For Parents

Grandparents as Babysitters: What AARP Found and How to Support Them

If a grandparent watches your kids, you already know how much that is worth. In June 2026, AARP Research put numbers on it. This guide goes through what the study says, using only the figures AARP published, and then covers the practical side: what to give a grandparent who helps, and whether and how to pay one.

What the AARP study says

The study is called Powering Families: The Essential Role of Grandparents in Care, Connection and Support. AARP surveyed 3,283 grandparents age 35 and older between November 18 and December 22, 2025, online and by phone, and published the results in June 2026. These are the figures that matter to a family that uses grandparent care. The quoted parts are AARP's wording.

• Care: "7 in 10 (69%) of grandparents provide care, averaging more than 500 hours annually." AARP also describes this as "the equivalent of 12.5 weeks of full-time work" a year, on average. AARP doesn't say whether the 500 hours is averaged across all grandparents or only those who give care.
• Why they do it: asked in their own words, the top reasons were "parents' jobs or other responsibilities" (38%) and "a desire to simply spend time with and show love to their grandchildren" (35%).
• Money: "9 in 10 grandparents (90%) provide financial support for grandkids. On average, grandparents report spending $2,654 per year on all grandchildren combined". In AARP's 2018 study the figure was $2,562; AARP notes that after inflation this is a decline.
• Education and activities: about a quarter of grandparents (23%) spend money to support grandchildren's education and activities.
• How it feels: 59% say caregiving energizes them, 13% say they feel physically taxed by it, and 26% say both are equally true.

Note what these are. They are averages across grandparents, from a survey where people reported their own spending and hours. They do not describe your family, and 500 hours a year is not a number to measure your own parents against.

The "$900 billion" figure

AARP's press release is headlined "$900 Billion 'Grandparent Economy'". AARP's study page is more exact: it says the two parts total more than $903 billion a year, made up of "$172 billion in direct financial support plus $731 billion in unpaid care."

Both pieces are AARP's estimates, and the report explains how it got them. The financial total is the number of grandparents (65 million) times the average spend ($2,654). The care total is average caregiving hours multiplied by "an average national hourly rate of $22.15 for childcare services (Bureau of Labor Statistics, November 2025)." In other words, it is what the care would cost at a childcare wage, not money that changed hands. It is also not what a family should pay a grandparent, which is a different question and the next section.

Support the grandparent who helps

The best thing you can do for a grandparent who helps is make the job easy to do. Write these things down once and keep them where the grandparent will look:

• A schedule. Which days, what time you drop off and pick up, and what happens if a child is sick or a school day is cancelled. A shared calendar works, and so does a printed page on the fridge. A pattern that changes every week wears people out.
• Emergency contacts. Both parents' numbers, a second adult nearby, the pediatrician, poison control (1-800-222-1222 in the US) and the home address. Our babysitter checklist has a full list you can print and use as is.
• House rules, written. Meals and snacks, screen time, naps and bedtime, and anything off limits. Spell out allergies and any medicine, with doses written by you. Write down the rule, not the reason, and keep it short.
• A car seat that fits the child now. If the grandparent drives your child, they need a seat that is correct for the child's current size and that they can install without help. Practice together once, and follow the seat's own manual. If you are unsure what your child needs, ask your pediatrician.
• Current advice, shared kindly. Guidance on sleep, feeding and safety changes over the years. Hand over what your pediatrician told you, and say it is what you were told, rather than what changed.
• The things that cost money. Stock the house with what the kids need, or pass along money for outings and food. Remember the average above: many grandparents already spend from their own pockets.

Also ask what they want. AARP found that grandparents are not all the same: some find the care energizing, some find it tiring, and about a quarter say both are true. A grandparent who does Tuesdays and Thursdays may not want to also do the summer. Check in every few months, and make it easy to say "not that week."

Should you pay a grandparent?

There is no rule, and the AARP study does not say there should be. Families do all of these:

• Pay a regular amount. Some grandparents need the money and are glad to be asked. Some feel it makes the arrangement more reliable on both sides.
• Cover what it costs them. Gas, groceries, activities and parking, without a wage on top.
• Give something other than money. A weekend off, help with a project at their house, a standing dinner, a ride to appointments.
• Pay nothing, and say thank you in a way they can feel. That is a fine answer when everyone is happy with it.

Raise it before it becomes awkward. "We would like to pay you something, and we would like to know what feels right" opens the conversation without telling them what to do. Some grandparents will say no, and some will be offended by the offer; if so, put the offer in terms of costs and favors instead.

Using the rate calculator as a reference

If you decide to pay, you need a number. Our babysitter rate calculator shows a suggested rate for your area and number of children, based on local Bureau of Labor Statistics pay for childcare workers. It is an estimate, and you do not have to match it. Some families use it as a starting point and agree on a figure together. Others pay the full amount because they want it to be a real job. The pay guide explains what goes into the number. Remember that AARP's $22.15 is a national average used to value care, not a rate to pay.

Taxes: check before you pay

Paying a relative to watch your children can have tax consequences, and they depend on your situation. This guide does not give tax or legal advice. The IRS has a page on employment taxes for household employees (Topic 756). It lists babysitters among household employees, and it says Social Security and Medicare taxes generally aren't withheld or paid on wages to your own parent, "unless an exception is met." Publication 926, Household Employer's Tax Guide, describes the exception: it can apply when your parent cares for your child under 18 and you are divorced and haven't remarried, are a widow or widower, or live with a spouse whose condition keeps them from caring for the child. Wages are still income to the grandparent. Read those pages, and ask a tax professional about your case before you start paying regularly.

Sources and when we checked

We read each of these on November 1, 2026.

• AARP Research, Powering Families: The Essential Role of Grandparents in Care, Connection and Support, June 2026.
• AARP press release, "New AARP Research Reveals $900 Billion 'Grandparent Economy' Powering American Families," June 15, 2026.
• Internal Revenue Service, Topic no. 756, Employment taxes for household employees.
• Internal Revenue Service, Publication 926, Household Employer's Tax Guide, the "Wages not counted" exception for wages paid to a parent.

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General information for families and sitters — not professional childcare, legal, or medical advice. In an emergency, contact emergency services.