Finding a Nanny in Paris: Babysitters and Childcare in 2026

Finding a nanny in Paris is a different exercise depending on whether you're passing through for three days or have just unpacked your bags for several years. In the first case, you need a reliable babysitter, available quickly, often English-speaking, for an evening or a day of museums. In the second, you're entering the French childcare system, with its employment statuses, its benefits and its waiting times. This guide covers both situations, then details the legal framework and the prices observed in September 2026.

Visiting families: a babysitter for an evening or a day

Matching platforms

Babysits: average rate observed in Paris of around €11 to €11.50 an hour. Every member verifies their identity before messaging; a badge shows which ID documents have been provided. Premium subscription around €25 a month. English-language interface, many English-speaking students.
Yoopies: the best-stocked French platform, profiles in Paris from €11 an hour, subscription around €25 a month. Self-declared verification, sometimes slow replies: contact several profiles.
Sitly: Paris and Île-de-France between €12 and €16 an hour. Subscription €24.99 a month or €50.97 for three months. Sitly states that it does not verify profiles; it's up to you to ask for references and ID.
Nounou-top: limited free messaging, premium to obtain phone numbers; professionals' identity verified, no commission.

You pay the babysitter directly, often in cash (see paying in Paris). Book 48 hours ahead, especially at weekends.

Babysitting agencies

Babychou Services: 120 agencies in France, several in Paris (for example 45 rue Pouchet, 75017 Paris). Occasional daytime or evening babysitting, emergency care advertised "within 3 hours". Prices on quotation, well above those of an individual sitter.
Kinougarde: a Paris home-childcare agency, geared more to regular care. Example displayed in April 2026: €32.05 an hour including VAT for two children in Paris 14th, before benefits.
Be My Nounou and Babylangues: English-speaking or bilingual nannies (ten languages at Babylangues), criminal-record checks and references verified. More suited to ongoing care.

Your hotel's babysitting service

Puppets at the Jardin du Luxembourg

Palace hotels and some four-star hotels offer in-room babysitting through a partner agency. Example observed: the Hôtel Eiffel Trocadéro (35 rue Benjamin Franklin, 75116 Paris) charges €20 an hour, plus €3 per child beyond two, and a taxi after midnight. Tell reception when you book, or at least the day before. To choose a hotel that offers it, see our hotels in Paris by budget.

During the day, the nanny can take the children to the Jardin du Luxembourg or to the Cité des enfants at the Cité des sciences; more ideas in Paris with the family.

Families settling in: regular childcare solutions

Nanny at home or registered childminder?

The home nanny, officially called an "assistant parental" since 1 January 2026, works in your home. You are their employer: contract, payslips, declaration. No licence is required.
The registered childminder (assistante maternelle agréée) looks after up to four children in her own home or in a childminders' house (MAM). In Paris, the licence is issued by the Mayor after assessment by the licensing service (SAMF), attached to the PMI. You remain the employer, but the rate per child is much lower.

To find one, go through the Relais petite enfance (RPE) of your arrondissement or the monenfant.fr website: the RPE provides the list of registered professionals and a model contract.

Shared nanny (garde partagée)

Two neighbouring families employ the same nanny, alternating between homes. Each signs its own contract and declares its share of the hours; the cost is halved and each family keeps its benefits. It's the most common arrangement in Paris for under-threes without a crèche place.

Crèches

Registration for a municipal crèche opens from the 6th month of pregnancy, on the Paris Familles portal or at your arrondissement town hall, and is then confirmed after the birth. Allocation committees meet several times a year; once you've been offered a place, you have 10 working days to make an appointment. Fees follow the national CNAF scale: around €280 a month for a full-time place with €3,000 in income and two children. Places are scarce in the centre; private crèches and micro-crèches accept applications all year round, at a high full price offset by the "structure" CMG (€718 to €992 a month depending on income).

Au pair

The au pair (aged 18 to 30) lives with you, works a maximum of 25 hours a week, babysitting included, and takes at least 10 hours of French lessons a week. You pay €320 to €350 a month in pocket money, plus board and lodging, and declare them to URSSAF; a written host agreement and a VLS-TS visa outside the European Union. A separate bedroom is essential: bear it in mind when finding accommodation in Paris.

Legal framework and 2026 prices

Salary of a home nanny

SMIC (the French minimum wage) since 1 June 2026: €12.31 gross an hour, or around €9.75 net.
Collective-agreement minimum (collective agreement for private household employers, assistant parental): €12.89 gross an hour excluding paid leave, around €10.08 net.
Rates observed in Paris in September 2026: €12 to €16 net an hour for regular care, €11 to €13 for student babysitting, more in the evening, for several children or with a foreign language.
Contributions: employer contributions add around 40% to the gross, before benefits. A nanny at €13 net therefore costs around €23 an hour.

Declaration, contract, benefits

Pajemploi (the household-employer declaration service) for care of a child under 6 giving entitlement to the CMG; CESU (the universal service-employment cheque) in all other cases, including one-off babysitting. Since January 2026, a separate Pajemploi declaration is required per child.
Written contract mandatory from the first hour, with a one-month trial period, renewable once.
CMG (CAF): the childcare benefit was reformed on 1 September 2025 and is now "linear", calculated on your income, the number of children and the hours declared; the 15% minimum remaining charge has gone. Hourly ceilings since April 2026: €8.09 for a childminder, €15.18 for home care. Contributions covered at 100% (childminder) or 50% (home care). Until the child turns 6, 12 for single parents.
50% tax credit on the amounts remaining at your charge, up to €12,000 in expenses a year (+€1,500 per child, €15,000 maximum) for home care, and €3,500 per child under 6 for care outside the home. The immediate advance of the tax credit remains postponed for CMG recipients in 2026.

Registered childminder

Collective-agreement minimum since 1 June 2026: €4.20 gross an hour per child (€3.28 net), €4.37 with the professional qualification, plus a maintenance allowance of at least €3.92 a day. In Paris, expect more like €4 to €6 net per child.

Comparison table

Solution	For whom	Indicative 2026 price (before benefits)	Lead time	Languages
Platform (Babysits, Yoopies, Sitly, Nounou-top)	Tourists and residents	€11–16/h + subscription ~€25/month	24–72 h	English common depending on profile
Agency (Babychou, Kinougarde)	Tourists and residents, emergencies	€25–35/h incl. VAT	Same day to 48 h	On request
Hotel babysitting	Tourists	€20–30/h + night taxi	The day before	English
Home nanny (direct employment)	Residents, any age	€12–16 net/h, ~€23 total cost	2 to 6 weeks	Depends on recruitment
Shared nanny	Residents, under-3s	Cost halved	1 to 2 months	Depends on recruitment
Registered childminder	Residents, 2.5 months to 6 years	€4–6 net/h/child + maintenance	1 to 3 months	Mostly French
Municipal crèche	Residents, from 2.5 months	€150–500/month depending on income	Several months	French
Au pair	Residents with a spare room	€320–350/month + lodging	2 to 3 months	The au pair's language

Prices observed in September 2026, to be confirmed with each provider.

Interview and checks

Ask for an ID document.
Call two references from previous families; on the platforms, read the dated reviews.
Check for a first-aid training certificate (PSC1 or equivalent).
For regular care, ask for a criminal-record extract (bulletin n° 3), which is free.
Do a first trial in your presence, then make use of the trial period.
Leave the address, allergies and what to do in case of a problem in writing; see our guide to emergencies and health in Paris.
For an evening, agree in advance on the rate, the end time and how the nanny gets home.