DATA-BACKED GUIDE · UPDATED JULY 2026
How much does a nanny cost per week in the UK?
A nanny works in your own home and looks after your children only, which makes it the most personal kind of childcare on offer. It is usually priced per week, and the headline figure is only part of the story: employing a nanny means you also take on tax, National Insurance and a pension, in the same way any employer does. For one child that extra layer tends to push the true cost above nursery. For two or more children, though, a nanny is often better value than paying for separate nursery places, because the wage is set per family rather than per child.
The quick version
- Nannies are priced per week and give one-to-one care in your own home, rather than a shared setting.
- The wage is quoted as either net or gross, and the difference matters a lot once tax and National Insurance are added on top.
- As the employer, you are responsible for PAYE, National Insurance and a workplace pension, not the nanny.
- The cost is per family, not per child, so a nanny can beat two nursery places once you have more than one child in care.
- Funded hours and Tax-Free Childcare only work with a nanny who is registered with Ofsted, so registration status is worth checking before you agree a rate.
- Live-in arrangements are usually quoted lower than live-out ones because part of the pay is accommodation rather than cash.
What people actually paid
Where these 10 prices come from — 5 named sources
Each is a published price list, an official survey, or a receipt/quote a reader shared. The full per-price list with year and area is on the nanny page.
The gap: advertised vs actually paid (medians)
People reported paying 9% less than the advertised list price for nanny.
List prices are advertised prices; paid figures are what people reported, often for different cases and from a small sample so far. Treat the gap as a signal, not a quote.
Real prices, in people's own words
- £675“9am-6pm, five days a week would be £675 a week”
Genuine amounts posted publicly. We publish the price and the quote, never the person.
Why the price varies so much
Nanny pay moves with hours, experience, duties and location, and location does most of the heavy lifting: London sits far above the rest of the country, and rates fall the further you get from the capital. Experience and the exact job also matter. A nanny doing sole charge of a baby, cooking meals and managing a full routine commands more than someone doing school pickups and a few hours of after-school care. Live-in nannies are usually quoted at a lower cash rate than live-out ones, because part of their pay is accommodation rather than money in the bank, and that changes the comparison if you are weighing the two options side by side. Ownership of the arrangement matters too. Most nannies are self-employed in the sense that they choose their own hours and clients, but for tax purposes they are your employee, not a contractor, and that status is what creates the extra costs a nursery or childminder absorbs on your behalf. Whether a quote is expressed as a net or a gross wage changes the real figure by a wide margin, so two families comparing nanny quotes need to check they are reading the same basis before they draw any conclusions about who is cheaper.
How to pay less
- Agree the wage in gross terms from the start, so tax and National Insurance are built into the number you budget for rather than added as a surprise later.
- Share a nanny with another family. A nanny share splits the weekly cost between two households while keeping care in a home rather than a group setting.
- Check whether your nanny is registered with Ofsted before you agree terms, since that registration is what lets a Tax-Free Childcare account apply to the payments.
- Ask whether the Universal Credit childcare element could apply. It may, but only with a registered nanny, so it is worth confirming before you assume it does not.
- Budget for a payroll service alongside the wage rather than treating it as optional. It is a genuine employer cost, not an add-on you can skip.
- For one child, compare a nanny against a childminder or nursery before committing. A nanny usually only wins on cost once you have two or more children to place.
Common questions
Is a nanny more expensive than nursery?
For one child, usually yes, because you are paying for one-to-one care plus the employer costs a nursery would otherwise absorb. For two or more children the maths shifts, since a nanny charges per family rather than per child, so two siblings with a nanny can end up costing less than two nursery places.
What is the difference between a net and gross wage?
A gross wage is the full amount before tax and National Insurance are taken off, while a net wage is what the nanny actually takes home. Agreeing gross protects you as the employer, because with a net deal any change to tax rates or the nanny's own tax code lands on your bill, not theirs.
Do I have to run payroll for a nanny?
Yes. A nanny is legally your employee, so you are responsible for PAYE, National Insurance and a workplace pension in the same way any employer would be. Many families use a dedicated nanny payroll service to handle this, and the fee for that service is worth adding to your weekly budget rather than treating as a one-off.
Can I use funded hours or Tax-Free Childcare with a nanny?
Only if the nanny is registered with Ofsted. A registered nanny lets you use a Tax-Free Childcare account and, in some cases, funded hours or the Universal Credit childcare element. An unregistered nanny rules all of those schemes out, so it is worth checking registration status before you agree a rate, not after.
Is a live-in nanny cheaper than a live-out nanny?
The cash wage for a live-in nanny is usually quoted lower, because accommodation forms part of the overall package rather than being paid separately. Whether that makes it cheaper overall depends on what the room is worth to you and whether you have the space to offer it in the first place.
Does a nanny cost more in some parts of the country than others?
Yes, and location is one of the biggest drivers of the price. London rates sit well above the rest of the country, and costs generally ease the further you move from the capital, alongside the usual differences for hours, experience and the exact duties involved.