What to pay a babysitter in Sacramento, CA
Childcare workers in the Sacramento–Roseville–Folsom metro area earned a median of $18.46 an hour in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That's more than in 92% of the 385 US metro areas BLS reports. It's 13th of California's 25 metro areas.
Suggested babysitter rates in Sacramento
For one child, built on that local median:
| Kids | New or teen | Experienced | Pro |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 child | $18.50 | $21.00 | $24.00 |
| 2 kids | $21.00 | $23.50 | $26.50 |
| 3 kids | $23.50 | $26.00 | $29.00 |
Work out a total in the calculator →
How we get the suggested rates
A babysitter does much the same job as a childcare worker, usually alone and often in the evening, so we start from what childcare work pays locally: a new or teen sitter at the local median wage, an experienced sitter 15% above it, and a pro (CPR-certified, years of experience) 30% above it. Each child after the first adds about $2.50 an hour. It's a starting point, not a rule. Late nights, holidays, last-minute bookings, special needs and extra duties like driving or cooking all justify more; our guide to how much to pay a babysitter goes through them.
What childcare work pays in Sacramento
| Bottom 10% earn less than | $16.89 |
|---|---|
| Bottom quarter earn less than | $17.96 |
| Median | $18.46 |
| Top quarter earn more than | $21.45 |
| Top 10% earn more than | $23.78 |
| Average | $19.89 |
| Median for a year of full-time work | $38,390 |
| Childcare workers employed | 2,280 |
Childcare jobs are less common here than nationally: 2.11 in every 1,000 jobs, 0.63 times the national share.
Elsewhere in California
- San Jose, CA $21.98 median
- San Francisco, CA $21.41 median
- San Luis Obispo, CA $20.60 median
- Modesto, CA $20.16 median
- Napa, CA $19.98 median
- Santa Rosa, CA $19.84 median
- Riverside, CA $19.33 median
- Stockton, CA $19.24 median
- Los Angeles, CA $19.18 median
- San Diego, CA $19.14 median
- Salinas, CA $19.00 median
- Vallejo, CA $18.68 median
- Santa Maria, CA $18.46 median
- Oxnard, CA $18.43 median
- El Centro, CA $18.37 median
- Santa Cruz, CA $18.29 median
- Redding, CA $18.18 median
- Yuba City, CA $18.05 median
- Visalia, CA $17.88 median
- Hanford, CA $17.74 median
- Chico, CA $17.63 median
- Merced, CA $17.59 median
- Fresno, CA $17.54 median
- Bakersfield, CA $17.40 median
Outside its metro areas, California's 3 nonmetropolitan areas pay medians from $19.08 to $20.69. All of California →
What these figures cover
They come from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' wage survey for May 2025, for the occupation it calls Childcare Workers: people paid to look after children at daycares, schools, businesses and in private homes. The survey asks employers, so it counts childcare workers on a payroll, and its technical note says it leaves out the self-employed and household workers. Babysitters paid directly by a family aren't in these numbers. Read them as what childcare work pays where you live, not as a survey of babysitting rates.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, occupation 39-9011 Childcare Workers. Suggested rates are Sitterday's rule of thumb, explained above.