hour in the U.S. Some pay more, of course, but earning more than $15 hourly for babysitting on this platform appears pretty rare.

Moreover, though Care.com is not taking a commission on your pay, the site does need to make a profit, so it pushes pretty hard to get people to sign up for premium memberships. And those aren’t cheap, running roughly $150 per year. Notably, for sitters and employers to communicate directly, somebody needs to pay the membership fee. Employers can pay this fee too, so you can theoretically use the site for free. But beware if you do pay because the site will automatically renew your membership and some complain they’ll renew even when you tell them to cancel. Refunds are tough to come by.

That said, there are more than 500 employee reviews from the company’s workers posted on Indeed.com and they are overwhelmingly positive. However, reviews on Reviewopedia are not as positive and particularly warn people about the automatic charges.

Other sites that offer good child care opportunities are Sitter City and Urban Sitter; for an alternative for dog walking, try Rover. We have yet to discover a better option for jobs in eldercare. (If you know of one, contact us and we’ll add it to our list for a future review.)

What their users say: 

I’ve gotten a few caregivers through Care.com, and have always been happy. The only problem is the automatic renewal and AUTOMATIC UPGRADE of accounts. Just noticed that I had a charge from Care.com for my account this month-after no charges for months since I got my new nanny. They decided I had made a mistake downgrading to basic membership (since you can’t delete your account with them) and so upgraded me without asking me. Note I last used the service in September of 2016 and I’m writing this in April 2017…Use a one time credit card to sign up or cancel your card after you get your new caregiver.

I was trying to find a dog sitter as I was going to be out of town 3 to 4 days out of every week. I signed up and paid my fee for the month in order to be able contact a couple of dog sitters. I hired someone and went about my life caretaking my family member. Now that she has passed and I am getting back on my feet from a devastating loss, I find that Care.com has been charging my credit card every single month. They are refusing to return anything but one month. FOR SHAME!!!!! 

“Working as a dog walker is a great option for someone who loves to be outdoors and is athletic or motivated and loves to go for a long walk with a pet. I loved working as a dog walker and great pay from the dog owner.”

“A typical day at work usually consisted of an enjoyable, calm environment where I am able to build relationships with the families and the children that I care for.”

“Working for care.com is amazing! They help you find an amazing family that is a great fit for you and if you love working with children, than every day will feel like a great day!”

“Obtaining a job from Care.com as a nanny was a pleasant experience. I enjoyed every day of work. My boss(es) were very kind to me and were understanding when I had any conflict for work. This job was very flexible and I was also able to incorporate my personal life (such as doctor appointments, grocery shopping for myself, running errands, etc) into this job. 

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