Boston Babysitters Among Highest Paid In Country, Survey Says
BOSTON (CBS) -- Hiring a babysitter for a night out costs Boston parents more than just about anywhere else in the country, a new survey finds.
Boston lands at No. 3 on Care.com's ranking of cities that pay babysitters the most. A babysitter makes $15.37 an hour on average in Boston, just behind San Francisco and San Jose.
Babysitters make the least in Grand Rapids, Michigan, taking in $11.31. That's still higher than minimum wage, the website notes.
Nationwide, the average is $13.44 an hour, but for some parents, that's just the base. The survey found that about a quarter of parents tip their sitters, nearly 90 percent gave them a raise every year and some pay an extra $5 an hour if they book them at the last minute.
The study also found that sitter rates have increased 28 percent in five years, up from an average of $12.07 in 2013.
At the end of the day, it's not all about money for parents. When asked what really motivates them to hire a sitter, 49 percent said it's about how much their kids adore the babysitter; only 3 percent said it's about how much the babysitter charges.
10 Cities That Pay Babysitters The Most:
1. San Francisco: $16.65
2. San Jose: $15.63
3. Boston: $15.37
4. New York $15.09
5. Washington, D.C. $14.99
6. Bridgeport, Conn. $14.91
7. Seattle $14.43
8. Hartford, Conn. $14.28
9. Los Angeles $14.27
10. Philadelphia $14.19
