The Best Au Pair Experiences are With AuPairCare

An au pair (pronounced "oh pair," and often searched as "opare" or "aupair") is a young adult from another country who lives with an American host family for a year, provides up to 45 hours a week of childcare, and takes part in a cultural exchange on a J-1 visa. Au pairs are not nannies or babysitters; they're part of the household. Read our full blog on what is an au pair.

AuPairCare host families pay the agency an annual program fee, and also pay their au pair a weekly stipend directly. These costs remain the same even as your family grows. Payment plans and discounts for repeat, military, and corporate partner families are available. See the full au pair program costs.

The U.S. Department of State sets a federal minimum weekly stipend for au pairs. AuPairCare's minimum weekly stipend is $215 per week which is higher than the U.S. Department of State minimum. Host families and au pairs are free to agree to a weekly stipend even higher than the $215 per week minimum. Host families pay the stipend directly to their au pair and does not change with the number of children. For a line-by-line look at a full year, read how much does an au pair cost.

Hosting an au pair can be less expensive for many families, especially those with two or more children. Nannies and daycare centers price per child and per hour; the au pair program cost includes an annual program fee and a weekly stipend paid directly to the au pair. Au pairs typically provide around 40 hours of flexible, in-home childcare each week. Au pairs can help with kids' meals, laundry, and school runs. See the break down of the numbers by family size in our au pair vs nanny vs daycare comparison.

Host families must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents, speak English as the primary language at home, pass a background check, and provide a private bedroom with an adult-size bed. You'll also commit to a one-year program (with the option to extend) and to treating your au pair as a member of the family. See the complete host family requirements.

Apply online (about 10 minutes), search au pair profiles, interview your top candidates by video, and match. AuPairCare handles the visa preperation, travel arrangements, and pre-arrival training, and your local Area Director checks in within 48 hours of arrival and monthly after that. Our step-by-step guide covers how to hire an au pair from application to arrival day.

Yes. In the United States, au pairs apply for and arrive on a J-1 cultural exchange visa, and only agencies designated by the U.S. Department of State can sponsor the au pair program. AuPairCare has been a designated sponsor since 1989, with local Area Directors within an hour's drive of every host family and au pair. Here's why families choose AuPairCare as their au pair agency.