Questions to Ask a Babysitter
The long version of the conversation you have before hiring a sitter for the first time, from how they got into it through bedtime, refusals, injuries, the door, screens, money and cancellations. It is long on purpose: work through it once with someone you are serious about. If you are still comparing several candidates, start with how many families they sit for and which ages they find hardest. If the sitter is a teenager with no track record, lean on what would worry them, owning up to a mistake and the trial evening. If you are working out which questions to ask a babysitter for an infant, the run that follows the youngest child they have looked after alone is the part to use: safe sleep, bottles, a baby who will not settle and where the baby goes when the sitter needs both hands.
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The questions
Each question, and why to ask it
How did you get into babysitting?
Why ask it
An easy opener that quietly sorts people. Someone who started with younger siblings or cousins has years of unpaid practice behind them; someone who started last month because they need the money may still be good, but you will want more from the rest of the answers.
Who have you looked after recently, and how old were they?
Why ask it
Ages matter more than years of experience. A sitter fluent with school-age children may never have changed a nappy or handled a two-year-old who bolts, and it is much easier to ask now than to discover it at 8pm.
What would the first ten minutes look like after I walk out the door?
Why ask it
Listen for whether the children appear in the answer. Good sitters describe getting the kids into something straight away, because the wobble comes right after the parent leaves. Vaguer answers usually mean the television goes on.
Bedtime here takes about forty minutes. How do you handle a child who keeps getting back out of bed?
Why ask it
Give them the real duration first so the answer is about your evening rather than a hypothetical one. You want a method, walking them back quietly, sticking with the routine, not an assurance that children generally like them.
If they refuse what I have left for dinner, what happens?
Why ask it
This is the most predictable conflict of the night, so an unprepared answer here tells you a lot. Sitters who immediately offer toast or cereal will do that every time; sitters who say they would check with you first are showing you how they handle grey areas generally.
What do you do when a child is mid-meltdown and nothing you try is working?
Why ask it
The phrase "nothing is working" is deliberate. It rules out the confident answers and asks what they do at the end of their tactics, which is where you learn whether they get calmer or louder.
If one of them hurts the other, what do you do?
Why ask it
Watch for whether they separate first and ask questions afterwards, and whether they plan to tell you. A sitter who describes conducting an investigation between two small children has not done this often.
Where is the line between something you would sort out yourself and something you would call me about?
Why ask it
You are agreeing a threshold, not testing them. Say your own line out loud afterwards, because most bad evenings come from a sitter who guessed wrong about whether a bumped head was worth a phone call.
Has anything ever gone properly wrong on a job, and what did you do?
Why ask it
Experienced sitters have a story: a locked door, a nosebleed that would not stop, a parent who was two hours late. "Nothing has ever happened" from someone with years of work usually means they have not been paying attention or would rather not say.
Do you have first aid or CPR training, and when did you last do it?
Why ask it
The date is the useful half. Certificates from four years ago mostly mean the person once cared enough to take the course, which is worth something, but not the same as recent practice.
What would your phone be doing while the children are awake, and how much would you be texting me?
Why ask it
Asking both halves at once makes the question about a plan rather than an accusation. The answer you want is specific: on silent, in a pocket, one message when they are down. Both extremes are a problem, since constant updates mean the kids are not settled.
What would you do if someone came to the door while we were out?
Why ask it
Judgement at the door is worth a minute of conversation. The right answer is that nobody comes in without checking with you, including relatives and anyone who says they are expected, and this is your chance to say so plainly.
Would you ever want a friend or a partner to come by during a shift?
Why ask it
Ask directly rather than hoping. Some sitters will say yes because they have done it before with other families and think nothing of it, which is exactly the misunderstanding you want to clear up in advance rather than discover afterwards.
Do you drive, and would you be up for a pickup or a drop-off?
Why ask it
Driving changes the job: insurance, car seats, who fits where. A sitter who says they would rather not is being sensible, and a sitter who is casual about whose car and whose seats needs a firmer conversation before you agree to it.
Have you looked after a child with a food allergy or a daily medication before, and how do you feel about pets?
Why ask it
Say your own household's version out loud and watch the reaction. Hesitation about an inhaler or an EpiPen is not disqualifying if they say so honestly; casual confidence about something they have never handled is the answer to worry about.
How do you feel about screens: would you put something on, and for how long?
Why ask it
Everyone says they follow the parents' rules, so ask for the number instead. A sitter who admits they would use half an hour to get dinner made is being realistic, and you can decide whether that matches what you want.
Is there any part of this job you would rather not do?
Why ask it
Giving explicit permission to say no gets you a real answer, usually about bath time, homework, or a long bedtime. Far better to hear it now than to have it quietly skipped every week.
What do you charge, how do you count the hours, and how would you like to be paid?
Why ask it
Rate is the easy part. Rounding, minimum bookings, extra per child and what happens when you get home late are what actually cause friction, and settling them now spares an awkward conversation in the hallway at midnight.
What does your availability look like over the next couple of months, and how much notice do you need from me?
Why ask it
This tests whether the arrangement is workable at all. A sitter with exams, a shift job or a term ending soon may be great and still not be available on the nights you actually need.
What would you do if you had to cancel on the day?
Why ask it
Late cancellations are the main reason these arrangements end, so ask what their process is. Someone who says they would tell you as soon as they knew, and has a name they could suggest instead, has thought about your side of it.
What would a few hours here look like, from you arriving to lights out?
Why ask it
You are listening for whether there is any plan beyond the television. Sitters who mention asking the children what they want to do, or bringing something with them, tend to be the ones your kids ask for again.
Would you be able to make a simple meal, and what would you make?
Why ask it
The specific answer tells you whether they cook or reheat, and either can be fine as long as you both expect the same thing. It also opens the conversation about what in the kitchen is theirs to use.
How would you get here, and how would you get home afterwards?
Why ask it
The part most parents forget until midnight. A sitter relying on a last bus will start watching the clock at ten, and one you have to drive home changes what a late night costs you.
What would you want me to have ready before you arrive?
Why ask it
Experienced sitters ask for written numbers, the bedtime routine, allergy details, and where the first aid kit is. No requests at all usually means they have not been left alone in someone else's house before.
If this became a regular booking, what would make you want to keep coming back?
Why ask it
Sitters stay with families who pay on time, come home when they said, and leave clear instructions. Hearing what matters to this person tells you what you would need to do to keep them, which is the part most families only work out after losing someone good.
Can you give me two families I could call, including one you sit for now?
Why ask it
Asking for a current family is what turns this from a formality into a check. When you call, ask what they had to remind the sitter about rather than whether they were good, because the first question gets a real answer.
How many families are you sitting for at the moment?
Why ask it
This tells you where you would sit in the queue. Someone with four regular families is clearly trusted and also likely to be booked on the Saturday you want; someone with none may be new, or may have recently lost a family for a reason worth finding out.
Which ages are you happiest with, and which do you find hardest?
Why ask it
The second half is where the answer lives. Most sitters have a real preference, and someone who admits toddlers wear them out is being useful. Anyone who says all ages are the same has probably not spent long with a two-year-old.
What is the most children you have looked after at once?
Why ask it
Numbers change the work more than ages do, because two children in different rooms cannot both be watched. If you have three and their ceiling is one, that is not a small gap to bridge on a first booking.
What is the longest stretch you have been alone with children?
Why ask it
A three-hour evening and a ten-hour Saturday are different jobs. Lunch, naps, boredom and two meltdowns arrive in the long one, so if you need full days, someone whose experience is all bedtime slots is untested for what you want.
Have you ever had to say no to a family about something? What was it?
Why ask it
Sitters who can decline a request, an extra two hours, an unfamiliar pickup, a job outside their comfort, are safer than sitters who agree to everything. Agreeing to everything is how someone ends up out of their depth with your children.
Has a family ever done something that made you not want to sit for them again?
Why ask it
Asking a sitter to review parents rebalances the conversation, and the answers are usually reasonable: paid late, came home much later than promised, played down a sick child. Listen for whether their complaint is about respect or about work.
What do you think would be the hardest part of an evening here?
Why ask it
A young sitter who can name something, the baby waking, the dog, the older one arguing, has actually pictured it. An answer that nothing would be hard usually means they have not, and it is a kind way to walk them through it.
Is there anything here that would worry you: the dog, the stairs, being on your own after dark?
Why ask it
Naming it gives them a way to raise something they would otherwise sit with. A sitter who says the dog makes them nervous is being useful, and it is a five-minute fix rather than a reason to look elsewhere.
What would you do if one of them asked to do something I had not mentioned?
Why ask it
Older children test a young sitter on exactly this, whether that is a later bedtime, a snack, or a screen. The rule to agree is that anything not on your list waits for a message, and that the sitter can say you already said no.
If one of the children told you something you thought I ought to know, what would you do?
Why ask it
Deliberately open, because the answer shows their instinct about loyalty. Sitters who would tell you, without making a drama of it in front of the child, are the ones who will also tell you about the small things.
Have you given a child medicine before, and how did you check the dose?
Why ask it
The checking is the whole answer. Reading the label back to the parent, or texting to confirm, is what you want to hear. Confidence without a checking step is the thing to be wary of, even from someone experienced.
What would you do if we were an hour later back than we said?
Why ask it
It will happen. You want to hear that they would expect a text and stay, not that they would call their mum for a lift or start messaging you at 11pm. This is also the moment to agree what you pay for the extra time.
How do you feel about a family having a camera or a monitor in the living room?
Why ask it
Whether or not you have one, the reaction is informative. Calm acceptance, or a straightforward preference to be told where cameras are, is what you want. Strong discomfort is worth exploring rather than dismissing, and so is total indifference.
Do you see tidying up as part of the job?
Why ask it
This is the most common unspoken resentment on both sides. Some sitters clear up automatically and some consider it outside the role, and both are defensible. What you cannot afford is each of you assuming the other's answer.
Would you be comfortable telling me if you got something wrong?
Why ask it
Embarrassment, not dishonesty, is why a spilled drink or a bumped head goes unmentioned. Say clearly that you would rather hear it, and notice whether they look relieved when you do.
Would you be up for a trial evening, and how would you like me to tell you how it went?
Why ask it
Agreeing feedback in advance makes it possible to give any. Ask whether they would rather hear it in person or by message, and give them something specific afterwards, because a young sitter who gets told what went well tends to come back.
What is the youngest child you have looked after on your own?
Why ask it
Being present while a parent handles an infant is different from being alone with one. This distinguishes real solo experience from helping out, which is what most people mean when they say they are good with babies.
How would you put a baby down to sleep, and what would be in the cot with them?
Why ask it
You are checking their habit against the safe-sleep advice you were given, which can differ a little between countries and over the years. A pillow, a propped bottle or a nap on the sofa in the answer is your cue to say exactly how it is done in your house, and to watch whether they take that as information or as criticism.
Have you made up a bottle before, formula or expressed milk, and how did you warm it?
Why ask it
The two are handled differently and every household has its own way, so the best answer ends with them asking how you do yours. Run through it once before you go: how much, how warm, and what happens to whatever is left in the bottle.
What would you do if the baby would not take the bottle from you?
Why ask it
Common when a breastfed baby meets a new face, and it rattles a sitter who has not seen it before. Calm is the answer: try again in ten minutes, change position, message you before the baby is frantic. Say whether you would rather come home than have them push on.
How can you tell that a baby is hungry or tired before the crying starts?
Why ask it
A baby cannot say which it is, so reading the signs early is most of the skill. Rooting, eye rubbing or going quiet and glassy are the sort of things a practised sitter mentions. Follow up with your own baby's tells, because they will not be the textbook ones.
What do you do when a baby has cried for twenty minutes and is fed, dry and not ill?
Why ask it
Sooner or later every infant sitter gets this evening. A good answer is a list they work through, wind, a different hold, a walk to the window, plus knowing they can lay the baby in the cot and take a minute in the next room. Tell them now that a call to you at that point is welcome.
Are you comfortable changing a nappy on a baby who has learned to roll, and where would you do it?
Why ask it
The surface is the real subject. One hand on the baby the whole time, or a mat on the floor, shows they have thought about the drop from a changing table. If they have only changed newborns, let them see how fast yours flips over.
How would you pick up and carry a baby who cannot hold their head up yet?
Why ask it
Better shown than described, so hand the baby over if you are meeting in person. Within a few seconds you can see whether a hand goes behind the head and neck without thinking, and whether your baby relaxes or stiffens.
Where would the baby go while you used the bathroom or needed both hands free?
Why ask it
Small and revealing. The cot or a playpen is the answer to hope for; the sofa, your bed or a bouncer up on a table are the ones to correct there and then. Walk them to the spot you use so there is no choosing on the night.
What would you do with a baby in the awake stretch between feeds?
Why ask it
This separates a sitter who sees an infant as company from one who is waiting for the next nap. Time on the tummy, chatting through a nappy change or a look round the garden all count. A bouncer facing the television does not.
Would you be happy to write down feeds, nappies and naps with the times while we are out?
Why ask it
With an infant, that sheet is how you pick the night up where they left it: when the next feed is due, whether the last nap was a short one. Sitters who have kept one before tend to ask whether you want it on paper or by message.
Has any of your first aid training covered babies under one specifically?
Why ask it
Courses usually teach the choking and resuscitation steps for a baby separately from those for an older child, and a general certificate may have skipped them. Ask what they remember of the infant part, and whether they would do a short course before the first booking if there was none.
Tell me about the last time you sat: what did you actually do, hour by hour?
Why ask it
A concrete account is hard to invent and tells you the pace they are used to. If the whole evening is one long blur with a movie in the middle, that is the evening you are buying.
What would you do if my child fell and hit their head?
Why ask it
You are listening for whether they check the child before they check the phone, and whether calling you comes before or after deciding it is nothing. A sitter who says they would decide themselves whether it was serious is the answer to worry about.
What would you do if my toddler started choking?
Why ask it
You want the sequence, not reassurance: recognize it, back blows and chest thrusts appropriate to the age, call emergency services if it does not clear. Blank answers or a plan to look it up on a phone tell you the training is missing.
What would you do if my child seemed unwell while I was out?
Why ask it
Judgement matters more than knowledge here. You want someone who would tell you about a temperature or a rash rather than waiting to see, and who would say plainly that they were unsure.
If something happened and I did not pick up, what would you do next?
Why ask it
The right answer involves a second contact and, if needed, calling emergency services without waiting for permission. Hesitation here usually means they would keep ringing you, which is exactly the wrong instinct.
Where would you take a child in an emergency, and how would you get there?
Why ask it
Most sitters have never thought about this. If they do not drive, the answer is an ambulance and a neighbour, which is fine as long as it is decided in advance. Use the question to establish who the local backup adult is.
Would you be supervising a bath, a paddling pool, or the pool, and what are your rules around water?
Why ask it
Drowning is quiet and fast, and it happens in very little water. You want to hear that they stay within arm's reach, never leave to answer a phone or a door, and empty the tub afterwards. Anyone who treats this as excessive should not be near your bathroom.
How do you keep track of them at a playground or in the garden?
Why ask it
Look for a positioning answer rather than a vigilance answer: standing where both children are visible, choosing an enclosed space, counting heads at the gate. Promising to watch carefully is not a method.
How would you keep two children of different ages occupied at the same time?
Why ask it
Relevant only if you have more than one, and then it is central. Answers that involve one activity both can join beat answers that involve separating them, which usually ends with the younger one following the older around.
How do you get children off a screen without a fight?
Why ask it
Warnings before the end, and finishing at a natural break rather than mid-episode, are the answers that work. A sitter who says they simply take the tablet away is describing the evening you will come home to.
Would you help with homework, and what do you do when they are stuck?
Why ask it
Some sitters will sit alongside and some will not touch it, and both are fine as long as you know which. The useful part is whether they would give the answer or leave a note telling you what was hard.
What if one of them will not stop crying for me?
Why ask it
Separation distress is common in younger children, and the sitter's instinct here matters. Listen for comfort and distraction, plus a clear sense of when they would call you rather than wait it out.
What do you do when your own patience is running out?
Why ask it
Asking it directly gives permission to be honest, and honest answers exist: stepping into the hall, changing the activity, putting the television on and accepting it. Anyone who claims never to feel it has not worked long enough.
Is there a house rule you think you would find hard to follow?
Why ask it
Asked after you have described your rules, this invites an honest objection while it is still easy to hear. Better to learn now that no screens at all is unworkable for them than to discover it by text at nine o'clock.
When I get back, what sort of thing would you tell me about even if it seemed small?
Why ask it
This is the question that separates a supervisor from a carer. Naming small things, a scraped knee, an odd comment, a skipped meal, means you will hear about the medium-sized things too.
Running the conversation
Practical guidance for the conversation itself
Where and when to have it
Talk once without the children, once with them
A phone or video call first gets the logistics and the awkward questions out of the way. Then meet at your house with the kids there, because how a sitter greets a shy four-year-old tells you more than any answer on this list.
Pay for a trial hour while you are still home
Ask them to take over for an hour while you do something in another room. You will learn whether they get down on the floor, whether they can hold attention, and whether your children go looking for you.
For an infant, hand over one feed and one nap in person
A baby cannot tell the sitter how things are done, so let the first booking overlap with you for a full cycle: a feed, a nappy and a settle to sleep, with the sitter doing each while you watch. Write the amounts and times down as you go and leave that sheet on the counter.
Describe your evening before you ask about theirs
Say what the hours are, how many children, what state they will be in at handover and what a bad night looks like in your house. Answers get much more useful once the sitter can picture the actual job.
What the answers are telling you
Prefer specifics to reassurance
"I am great with kids" and "I would follow your rules" are not answers. "I would set a timer and let him pick the last book" is, and the difference is whether they are describing something they have actually done.
Take honest limits seriously in a good way
A sitter who says they find bedtime hard, or that they have never given medication, is being more useful than one who says yes to everything. Over-agreement early is often the first sign of an arrangement that quietly stops working.
Notice who asks you questions
Sitters who ask about allergies, where the first aid kit is, what to do about the front door and what time you will really be back are showing you how they will run the evening. End by asking what they would like to know about your family and listen to what comes.
Easy things to get wrong
Interviewing without agreeing the boundaries
Asking about visitors, phones and driving is only half the job. Say your answer out loud too, and put the important ones in a text afterwards so there is a record you both saw.
Skipping the money detail
Vague pay arrangements end more sitter relationships than any childcare disagreement. Fix the rate, the rounding and the late-return rule before the first booking.
Treating the reference call as optional
A confident interview is not evidence. Ask for two recent families with children close to your kids' ages, and call rather than email.
Leaving them without the basics written down
Whatever they said in the interview, nobody remembers an address and a doctor's number under pressure. Leave your mobile, a second contact, the address, allergies and doses on one sheet on the counter.