What Are Nanny Services, Exactly?
"Nanny services" usually means ongoing, childcare-focused care — feeding, naps, school runs, play and basic developmental support — as opposed to general housekeeping or the occasional evening of babysitting.
A maid's role is broader and usually covers cleaning and household chores alongside, or instead of, childcare. A babysitter is typically short, occasional cover rather than a standing arrangement. On this platform, nannies, babysitters, housemaids, cooks, cleaners, caregivers for elderly or disabled family members, drivers, gardeners and general helpers are all listed as separate roles, so a sponsor searching for a nanny sees candidates filtered to that role specifically, not a general pool of domestic staff.
If a nanny isn't the right fit and general housekeeping support is also needed, /maids and /domestic-help-uae cover the wider category.
Types of Nanny Arrangements
Nanny arrangements on the platform can be set up as:
- Live-in or live-out
- Full-time or part-time
- Flexible hours, weekends only, or weekdays only
Contract lengths range from temporary (one to six months) and short-term (six to twelve months) to long-term (one to two years), permanent, or renewable — and a trial period is available before either side commits further. Which of these suits a household depends on the children's ages, the family's schedule, and whether live-in space is available at home. That decision, and the exact hours and duties, is agreed directly between the sponsor and the nanny or agency once contact is made.
What Shapes Nanny Services Cost
There's no single rate for a nanny's pay or an agency's placement fee, because that figure is never fixed by a platform — it's set between the sponsor and the nanny or agency directly, and it moves with a few things:
- Live-in vs live-out — live-in arrangements change the cost calculation because accommodation and food are usually part of the deal; live-out doesn't carry that.
- Experience — candidates are listed with experience bands from no experience through 1–2, 3–5, 6–10, and 10+ years, and pay expectations generally move with that band.
- Contract length — a short temporary placement and a renewable long-term one are negotiated differently.
- Hours and schedule — full-time, part-time, or weekends-only work changes what's being paid for.
For a closer look at how these variables play out in practice, /blog/maid-salary-in-dubai-per-month and /blog/how-much-does-it-cost-to-hire-a-maid walk through the same cost factors for household staff more broadly.
What the platform itself charges is a separate, fixed cost: sponsors can join free, with a limited plan covering one job posting, ten candidate searches a month and three saved candidates. Paid access — more searches and saved candidates — is AED 99 for a week or AED 199 a month on the Professional plan, discounted when paid annually. Full details are on /pricing.
A note on agency fees
If a nanny comes through a licensed agency rather than a self-registered profile, the agency may charge its own placement fee on top of the nanny's pay. That fee is the agency's to set, not the platform's, and it's worth asking about directly before agreeing terms.
How Hiring a Nanny Works, Step by Step
- Search — filter by role (nanny), arrangement type, and experience band.
- Review profiles — worker profiles include the documents verified before listing (see below).
- Contact directly — a sponsor can message a nanny or an agency straight from the listing, the moment a match is found.
- Agree terms — hours, pay, start date, contract length and any trial period are discussed and settled between the two parties.
- Trial period — where one is agreed, it's a chance to confirm fit before a longer-term commitment.
How quickly a nanny or agency replies, and whether a same-day start is possible, depends on that nanny or agency — it isn't something a platform sets or promises. If speed matters, saying so in the first message is usually the quickest way to find out.
Vetting, Safety & Qualifications
Before a worker's profile goes live, their uploaded documents — passport, national ID, medical certificate, police clearance, and experience letters — are checked. Anything beyond that, including a full employment background check or a formal skill assessment, sits with the agency managing that candidate, where one is involved.
Experience is recorded in bands (no experience, 1–2, 3–5, 6–10, 10+ years), which gives a sponsor a starting filter before going deeper in conversation about a candidate's specific background and references.
Nanny vs Maid vs Babysitter
| Nanny | Maid | Babysitter | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main focus | Childcare, routines, developmental support | General housekeeping, with or without childcare | Short-term, occasional child supervision |
| Typical commitment | Ongoing — part-time to live-in, often contracted | Ongoing — part-time to live-in, often contracted | One-off or infrequent cover |
| Arrangement length | Temporary through to permanent/renewable | Temporary through to permanent/renewable | Usually by the booking, not contracted |
If occasional evening or weekend cover is the actual need rather than a standing role, /blog/babysitting-made-easy covers that specifically.
Visa & Legal Requirements
Visas, work permits, medical certificates and travel arrangements are handled by the agency or the sponsor, under the rules of the country where the work takes place — not by the platform. Requirements differ across the GCC and change over time, so the current rules should be checked against the labour or immigration authority in the country concerned, rather than relied on from any secondhand summary.
The platform itself is an introduction service: it connects a sponsor with an agency or a self-registered nanny, and that introduction isn't a licensed recruitment activity. It doesn't recruit, place, employ, or sponsor anyone, and it holds no recruitment licence because it needs none. Where an agency is involved, that agency's own licensing is worth confirming directly — the platform partners only with licensed agencies across Ethiopia and the GCC.
For the fuller picture on hiring through an agency specifically, /maid-agency-dubai and /hire-housemaid-uae walk through the process and geography.
FAQs
How much do nanny services cost? There's no fixed figure — pay depends on live-in vs live-out, experience, hours and contract length, and it's agreed directly between the sponsor and the nanny or agency. What the platform itself charges for access is fixed and listed on /pricing.
Is a trial period available? Yes. Contracts can include a trial period before a longer-term or permanent arrangement is confirmed, agreed directly between the two parties.
What happens if the nanny doesn't work out? Replacement arrangements and any guarantee are set between the sponsor and the agency or worker, governed by the labour law of the country where the work takes place. The platform introduces the two sides but isn't the employer and doesn't provide that guarantee itself — so it's worth agreeing a replacement policy upfront, before committing.
Can I hire short-term or emergency cover? Temporary contracts of one to six months, flexible hours, and weekends-only or weekdays-only arrangements are all listed options. How quickly a specific nanny or agency can start is up to them — ask directly when you message.
Do I need to check an agency's licence? The platform only partners with licensed agencies across Ethiopia and the GCC, but licensing itself is a question for that agency, and worth confirming directly.
Is part-time nanny care available? Yes — part-time, full-time, flexible, weekends-only and weekdays-only are all listed arrangement types, alongside live-in and live-out.
Ready to see who's available? Browse candidates through /maids, or if you're a nanny or agency looking to be found, start on /jobs or /for-agencies. For how other placements have gone, /success-stories has more.
