Find Child Care: Sittercity Reviews

by Jos.PSB

We need to find a sitter for my daughter, and so I tried logging in for the first time in a while today. But, even after changing my password, I was unsuccessful and told to contact their customer service. The person I spoke to was nice enough, however, I was told that my account was cancelled for the possibility of three vague reasons. As per company policy, she was unable to explain what led them to cancelling my account, but reiterated it had to do with one of those reasons. So, I’ve been left in the dark with no explanation, or the chance to even explain any perceived misdeeds on my part. I could open another email account to register again, but this review is the last bit of effort I’m willing to give to this application. Which seems fitting, given the amount of effort they place on trying to keep customers.

by DustinWoggerman

While searching for a nanny I downloaded FindChildCare and another, ultimately went with the other because of the quick responses so I did not go premium on this one and here are the deceptive and poor practices that this company does:

1. I went to delete my job posting on FindChildCare , there was no way to do this or cancel it. I logged on to the website but on there it shows no job posting under my login as I continue to get applications. I feel bad for people applying since this just feels like a tactic to keep their site populated.
2. I went to cancel/delete my account and you can’t simply do that, buried in their website is a form you have to fill out to get your account canceled. Not available on their app. Again, probably to keep their statistics high.
3. Fun fact, even if you cancel your account, there’s a nice disclaimer saying if you don’t cancel your subscription through Apple, they will keep charging you even without an account. I highly doubt this is an Apple issue.

by &dedggfggbfth Gf Rgthftgrgryf

I am searching for an afternoon caregiver for my 2 children, so I decided to try Sittercity. I downloaded FindChildCare , created a job posting, and paid for a 3-month subscription. A few hours later, I tried opening FindChildCare again but could not log on. I tried resetting my password numerous times, but still could not log on. Finally, I reached out to customer service via the Sittercity website. They responded that my account had been removed, but provided no explanation. I asked for a refund, but was told I had to go through Apple. So I submitted a request through Apple, but apparently have to wait another 48 hours for them to process the request. I still have no idea why my account was removed, or whether I will get a refund of my $71. And I’m no closer to finding a caregiver than I was 2 days ago, when I started this process. Thankfully there are other players in this space. Consider using them and spare yourself the frustration.

by 30fty

If I could give no Stars I would! This website/application is horrible do not waste your time! Just for reference I have a very good profile on this site and I have years of sitting experience with references to back it up! I even paid for the background check! No Matter how many jobs you apply to or what you do. Good luck to you if you receive a response. Then on top of that when you do get a message it’s from a scammer that just minutes after they send you an email saying the user was removed from the site. I have been on this site for months almost reaching a year! And to this day I have never received a response from any of the jobs I apply to. And I was apply regularly. DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY OR YOUR TIME!!! You will be regretting it later! Trust me! And Sittercity you need to do better or completely get rid of your website if it’s not serving its purpose.

by Monk123456789

I decided to use an app for finding babysitters bc we move every two years or less and the search is exhausting.
What I like about SitterCity: it will allow reviews to be posted, allows messaging, and the search feature is decent.
What is eternally frustrating: very few people have background checks (for a paid service this should be required,) not being able to sort results based on distance, not being able to sort results based on reviews, ***not being able to “favorite” or “save” people*** if I am interested but it’s not a great time to message them or I don’t currently need a sitter.
When I’ve created a search I can’t save the search or the results and if I come back to it in a few days often don’t remember which profiles I’ve clicked on and which I haven’t. FindChildCare has also crashed on me twice after sending lengthy introductory messages.

by Alexis B23

I haven’t been using this for very long but the one thing i find incredibly frustrating is that on FindChildCare there’s no option for pet sitting. anywhere. Yet on the website you can search by pet care jobs. i don’t understand this? there’s no search bar in FindChildCare to just search “pet sitting” either. I’m a college student with a part time job and pet sitting is much easier to fit into my schedule than babysitting, but it’s annoying to have to use the website to look everytime. I have also applied to a handful of one-time babysitting jobs and haven’t heard a response, which i understand is not the apps fault but i do think users should be required to respond, even to reject you. it saves applicants some time so we aren’t just refreshing our messages everyday and missing out on other jobs. i also think there should be some variations in the account settings. some of the “yes or no” questions are not that black and white and can be elaborated on so parents don’t look over you.

by Heather101192

I’ll start by saying that I love sittercity. I recently got my first nannying gig on here since I moved across states, and I couldn’t be happier. The site is easy to navigate and use. But FindChildCare is no good. First of all, searching on FindChildCare yields the same results everyday, but when I go on the website and do the same search, I get new listings, so I don’t know what’s going on there. Secondly, applying to the job on FindChildCare is not the same as the site. On the site, my bio pops up as my suggested application and I just click apply to job. On FindChildCare , my bio doesn’t pop up at all, and if I go to copy and paste it, it doesn’t allow because apparently my bio is too long on FindChildCare but not the site. That makes no sense to me. I only have FindChildCare so I can see when I get messages from jobs immediately.
Overall I’ll give three stars, because Sittercity itself is great, but FindChildCare needs help.

by Dissatisfied Muser😪

I haven’t gotten accepted for any jobs and I signed up for like 10 lol. It’s not really a problem just wished that the parents of FindChildCare could tell us if they are not interested. What could also be nice is being able to text them more than once because I wanted to ask them if they were interested in taking me on but I couldn’t.

In conclusion the problem is just being able to text them more than once. It would be nice. Also why aren’t people below 18+ allowed to be on FindChildCare/site? My little sister, she’s about to be 16, has been babysitting forever and doing a good job at it but she can’t sign up. Why is that?

by Sweet Cait

I like how FindChildCare is trying to make sure that you’re a legitimate babysitter and shows that the person looking for a background check is clearly a real parent but the frustrating thing is when you’re young and taking babysitting as your first time job it’s practically impossible to come up with 15 dollars to prove your not a drug attic or a criminal plus it won’t even let you look at your profile without completing it which is the thing I find dumb, basically if you haven’t payed for a background check all it will let you do is see the gigs from parents desperate for a babysitter or a nanny but that’s basically it

by Glory Gloria

I’ve used Sittercity almost from the beginning of it’s website.
I’m talking many years back. The site has went above & beyond to make the site safe for both providers & parents who use the site. My advice to anyone using the site, you should always stay within the safety guidelines Sittercity had set in place for it’s users of the site you will not be disappointed in doing so, and please, please report any suspicious or questionable activities you encounter. It’s important for us to work together to keep everyone safe. I enjoy using Sittercity and the families I acquired through Sittercity had been a great experience for me. Sittercity is great about giving feedback & alerts to it’s users about any suspicious activity. I whole heartedly Recommend Sittercity as a great site to both providers & families.

by Peggystar223

I needed a job for the summer and found a fantastic family to work for through sittercity and it was an awesome experience. However, FindChildCare and company are difficult to work with. First of all, FindChildCare logs me out every 2 days so I am constantly having to re-enter my info in and log in again, which is annoying and a time waster. It should just keep my information logged in. Second of all, the background checks expire after just 3 months!! That’s insanity. I can’t spend $15 every 3 months. Background checks are supposed to last 1 year and i don’t know why Sittercity doesn’t allow that. Since mine expired last week I’ll be using a different cite to find nany jobs because this one has not been that impressive.

by Mikgooods

I love the simplicity and ease of FindChildCare and find it very helpful and straightforward; I do have two suggestions that would greatly help though: 1) provide a box/option for parents to update their post if the position has been filled and/or is still looking for help. 2) On the caregiver side, include the option to “save” or flag a posting/ad to refer back to (avoids time spent going back and searching through all posts to find it later on). Aside from that, I recommend FindChildCare for all parents and sitters, it’s a great resource and has many features to aid both parties!

by Expiredmintjuulpod

i love FindChildCare! it makes it easy and free to look for babysitting gigs. however, when i’m looking for jobs, i always end up going on the sittercity website because they have more filters to choose from, not just location and how often you want to babysit. if you’re looking to change FindChildCare in any way, i would definitely start by adding more filters to search and showing when the ad was posted, instead of having to click the ad and scroll all the way down.

by Maddihenderson

I think FindChildCare is great in design, but I have been losing opportunities daily due to the fact that there are no notifications. I constantly have to check FindChildCare to see if anyone has messaged me back, and it never alerts me of new postings. I have all notifications turned on for FindChildCare through my phone settings, so it’s clearly a problem with Sitter City itself.

Typically, I might get a message back from a parent, but I may only end up seeing it hours later, and unfortunately miss my opportunity to work with that family. not to mention i’m constantly checking FindChildCare daily because it never alerts me of a new posting in my area. overall, FindChildCare would be perfect with notifications.

by Sixteen Steps Down Senior

I have trouble opening messages. When I’m sent a message from a potential client, I like the security of having SitterCity protecting my privacy. But them when I try to respond it’s very cumbersome. I have to sign into SitterCity, then I can get to messages then I get stuck. I may not see the Open Button at the top right if it appears right away because I keep tapping the message and it doesn’t open. So it could be on on my phone, it’s small and I’m tech challenged.

by Goodface

FindChildCare is amazing- once you complete your background check, which isn’t required but I highly recommend ($15), you will have as many gigs as you’d like in no time. The day after I created my account I had already gotten 2 regular babysitting jobs at the hourly rate I desired. I started at a perfect time as everyone is looking for a back to school care taker for their children. I really have no recommendations for FindChildCare to improve. Although it shows I have never been “booked” even though I’ve already met with and taken care of two different families- i’m not sure how to make it official on the application. thanks sittercity for this awesome app!

by Hickml

I have found 2 regular PT jobs via FindChildCare . My second regular PT job began as an occasional position and turned into a regular PT job as soon as the 1st job ended. Mom scooped me up before I could apply for another job.

I also had an another occasional Nanny position to fill in for a couple who both worked Retail Management jobs when their regular Nanny was unavailable.

The only complaint I have is the short length of time that the self-paid background checks. I think 6 months would be more fair. FindChildCare could include the date background check was run and allow the hiring family to repeat the background check if they preferred a more recent one.

by Janeenessa

I signed up today and I’ve already gotten 2 people asking for a meeting!! Very fast results. Only short of one star because I haven’t exactly started. Communication is great but if I actually do get the job then I’d gladly change it to a 5 star and confirm FindChildCare works!
I will say that uploading my photo was a bit of a problem. From my phone the file was too big and I had to use my schools computer to upload it. FindChildCare is better than care now as it didn’t require background checks to still look for us poor college students who can’t afford $60 for it. Thanks guys! Saved my pockets this summer!

Edit:
Just wanted to come back and say yes FindChildCare works! I got my first job already within a week!

by JennaRoy

I used the site for a while and upgraded to premium which does automatic renewal. I found a sitter and no longer used FindChildCare but since it renews every three months I forgot about it. Well I saw the money come out of my account to renew and I contacted them and asked for a refund since I am no longer using FindChildCare . They got back to me quickly and gave me a full refund and also automatically downgraded my service to the free basic service so I would no longer be charged! So awesome!!

by Sabby L.

I am a background checked, CPR certified and FIRST AID trained, well experienced college student with a clean driving record, a car, and AMAZING references due to my past jobs and my current job as an 'assistant teacher' at a schoolhouse. That being said, I've tried flyers, facebook job postings, other babysitting/nannying apps and nothing has surpassed Sittercity. Sittercity has brought me several jobs and I couldn't be happier! At first, it was definitely slow, but as I tweaked my bio and my profile picture and other preferences, jobs started to come in. A plus about Sittercity is that it's free unlike other websites! In LOVE with FindChildCare. I definitely give it a ten out of ten and would recommend to anyone trying to get their job postings out there. ☺️

by MW00012

1. FindChildCare “Help” function is useless. There’s really no way to contact anyone with help within FindChildCare if it’s automated answers are of no help.
2. If you create 2 profiles, there’s really no way to pause one or disable one. So you will keep getting messages regarding a job that you’re no longer looking for.
3. As a sitter in my area at least, I had 0 jobs over a month span of actively searching and messaging families. Either the market is flooded with nannies or families aren’t using FindChildCare as much. I used other sitter apps and have had a steady stream of jobs.
4. Whenever I try to “update” my availability or profile, it never actually does. I tried to alter my profile and add a few more details of what type of job I’m looking for, and I’d “save” what I wrote, I go back and it was never updated. I thought maybe it needs approval so I’ll wait a bit. Week later, my new availability and profile edit was never changed. I’ve attempted this several times with no success.

Overall, I say FindChildCare has been pretty useless. I will be deleting it.

by Currently In Traffic

FindChildCare wants me to limit my increase per charge to $2/charge. Honey, I increase $5/charge and you’re not my pimp so who are you to limit that? Also why are parents allowed to post ads at below minimum wage? THAT needs to be what FindChildCare focuses on, not telling providers what they can and can’t charge. This is an app, not an agency.
I need to add that its insulting how many ads are posted waaaaaaay below market rates. $8/hr for 2 kids in my city is an actual joke and I see that all the time for nannying and babysitting. The bare market rate here is around $15/hr. Scrolling through FindChildCare is a lot less like a job search and more like reading a roast of caregivers that our time is not valuable and that our resources and experience are not valuable.

by Mz J Washington 2290

On the website when you get a new message it scrambles in with your old messages there’s no way of knowing what’s new and what’s old so you have to read through every single message to figure it out. I get a lot of scammers and spam messages throughout the week. When you use FindChildCare and someone sends you a message you’re not able to click on their profile from FindChildCare so you have to go onto the website to click on and view their profile then go back to FindChildCare and reply if that’s the route you want to go. I don’t use FindChildCare since I don’t feel like having to click through my email to go online to the website. It’s extremely difficult to navigate and frustrating for yourself and the parents.

by Organburgtaco

I love FindChildCare. It was nice and easy to set up. I actually got 4 responses in two days from some extremely good people. Only problem is that I can’t respond without the premium and I’m not trying to spend that amount of money just to LOOK for a sitter. Especially since I only need a sitter every now and then. If you are constantly needing a sitter then I suppose it would be worth your money and then I’d recommend it. Other than that, I think this is a great app!

by Littlebird4578

I love FindChildCare it’s super functional and easy to get around, I’ve used it to get four jobs now and all of them have been great. My only problem is that it no longer functions on my iPhone, on my iPad it’s still works perfectly but on my phone my messages and applications never load. I’ve tried a couple different things to see if it was my phone, but it sill won’t load.

by Maggy McKay

FindChildCare is an awesome tool that helps to connect nannies with families, especially within the same or surrounding neighborhoods. I’ve been doing nanny work for the last 15 years and was introduced to Sittercity by a friend at church in 2010. I have met at least three wonderful families through Sittercity and worked short term for two of them, long term for one. All awesome families.
I would certainly recommend it to qualified nannies and to the families who need their services.

by Caroline 2768

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