Au Pair in Australia: Pay, Room & Board, and Finding a Family

If you love kids and want to slash your living costs to almost nothing, au pairing might be the best-kept secret on the working-holiday circuit. You live with an Australian family, help with the children, and in return you get a room, your meals, and a weekly wage on top. It's a softer landing than a hostel dorm — and a genuine window into everyday Aussie life.

What an au pair actually does

An au pair is a live-in childcare helper, not a full-time professional nanny. Your day usually revolves around the family's routine:

• School drop-offs and pick-ups
• Looking after kids before and after school, or during the day for younger ones
• Light housework related to the children — tidying their rooms, their laundry, prepping their meals
• School-holiday care and activities
• Sometimes babysitting in the evenings

You're part of the household, sharing meals and downtime with the family. It works best when expectations are clear from day one: what hours, what tasks, and what's off-limits.

The golden rule: au pairing is "childcare plus light related housework." If a family expects you to deep-clean the whole house or work 50 hours a week, that's a housekeeper job, not an au pair role. Walk away.

Pay, room and board

This is where au pairing wins. Because your accommodation and food are covered, the cash you earn is nearly all savings.

• Free room — usually your own bedroom in the family home
• Free meals — you eat with the household
• A weekly wage on top — commonly $250–$350+ per week for around 25–35 hours

On paper the hourly figure can look lower than other jobs, but remember the national minimum wage of $24.10/hr in 2026 is paid by people who then hand most of it back in rent and groceries. As an au pair, you skip all of that. Live-out costs in a city can easily run $300–$400 a week just for a bed and food, so factor that in when you compare.

A fair arrangement should still respect Australian pay law for the hours you actually work, so agree on hours and pay clearly and keep them reasonable.

A rough comparison:

• Hostel + casual job: earn more per hour, but rent and food eat half of it
• Au pair: earn less per hour, but keep almost all of it and live comfortably

Finding a good family

The family you choose makes or breaks the experience, so take your time.

Where to look

• MyGig.com.au — a solid starting point for matching with families and host placements looking for travellers.
• Dedicated au pair platforms and agencies
• Facebook groups for au pairs and host families in your target city
• Word of mouth at hostels — au pairs talk

Questions to ask before you commit

• How many children, and what ages?
• Exactly how many hours per week, and which days?
• What's the wage, and is room and board included separately?
• Do I get my own room and bathroom?
• Are there set days off, and can I use the car?
• What happens during school holidays — more hours?

Always video-call before saying yes, and trust your gut. A trial week or a clear written agreement protects both sides.

Visa fit on a working holiday

A working-holiday visa lets you work, so au pairing fits well — with one important catch.

• The standard 6-month limit with one employer applies. Since an au pair role is usually a single family, plan around that limit if you want a long placement, or line up a second family.
• Au pairing in a city does not count toward your 88 days of regional work for a second-year visa. If you need those days, do your regional work separately (farm, mining or other eligible jobs in a designated area).
• You still need a Tax File Number and should be paid properly for your hours.

Some travellers au pair for a few months to settle in, save hard, and improve their English or local knowledge, then move on to regional work later in the year.

Is au pairing right for you?

It suits you if:

• You genuinely enjoy kids and don't mind early mornings
• You want low costs and a stable home base
• You're happy living by a family's house rules
• You value a cultural, homely experience over party-hostel life

It's probably not for you if you want total independence, late nights out every night, or maximum hourly earnings.

For the right person, though, au pairing is one of the most affordable and rewarding ways to spend part of your working-holiday year. You'll save money, get under the skin of real Australian life, and quite possibly leave with a second family who'll have you back any time.