Evening · sleep period · morning
Overnight babysitting calculator
Split an overnight into the hours the kids are awake and the hours they sleep, price each part your way, and see the total.
What you owe for the overnight
- Evening5:00 PM–10:00 PM · 5h × $25/hr
- $125.00
- Overnight10:00 PM–6:00 AM · flat for 8h
- $75.00
- Morning6:00 AM–9:00 AM · 3h × $25/hr
- $75.00
- You owe
- $275.00
- Evening
- Overnight
- Morning
Overnight sitter on a schedule? SitterRate Pro saves the sleep period and overnight rate with each sitter, so next time you only enter drop-off and pickup.
Get SitterRateFree on the App Store · iPhoneNo sleep period? Use the babysitter pay calculator.
Three ways families pay for an overnight
The same night, 6 PM to 8 AM at $25 an hour while the kids are awake, priced three common ways. Decide which one you are using before the night, not at pickup.
- Evening4h × $25/hr
- $100.00
- Overnight8h × $25/hr
- $200.00
- Morning2h × $25/hr
- $50.00
- Total
- $350.00
- Evening4h × $25/hr
- $100.00
- OvernightFlat, 8h
- $75.00
- Morning2h × $25/hr
- $50.00
- Total
- $225.00
- OvernightFlat, 14h
- $285.00
- Total
- $285.00
Typical overnight rates in 2026
UrbanSitter, which publishes booking data, says families often pay a flat overnight amount, or an hourly rate while the children are awake plus a flat fee for the sleeping hours, and puts the typical range at $200 to $325.
Care.com’s posted rates suggest overnight sitters ask about the same hourly rate as daytime sitters: in Brooklyn, $22.98 an hour versus $23.57 for overnight; in Phoenix, $19.77 versus $19.09 (posted starting rates, February 2026). Care.com also says sitters should be paid for every hour, sleeping hours included.
Different pages from the same companies give different overnight figures, so use them as a starting point and agree on the structure with your sitter.
| Booking | Flat rate |
|---|---|
| Overnight | $285.00 |
| 24 hours | $525.00 |
| Weekend | $1,050.00 |
| 5 days | $2,600.00 |
Paying for sleep time: casual sitters vs. nannies
For a casual babysitter (occasional, not their vocation, usually 20 hours a week or less), federal wage law doesn’t set minimum wage or overtime, so the overnight structure is up to you and the sitter.
For a nanny or regular sitter, it does. Someone required to be on duty for less than 24 hours is working even if they are allowed to sleep. For shifts of 24 hours or more, the Department of Labor allows up to 8 hours of sleep to be excluded by agreement, but if interruptions keep the sitter from getting at least 5 hours of sleep in total, the whole night is paid. Some states add their own rules; see your state.
SitterRate for iPhone
Overnights, without the math at pickup
SitterRate Pro does this split automatically, keeps the sleep period and overnight rate with each sitter, and saves the itemized night to your history.
- Evening, overnight and morning periods, itemizedPro
- Flat or hourly overnight, saved per sitterPro
- Live timer from drop-offPro
- Paid/unpaid history and plain-text summaries
Get SitterRateFree on the App Store · iPhoneFree download. Pro is a one-time in-app purchase, with no subscription. What’s in the app
Questions people ask
How much do you pay a babysitter overnight?
UrbanSitter puts a typical overnight at $200 to $325 (its flat-rate table lists $285). Paying the regular hourly rate for every hour is also common: 6 PM to 8 AM at $25 an hour is $350.00.
Do you pay a babysitter for the hours they sleep?
Families do it both ways: some pay every hour, others pay hourly while the children are awake and a flat amount for the sleep period. For a nanny or regular sitter covered by federal wage law, a shift of less than 24 hours counts as working time even if they are allowed to sleep (29 CFR 785.21). Casual babysitters are exempt from those rules.
What if we pick up early during the sleep period?
With a flat overnight amount, the calculator charges it in full and says so, the same as the SitterRate app. With an hourly overnight rate, the sitter is paid for the part of the sleep period they were there.
Does the extra-child amount apply overnight?
It applies to the hourly periods (evening, morning, and an hourly overnight). A flat overnight amount is treated as all-in, so agree on it with the number of children in mind.
How is a tip worked out on an overnight?
A tip percentage applies to the pay for the evening, overnight and morning periods, not to reimbursed expenses or a bonus.
What about a whole weekend?
UrbanSitter's flat-rate table lists $525 for 24 hours, $1,050 for a weekend and $2,600 for five days. This calculator handles sessions up to 24 hours; for longer stays, add up each night and day.
Sources
- UrbanSitter, “Babysitting Rates by City (2026),” last updated January 2026.Overnight range and flat-rate table.
- Care.com, Overnight Babysitting Rates: What You Need to Know (updated February 4, 2026)
- 29 CFR 785.21: sleeping time for employees on duty less than 24 hours
- U.S. Department of Labor, Fact Sheet #79D: hours worked in domestic service
- 29 CFR Part 552: domestic service and casual babysitting