When it comes to gold-standard nannies, well-to-do families are willing to pay the premium price—at times shelling upwards of $200,000 per year for live-in childcare in affluent urban enclaves. But that’s not exactly de rigueur for the average American household, says Susan Tokayer, copresident at the International Nanny Association (INA). “When stories are printed about nannies making eight-figure salaries, it always causes a big stir in the community because it’s not typical, not even for the educated nanny that holds a Master’s degree,” explained Tokayer.
According to the International Nanny Association Salary and Benefits Survey (2012), the average gross weekly salary for a full-time live-out nanny in the U.S. is $705; a full-time live-in nanny is $652. Income will, of course, fluctuate depending on the experience of the nanny, the number of children, and geographical location.
The 2012 city-by-city breakdown for gross weekly salary averages of nannies for hire is as follows: Chicago, IL ($688); Austin, TX ($542); Dallas, TX ($667); Denver, CO ($768); Boston, MA ($757); Detroit, MI ($575); Cleveland, OH ($586); Baltimore, MD ($700); New York, NY ($831); Hartford, CT ($583); Los Angeles, CA ($828); Milwaukee, WI ($500); Portland, OR ($538); San Francisco, CA ($950); Oakland, CA ($911); Fremont, CA ($775); Palo Alto, CA ($863); Anaheim, CA ($700); Durham, NC ($775); Newark, NJ ($767), Orlando, FL ($525); Washington, D.C. ($833); Olympia, Washington ($800); Atlanta, GA ($682).
Across the pond, families can expect a comparable pay rate of nannies for hire. A staffer at Royal Nannies UK, for example, said that live-in nannies in the UK make between 350 to 450 pounds net per week (or $533 to $685 at the current exchange rate); live-out nannies make about 450 to 550 pounds net per week ($685 to $838). “There is only a slight difference between salaries in the UK and other countries abroad. The going rate for overseas live-in nannies starts at 600 pounds net per week ($914),” she said, adding that the highest number of nanny requests outside of London come from Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Riyadh, Moscow, Geneva, New York, Oman, and Hong Kong.
“Historically, nanny salaries increase every five to ten years. In recent years, we’ve seen a slight increase in pay rates for two key reasons: the economy is slowly rebounding and there are quite a few aspiring teachers that hold Master’s degrees in childhood education but haven’t been able to find a job. They’re turning to the nanny community for work,” said Tokayer. “But you can’t be over-qualified for this job. Parents are always in need of great nannies, and are willing to pay the price.” —By Maria Denardo (@DailyMariaD)