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Pet Sitting Rate Calculator

What to charge — based on your costs and your time, not guesswork

What you want to actually keep, after your tax set-aside.

Insurance, software, fuel, supplies.

Sole proprietors typically set aside 25–30% of revenue.

Hours actually spent walking, sitting, or grooming.

Scheduling, chasing payments, writing notes, driving.

Your numbers
Revenue you need per month$6,042
Billable hours per month108 h
Minimum rate per visit hour$56/h
Real hourly wage (incl. unpaid admin)$26/h
The admin lever

If unpaid admin dropped to 3 hours a week, your real hourly wage would rise from $26/h to $33/h — same clients, same prices, 30 fewer unpaid hours a month.

That is the honest case for scheduling and invoicing software: it is usually the cheapest way to buy back admin hours. For market benchmarks by service, read the pet sitting rates guide.

How the math works

Your minimum rate is the revenue you need (take-home goal plus expenses, grossed up for your tax set-aside) divided by your real billable hours. The number most sitters get wrong is billable hours: admin and drive time are unpaid, but they still cap how many paid hours your week can hold. Cutting admin is the only lever that raises your effective wage without asking clients for more.

For current market benchmarks by service, read our pet sitting rates & dog walking prices guide. Ready to cut the admin hours? See PetAmigo's flat-rate plans