Au Pair Stipend 2026: What Host Families Pay Weekly

If you have ever sat down to compare an au pair against a nanny, the weekly stipend is usually the number that does the heavy lifting in the spreadsheet. A full-time nanny in a major U.S. city can cost $60,000 to $80,000 a year once taxes and benefits are layered in. An au pair, by contrast, earns a federally set weekly stipend of $195.75, delivers up to 45 hours a week of in-home childcare, and unlocks Dependent Care FSA dollars. The math is compelling, but only if you understand exactly how the stipend works, what it includes, and what most host families in high-cost metros actually pay in practice.

This guide walks through the 2026 numbers: the federal minimum stipends for Standard and EduCare au pairs, how the figure is calculated, how it interacts with overtime and vacation, what premium families in New York, the Bay Area, and D.C. typically offer voluntarily, and how to budget for the total cash compensation your au pair will actually receive.

The 2026 Federal Minimum Stipend: Exactly How It Is Calculated

The au pair weekly stipend is not negotiated between a family and an au pair the way a nanny's wage is. It is set by federal regulation under 22 CFR § 62.31, the Department of State rule that governs the J-1 au pair program. The calculation is anchored to the federal minimum wage, not to state or city minimum wages, which is why the stipend is the same in Manhattan and rural Kansas.

The formula for a Standard au pair is:

Federal minimum wage ($7.25) x 45 hours per week x (1 - 40% room-and-board credit) = $7.25 x 45 x 0.60 = $195.75 per week.

The 40% room-and-board credit exists because the host family is providing a private bedroom, three meals a day, and access to household amenities. The Fair Labor Standards Act allows employers to credit a portion of in-kind compensation against the wage floor, and for au pairs that portion has been fixed at 40% for decades.

For an EduCare au pair, the math runs the same way but is capped at 30 hours per week and set at 75% of the Standard rate:

$195.75 x 0.75 = $146.81 per week.

These are minimums. There is no federal maximum, and nothing in the regulation stops a host family from paying more.

What the Stipend Actually Buys You

For $195.75 a week, a Standard au pair provides up to 45 hours per week of childcare, capped at 10 hours in any single day. Days off must total at least a day and a half per week, and the au pair is entitled to one full weekend off each month. Two weeks of paid vacation per 12-month term is mandatory. An EduCare au pair tops out at 30 hours per week with the same daily cap.

On a per-hour basis, the math works out to about $4.35 per hour for a Standard au pair at the 45-hour cap, or roughly $4.89 per hour for an EduCare au pair at the 30-hour cap. This is why the au pair program is often described as cultural exchange first and childcare second. The cash figure is supplemented by housing, food, transportation, and a $500 education allowance, but the underlying trade is unambiguous: low cash compensation in exchange for a year of cultural immersion and the educational benefit of U.S. residency.

Hours vs. Stipend: The Relationship Is Not Linear

One detail that catches many first-time host families off guard: the stipend does not go up if your au pair works 45 hours instead of 35. The $195.75 is a flat weekly payment for anything up to the 45-hour cap. If you use 30 hours one week because of a family vacation, you still pay $195.75. If your schedule only needs 35 hours a week long-term, you might still want a Standard au pair for the flexibility, but EduCare at $146.81 could be a better match.

What the stipend does not cover is overtime. You cannot legally ask an au pair to work more than 45 hours in a week or more than 10 hours in a day. Period. There is no "time and a half" option. If you need coverage beyond those limits, you need a second caregiver, a babysitter, or a nanny instead of or in addition to an au pair. For a broader view of how these options stack up, see our au pair vs. nanny comparison.

Paid Vacation and 52-Week Payment

One of the most misunderstood parts of the au pair stipend is the requirement to pay all 52 weeks. Host families sometimes assume that if their au pair takes her two weeks of paid vacation in August, those weeks are unpaid. They are not. Federal regulations explicitly require the full weekly stipend to be paid:

• During the au pair's two weeks of paid vacation (mandatory under the regulations)
• During any week the host family travels without the au pair
• During any gap where the family temporarily does not need care
• Through the au pair's final 30-day travel month at the end of the 12-month program, if the au pair is still in the host family's home

The only time the stipend does not continue is if the au pair leaves the program early, either voluntarily or because of a rematch. In a rematch scenario, the new host family assumes the stipend obligation from the transfer date forward.

Annual Stipend Total

Multiplied across 52 weeks, here is what the stipend totals look like in 2026:

The $10,179 annual figure is the number that most families use when comparing the au pair option to a nanny. Layer in the agency program fee ($9,000-$12,500), the $500 education allowance, health insurance ($500-$1,000), visa fees (~$470 including the new Visa Integrity fee), and household costs for food and utilities, and the all-in cost typically lands between $27,000 and $30,000 per year for full-time in-home care. For a detailed breakdown, see our complete au pair cost guide.

Why High-Cost Metros Often Pay Above the Minimum

In the Beverly member base, which skews toward families in New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Washington D.C., Boston, and Chicago, it is relatively rare to see a host family pay exactly the federal minimum. The reasons are practical, legal, and reputational.

1. Market Competition for Quality Au Pairs

Sponsor agencies match au pairs and host families from a shared pool. An au pair reviewing multiple host-family profiles will often gravitate toward a family that offers a higher stipend, a nicer room, or a more appealing city. Offering $250-$300 per week rather than $195.75 materially increases your chances of matching with a highly qualified candidate, particularly one with experience working with infants, twins, or children with special needs.

2. State Wage-and-Hour Litigation

In 2019, a federal court in Massachusetts ruled in Capron v. Massachusetts Attorney General that Massachusetts state labor laws, including state minimum wage and overtime, apply to au pairs. That decision effectively set the stipend floor in Massachusetts well above $195.75. Lawsuits in California have raised similar arguments. Even outside those states, some sponsor agencies now recommend that host families in high-cost metros voluntarily pay a regionally-adjusted stipend to reduce legal exposure.

3. Cost-of-Living Reality

An au pair earning $195.75 in Manhattan has very little disposable income after a MetroCard, a phone bill, social outings, and the occasional trip home. Host families in high-cost cities often pay above the minimum simply to give their au pair a reasonable quality of life and to avoid the awkwardness of a caregiver who cannot afford to participate in the cultural exchange the program was designed to provide.

Typical Stipend Ranges in Top Metros

Based on our coordination work with affluent host families, here is what we typically see in 2026:

These are customary ranges, not rules. Your specific situation, the number and ages of your children, any special skills you require (driving, swimming, a second language), and your au pair's experience level will all influence the figure.

How Beverly Thinks About the Stipend

When we coordinate an au pair placement for a Beverly member family, we treat the stipend as one component of the total compensation package. Our recommendation to most families in high-cost metros is to budget $250-$325 per week as a realistic target, with the understanding that the specific figure will be shaped by the au pair's experience, the complexity of your household, and what your sponsor agency recommends for your region. We work with the family to size this up-front so the conversation with the au pair during matching calls is clear and consistent. We also help design the full compensation context, including the bedroom setup, transportation arrangements, weekly cash-flow logistics, and how the stipend relates to the Dependent Care FSA reimbursement strategy.

For a practical view of how the stipend fits into a larger hiring plan, see our complete guide to hiring an au pair. For the tax side, our au pair tax guide for host families walks through FICA exemption, Dependent Care FSA, and Form 1040-NR.