Parent Salary Calculator: How Much Would You Earn?

Raising a family is a full-time job, let’s face it. So, ever wondered what your parenting pay – or “mum wage” – might actually be? From chauffeuring the school run to planning and preparing the weekly menu, parents must juggle many responsibilities with patience, grace, and a healthy dose of caffeine.

If you’re curious about your “mum (or dad) wage” give our Parent Salary Calculator a go and see what you could (and should) be earning for your efforts.

Developing the Tool: How did we do it?

We identified eight common tasks that parents spend their time doing for their kids and found the closest professional equivalent of that task to estimate the value of a stay at home mum/dad salary.

Next, we gathered wage and salary data for these eight jobs (from a UK jobs site) and did so for 1,000 UK towns and cities.

So, when you enter your weekly hours into the tool, we convert them into yearly salaries for each of these jobs. Finally, we add everything up to give you a total yearly #ParentSalary.

As an example, if you spend seven hours per week cooking for your child, then over the 52 weeks of a year you’d spend a total of 364 hours cooking. And if the average wage for a chef in your town is £15 per hour, then the estimated salary for that one job alone would be £5,460.

Tasks/jobs listed include:

Cooking => Chef

Cleaning => Cleaner

Driving => Taxi Driver

Teaching => Teacher

Organising => Personal Assistant

Washing => Launderette

Physical Health => Nurse

Mental Health => Psychologist

Family Finances: The Hard-Hitting Questions

Should Children Pay Board?

Many parents wonder if it’s a good idea to start charging their children ‘rent’ or ‘board’, once their offspring start earning and still live at home.

The pros? It can help youngsters to understand financial responsibility and the value of a budget, helping them on their journey to independence. It can prepare them for managing their living expenses alongside more ‘fun’ ways to spend funds.

But ultimately, it comes down to your child’s age and income and whether you think the time is right.

If so, How Much Board Should Children Pay?

If you decide to start charging your child to live at home, determining how much board they should pay can be based on local living costs and their income.

Many families opt for a set flat rate that aligns with what the child can afford, taking into consideration their earning capacity and other financial responsibilities they might have. While others work it out using a percentage of the child’s income, often ranging from 10% to 30%.

What do parents really want for Mother’s and Father’s Day?

Rest assured, our Mother’s Day and Father’s Day cards are on hand for expressions of gratitude. Satisfied customers of their parents’ labours (kids) can even send our thank you gifts to parents. Browse further using our dedicated Father’s Day and Mother’s Day gift guides.