How Much Does Care.Com Charge? Basic and Premium Membership Pricing

Last updated on September 21st, 2024 at 10:28 am

 

Care.com platform is a care service provider connecting with caregivers and care seekers in business, but more to that, you need to know how much does care.com charge for membership?

Human beings in order to have a good life need to be given care, animals must be looked after to have a healthy life, and birds too.

Everybody in life is responsible for someone around him or her whether at a price or not. Yes, at times we incur certain costs to be taken care of hence trading other people’s time with money.

What I mean, in case you don’t have the time to work things out yourself then you would consider paying someone to do it, make use of care.com reviews to get service. There are also platforms where service providers, are listed for whoever might be interested at a price.

And there’s nothing wrong with getting someone out to do house sitting and pet care work when you can afford the cost.

Service providers are available on different platforms but their charges vary according to either the service type or platform used.

If you’re looking for home care service providers, I wouldn’t hesitate about care.com one of the most trusted platforms online. Care.com jobs go at a cost for home care service providers and also people interested in home care services pay fees too.

Here we’re going to find out what it would really cost in case one is interested in getting a membership in order to get started using the platform.

What Is Care.Com?

Care.com is a platform that connects caregivers to care seekers in need of care services. This platform started over a decade ago for caregivers offering different services like child care, pet care, elderly care, house sitting, and more.

Caregivers and families are the main users of the platform. Families use it to look out for home care service providers and caregivers use it to display their service.

However, Caregivers and families that would want to use the platform need to acquire premium or basic membership. Looking for home care service providers, right? let’s look at the different care.com membership plans.

Basic Membership Tier

This is where you get free access to the platform but are limited to some features, it’s referred to as basic membership.

Caregivers

If you’re a caregiver and decided on taking the care.com free basic membership tier you’ll be limited to some features while using the platform.

It’s possible to look out for available opportunities on the platform but taking advantage of them is a problem. Sure, you can’t fully crack a deal through the platform since you don’t have access to premium features.

As a bridge for caregivers and care seekers, there’re terms and conditions of use in order to access the features. And when you seriously want to use the service, I guess you wouldn’t like to find any challenges along the process.

Care Seekers

Also, with care seekers, the basic membership tier is free of charge. Here’s a list of features contained in a basic membership tier for care seekers.

• You can create an account on the platform and post a job.
• As a care seeker, you’ll view each and every person that applies for a job that you posted.
• It’s only possible to search and peruse through profiles for local caregivers.
• The messages shared are not personalized they’re robotic.
• You get access to site tools and other helpful materials like rate calculators for caregivers and hiring guides.

I don’t know about you but I wouldn’t advise you to take it on if you’re really serious about what you want. Yes, you’ll waste a lot of time doing nothing that isn’t worth your time and effort.

Premium Membership Tier

Where you get access to the platform at a cost for unlimited services it’s referred to as care.com premium membership.

Caregivers

Caregivers with premium membership get access to all the features that allow them to fully get in touch with care seekers. And this means caregivers can easily close deals for side hustle jobs through the platform in the shortest time possible if both parties agree.

Premium caregivers have an edge over basic caregivers since their profiles are technically optimized for search on the platform.

There’s free background check done by the platform on caregivers which gives the confidence to care seekers about the service. Premium membership charges on care.com for service providers or caregivers are in three formats.

A 1month membership tier costs $20 per month – a 3months membership tier costs $15 per month – a 6months membership tier costs $10 per month

Care.com also offers credits to premium caregivers though at a cost and it’s optional. Credits can be used in the job application process and they help you get easily seen by employers.

You would of course want to boost your chances of getting better offers, now let’s look at the costs attached to credits.

10 credits cost $9 – 15 credits cost $19 – 50 credits cost $29.

Is care.com premium membership worth it? that’s all I can say about premium membership costs to caregivers.

Care Seekers

Care seekers with premium memberships get access to all the features that enable them to look at strategic information and also easily get in contact with potential caregivers. Here’s a list of features attached to the premium membership tier.

• It’s possible to get in touch with caregivers for interviews directly.
• You can easily get access to the outcomes of background checks for each and every applicant.
• Communication with caregivers is much easier compared to the basic tier.
• Ease of access to the life mart discount program on the platform.
• With a premium tier, care seekers can sign up for unlimited background checks add-on
• There is discounting on HomePay tax services

Though premium membership is costly, it’s worth it in case you’re really good at using caregiver services. Let’s also look at the costs incurred by care seekers for using the platform with different tiers.

A 1-month premium membership tier costs $39 per month – a 3-month premium membership tier costs $26 per month – a 12-month membership tier costs $13 per month. You can therefore decide to take on one that feels right for you at a point in time.

Compared to the basic membership tier, I would of course choose to go for the premium tier no doubt. Again, the cost is surely worth it than wasting time on a basic membership tier that won’t provide satisfaction.

Background Checks and Approval

If you want to be a sitter on care.com don’t expect deals to come up on a silver plate. Here every sitter has to undergo what is known as a background check.

There’re charges incurred on background checks when it’s being carried out. And these charges are categorized into three ways to cater to different kinds of detailed information on sitters.

The basic background check tier starts from $59 to $300 for a thorough screening. You need to get a better caregiver that has been thoroughly investigated and would provide good care as required.

I wouldn’t recommend care seekers look out for unethical caregivers that may cost them in the long run.

About background check costs, right? The three tiers for each background check are as below.

• Criminal records check @ $59 and it’s free when upgrading to a premium tier.

The background check works on just five criminal databases.

• Criminal records check and motor vehicle record @ $79, also you can upgrade to premium at no cost.

It also checks against five criminal databases inclusive of driving records, license status, and traffic abuses.

• Investigative criminal plus check @ $300 covers almost each and every aspect of the criminal background check.

This tier works against 11 different criminal databases. The background check process is either way since both care seekers and caregivers can do the facilitation After all it’s worth it.

Caregiver Charges

Care seekers obtain services of care caregivers at a cost through the platform. The rates charged by caregivers depend on several factors like expertise and nature of work.

As a care seeker, you can expect hourly rate charges of about $12 on average by caregivers. Caregivers that earn the most out of the platform try out different opportunities and preferably high-paying jobs.

Caregivers working as sitters earn less compared to those working as child tutors. The most listed opportunities on care.com include nanny, childcare, home sitting, and tutoring.

And on average per hour Childcare earns $11, nanny earns $12, housekeeping earns $13 and tutoring earns $14. Care seekers will accept different charges for several reasons as stated in the terms of service by caregivers.

Factors that Determine How Much CareGivers Charge

Caregivers will set their prices and care seekers either reject the service or accept it at a given price. And now let’s take a look at some of the factors that determine prices for the service on the platform.

• Experience

Caregivers that have been in business for quite some time with a high level of expertise charge highly. Yes, the charges are high but you get quality service worth your money.

• Transport

Caregivers that incur moving costs at their own expense charge more in order to cover fuel or gas costs. And of course, as a care seeker if you’re in need of the service definitely you’ll take on the applicant.

• Qualifications

Caregivers with professionalism in the field are much recognized hence their charges are more compared to those that are less qualified. The qualified charge highly but it’s worth it since you get service at its best.

• Nature of the Offer

The type of job that an applicant is going to take on is also a determinant factor of how much a caregiver is to charge.

If the offer is inclusive of other activities, then the caregiver will price highly. For example, when tutoring includes childcare, pet sitting, and more.

• Location

Caregivers in urban centers charge higher than those in rural settings. And also care seekers in rural areas pay less than those in urban areas.

• Level of Commitment

For caregivers, where it requires high levels of commitment to the job they charge highly compared to when it’s not a full-time commitment. The level of commitment would include part-time, full time or on a contract basis.

Managing Costs through Care.Com Services

Users of the platform get in control of costs incurred by acquiring promo codes that can be attached to orders. And also, at the same time being vigilant about the duration of service not exceeding the required time period.

Promo codes are a discounting tool for users of the platform when making any purchase. When you’re just getting started signing up on care.com for membership promo codes reduce costs.

Getting promo codes, it’s not a hassle since they can be accessed online by whoever is interested. Users of the platform don’t have to take on monthly membership in case they’re not going to use it as it also helps to cut costs.

Question yourself in the first place whether you need to consider premium membership subscriptions or not. Take on a membership tier that won’t cost you a lot but is tailored to your needs for a limited time frame when you’re interested in using the platform.

The system technically renews a premium membership tier at hand unless it’s manually canceled. Some people lose out in the start when they sign up for costly tiers which they find themselves not using that much.

Care.com doesn’t make refunds to whoever wants to cancel a membership subscription before its expiry.

Alternatives to Care.Com

There’re different alternatives to care.com in case you’re a caregiver or care seeker. And every platform has just a slight difference from the other.

• UrbanSitter

If you’re not comfortable with Care.com, UrbanSitter is one other option you should give a try. UrbanSitter came into existence way back over a decade designed for families in need of babysitters and nannies.

• DogVacay

This platform specializes in pet care services for families that are in need. It has also been around for over a decade available to people in the United States and Canada.

If you’re in need of home care services in the line of pet care this platform is right for you.

• SitterCity

This is a home caregiver platform that connects caregivers to care seekers in need of the service. It’s one of the care.com alternatives that have been around for over two decades that is since 2001.

SitterCity is a platform where you’ll find most home care service providers say nannies, pet sitters, dog sitters, and others.

• Rover

For sure, I can’t go without mentioning Rover though it’s not that old, it’s among the most preferred. It mostly connects pet sitters with pet owners ready to take on the service at a cost.

Pet owners more so with dogs acquire services through Rover like dog walking, dog boarding, and dog sitting. Rover ensures all the service providers are thoroughly screened which gives confidence to pet owners about the platform.

FAQs

• Is It Possible Communicating With Caregivers On The Platform At No Cost?

In order to directly talk to each other that is caregivers and care seekers require getting a premium membership. If you’re seriously in need of the service the basic membership tier won’t help.

• Is It Possible To Reduce On Costs Incurred In Using The Platform?

Care.com offers promo codes that can help in discounting charges on premium membership tiers.

• Can I Get A Premium Membership Tier That Is Less Than A Month?

Currently, premium membership tiers are not less than a month that 1 month to 1 year. And it’s worth the money since you get access to most of the useful features on the platform.

• How Long Does It Take To Make Money on Care.com?

You can’t guarantee how long it can take to get paid through the platform. But you must ensure that you signed up for a premium membership and profile yourself in the best way possible.

Yes, make a killer profile and effectively communicate with clients. Honestly, communication skills are very important in this business.

Wrapping It Up – How Much Does Care.com Charge

Choosing care.com service means you’re decided and ready to incur the costs where necessary. And for any service in the name of home care whether part-time or full time all is well on the platform.

Caregivers can diversify income sources after all one can choose to go for dog walking, pet sitting, housekeeping, and more. Care.com is also as good as other platforms listed among the alternatives.

Therefore, if you want quality services, care.com is one of the many that you needn’t avoid despite the charges.