How to Hire Someone on Care.com

Your important FAQs answered about hiring caregivers on Care.com, including how background checks work, how to post jobs, and more

Care.com Making Money Home & Family

By Corbin HartwickUpdated on July 25, 2024

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If you’re looking to hire someone on Care, you have to sign up as a careseeker first. Then you can post a job to Care’s public job board and see if any caregivers respond to it. If one or more of them do, you can then work out the details of the job with your applicant(s) of choice.

If you have a premium caregiver account, you can also directly contact one or more caregivers and see if they’re available for a child care or pet care job. If they are, you can finalize some of the job details (including payment) right on Care.

This article will explain how to sign up as a careseeker for Care, as well as how to hire through public job postings and direct bookings. It will also cover a few other functions, such as reviews, privacy settings, and changing your profile information.

The first thing you’ll need to do is sign up for a Care careseeker account. Here’s how to do that.

Go to www.care.com in your web browser and click Sign Up.
Click I’m an Individual to tell Care you’re signing up as an individual.
Click Find Care to tell Care you want to sign up as a careseeker.
Click on the type of care you’ll likely be asking for help with most on Care.
You’ll have to select some additional details based on the type of care you wanted. In this example, we selected Pet Care for the previous step, so we’re being asked what type(s) of pet(s) we want cared for. Click on all that apply, then click Next.
Another question after this asks what form of care you will primarily need for the pet type(s) you selected (e.g. feeding, day care, overnight sitting, grooming, or transportation). Click the one that applies.
In the next step, you will have to enter your postal code so Care can help you find nearby caregivers. Click in the box that says “Enter Postal Code”, type in your postal code, and then click Next.
Next, you’ll have to set the email address and password for your account. Click in the respective boxes and type in the information (making sure, for the password, to follow the displayed guidelines). Then click Next.
Lastly, you’ll have to provide your name. Click in the respective boxes and type in your first and last names.
Optionally, you can also select an option under “How Did You Hear About Us?” to tell Care what directed you to their service.
When you’re done, click Join Now.

How to post a job on Care.com

There are two main ways to hire someone on Care. The first is to create a job listing and post it on Care’s public job board. The second, which requires a premium careseeker membership, is to book a caregiver directly.

Important

The ability to directly book a caregiver may not be available on some countries’ versions of Care.

To post a public job on Care.com:

Go to www.care.com and log in.
Click the main menu (the three bars) in the upper-left corner of your dashboard. Then, click Post A Job.
First, you will have to input your postal code again to let potential caregivers know the general area you’re in. Then you’ll have to select the type of care you’re asking for.
Click in the box marked “I Live In…” and input your postal code. Then, click one of the buttons under “In The Following Areas…” to select the type of care you’re asking for.
You will then have to select the parameters of your job. Some of these may be different depending on the type of care you’re asking for.
In this example, we’ve selected Pet Care. So you’ll need to use the options provided to specify:
- What kind of care your pets need
- Which pets need to be cared for (including their name, type, age, and size)
- Whether you need a caregiver regularly or for a one-off session
- For regular schedules: how frequently you need a caregiver, including times of day and days of the week
- For one-off sessions: over how many days you will need the caregiver
- The start date for the job
Finally, you will have to give your job a title and description.
Click in the respective boxes and type in the relevant information about your job. Think of it like writing a classified advertisement (which is, essentially, what you’re doing): keep it short and simple, but be sure to include critical information that a caregiver will need to know upfront.
For the title, that includes:
- What type of care is needed
- Where you are generally located
- When the care is needed
You can then expand on this in the description with details such as:
- Specific job responsibilities
- Qualifications you’d like the caregiver to have
- Any other special requirements
When you’re all done, click Share Your Needs to post the job.
If you have a premium careseeker account, you can exchange messages with a caregiver directly through Care to arrange the details of the job. If you don’t, you will have to use the caregiver’s contact details to get in touch with them outside of Care and make the arrangements.

To book a specific caregiver for a child care or pet care job:

Go to www.care.com and log in.
Click Search.
Click Filter to bring up a set of conditions on what types of caregivers you’re looking for. This includes your location, how far outside your location you’re willing to look, the type of care you’re looking for, and other options depending on the type of care you chose. When finished, click Refine.
Look through the list of profiles for anyone who might suit your care needs. If you don’t find any good matches on a particular results page, click the arrows and numbers at the bottom of the page to see a different results page. If you’re interested in a particular caregiver, click their name to open their profile.
On a caregiver’s profile, you can see more information about them. This includes some biographical details, along with their experience, qualifications, reviews, and pay rates.
If you want to shortlist this caregiver as a potential option, click the heart beside their name to bookmark them. You can then quickly return to their profile by opening the main menu (the three bars) and selecting Bookmarks.
If you’re ready to contact a caregiver about a potential booking, click Contact.
From here, you can set up your job parameters much like in steps 4 and 5 of posting a public job. You will also have the option of leaving a personalized message. Additionally, for pet care bookings, you need to enter your payment information at this step. When you’re done, click Send Request / Start a Conversation.
Important
You cannot set a booking request to start fewer than 6 hours after you make it. This is to allow time for Care to find suitable caregivers who are available, and to allow these caregivers time to prepare for your job.
If the caregiver is interested in accepting your job, you will have to confirm that you wish to book them. You will have to do this manually for a child care job, or for a pet care job in which a caregiver other than the one(s) you initially requested accepts the job.
Open the main menu by clicking the three bars, then clicking My Jobs. If caregivers have responded to your request that they’re available, you will see “Sitters Ready for Review”, “Confirm Now”, or “Confirm Your Booking” under the “Status” heading for your job. Click on the job to review the response from the caregiver (and any other caregivers who also applied); you can message them back if you wish. Click Book or Confirm next to the caregiver you wish to hire to confirm the booking.
If you’re booking a child care job, you will also need to enter your payment information at this step. And if you’re booking a pet care job and one of the caregivers you originally sent the request to accepts it, your job will automatically be booked. You don’t need to take any further action.

Pro Tip

If you want to hire a caregiver from a previous job again for a new job, you can also go to My Jobs in the main menu, select the job you hired that caregiver for, and access their profile from there. Then click Contact to start a new job booking.

How to write a review on Care.com for people you've hired

After you hire a caregiver for a job on Care, you can write a review for them. Leaving honest feedback helps fellow careseekers make informed decisions when choosing who to hire. It also helps caregivers build their credibility and stand out from the rest.

Go to www.care.com and log into your account.
Find the profile of the caregiver you want to review. There are several ways you can do this:
- Use the Search function
- Go to your Inbox and select a message thread from the caregiver
- Open the main menu and select My Jobs, then select a job the caregiver was hired for
When you find them, click on their name to view their full profile.
Under the “Reviews” section, click Write a Review.
Click one of the stars to give the caregiver an overall rating (1 is poorest, 5 is best). Then, when prompted, answer some brief questions and/or write any other comments you want.
Important
All reviews on Care are public, so please don’t include specific personal details that could be used to identify your family (last names, locations, medical conditions, etc.). Care also screens all submitted reviews to ensure they comply with its review policy before publishing them.
When finished, click either Submit or Continue.

How to block or report someone on Care.com

Public job postings on Care can be searched by any website member, so it’s impossible to keep a particular member from finding or responding to one. It’s also impossible to block communications from a particular user, beyond simply deleting their message thread.

However, there are a couple of things you can do to protect your privacy and safety on Care. The first is to limit the ability for people and services outside of Care to find your job posting. The second is to report Care members you believe are behaving inappropriately (e.g. spamming, scamming, harassing, posting suggestive material, or posing other safety concerns).

To limit the searchability of your Care.com job postings:

Go to www.care.com and log into your account.
Click the main menu (the three bars) in the top-left corner of your dashboard. Then click Account Settings. (You may be asked to log in again; if so, do so.)
Find the section labeled “Privacy Choices” and click Edit within it.
Click the checkboxes highlighted in the screenshot below to unmark them (if they aren’t already). This will prevent your job postings on Care from being found by non-members or search engines, or being automatically posted to other employment websites. When finished, click Save.

To report a Care.com user:

Go to www.care.com and log into your account.
Find the user you want to report. There are several ways you can do this:
- Use the Search function
- Go to your Inbox and select a message thread from the caregiver
- Open the main menu and select My Jobs, then select a job the caregiver was hired for
If you find the user through your Inbox, you can select a message thread from them, then click the three dots (additional options) beside their name and click Report.
Alternatively, you can click a user’s name to open their full profile, then scroll until you see an option to Report Member and click it.
Click in the text box labeled “Provide Additional Details Here” and write an explanation of why you believe this user deserves to be reported. Then click Send Report. Care will review your report and will contact you if further information is required.

How does Care.com do background checks & how long do they take?

Care runs mandatory background checks on caregivers when they sign up, as well as occasionally while they are active on the site. These checks cover Social Security number tracing, public National Sex Offender data, multi-jurisdictional criminal databases, and federal/county criminal records.

These background checks are called CareChecks, and are administered by a third party called Sterling Talent Solutions. Sterling claims that 90% of these checks are completed within 24 hours. However, some may take longer to complete in extenuating circumstances, such as if records are difficult to obtain or the check’s subject disputes the results.

Pro Tip

You can also request additional background checks on caregivers, for a fee. Caregivers may also request these checks on themselves and then display the results on their profile. This gives careseekers greater reason to trust them.

More information can be found at Care.com’s Safety Center, and you definitely will want to read our guide on how to stay safe while using Care.com to learn more about the scams and dangers of using the site.

How to change profile information as a careseeker

Some of your information on Care is associated directly with your account, and can be changed from your Account Settings menu. Other information is considered specific to particular jobs, and can be changed whenever you create a new job (or sometimes a specific type of job).

Warning

Care does not permit you to change the full name you have on file with them. If you change both your first name and your last name on the same account, your account will be closed.

How to change your address or city on Care.com

To change your location on Care as a careseeker, log into your Care account, click the main menu (the three bars) to open it, and click Account Settings. Log in again if needed. Click Edit under “General Information”, update your postal code and/or city, and click Save.

Go to www.care.com and log into your account.
Click the main menu (the three bars) in the top-left corner of your dashboard. Then click Account Settings. (You may be asked to log in again; if so, do so.)
Find the section labeled “General Information” and click Edit within it.
Click the box containing your postal code or city, and replace the current postal code or city with the updated one. Do the same for the other box if necessary. When finished, click Save.
Important
Every field except Phone Number is counted as required information, and must be filled in order to save changes. All changes are subject to review by Care’s team.

How to add a pet to your household

You can add information about your pets to Care when you create a Pet Care job. Create a job on Care, selecting Pet Care as the type of care required. You can then enter information about your pet such as name, type, age, and size. You can also add or remove additional pet profiles.

Follow steps 1 to 3 for posting a public job on Care, selecting Pet Care under “In The Following Areas…”.
You will now have a “Pet 1” section where you can enter your pet’s name and indicate what type of pet it is (e.g. dog, cat, horse, etc.), how old it is, and how large it is.
You can also click Add Another Pet to open a space to enter details for another pet you need taken care of. Or, click the X above any additional pet profiles if you don’t need them cared for.

Important FAQs for hiring someone on Care.com

Here are a few other functions related to protecting your privacy as a careseeker on Care.

How to close a job on Care.com

To close a job on Care, log into your Care account, open the main menu (the three bars) in the top-left corner of your dashboard, and select My Jobs. Find the job you want to close, and click Close beside it. You can also click Reactivate beside a closed job if you want to reopen it.

Go to www.care.com and log into your account.
Click the main menu (the three bars) in the top-left corner of your dashboard. Then click My Jobs.
Find the job you want to close, and then click Close beside it.
To reactivate a closed job, start by following steps 1 and 2. Then, instead of clicking Close beside an active job you want to close, click Reactivate beside a closed job you want to reopen.

How to unsubscribe from Care.com messages, emails, & texts

To unsubscribe from Care messages, log into your Care account and click the three bars in the upper-left corner to open the main menu. Click Account Settings (you may need to log in again), then click Edit under “Privacy Choices”. Click to unmark the appropriate checkboxes, then click Save.

Go to www.care.com and log into your account.
Click the main menu (the three bars) in the top-left corner of your dashboard. Then click Account Settings. (You may be asked to log in again; if so, do so.)
Find the section labeled “Privacy Choices” and click Edit within it.
Click the checkboxes highlighted in the screenshot below to unmark them (if they aren’t already). This will unsubscribe you from the Care newsletter, as well as emails from Care regarding helpful info, personalized offers, and nearby caregivers. When finished, click Save.

Important

Care counts certain types of messages as necessary for administering your membership, and these cannot be opted out of. They include:

Alerts that caregivers have applied to your job post
Responses from caregivers to a booking request
Notices that Care has updated its privacy policy or other important policies

How to delete a review

Currently, Care doesn’t provide an easy way for careseekers to edit or delete reviews they’ve submitted for caregivers. If you still feel it’s necessary to amend or remove a Care review you’ve written, you will have to directly contact Care’s customer service team.

To get in touch with Care’s customer service department:

Go to www.care.com and scroll to the bottom of the screen until you see Help Center / Contact Us. Click it.
Click the orange Contact Us tab in the lower-right corner of the Help Center.
If you have a premium careseeker subscription, you can click Log In (if you aren’t already logged in) and chat with a live customer care representative. Otherwise, you can click the Contact Us button to be redirected to a support ticket form.
If you choose to send a support ticket, fill out each section of the form (some have menus that give you specific choices) and then click Submit.

Remember: after a caregiver responds to your job posting, you still have to arrange some of the job’s details with them. Some of this work may have to be done outside of Care, especially if you don’t have a premium careseeker account. Be sure to follow the guidelines in our guide to staying safe on Care.com to do all the things you need to properly and safely set up a job, including avoiding scams and other problems.

If you’re interested in hiring on Care, you should also review our full list of guides on Care.com, which include other helpful tips and information about using the website, and can help you decide if a Care premium membership is worth it.

How to sign up for Care.com to hire caregivers