What Does a Carer Cost in Israel? Hourly and Monthly Rates for Childcare and Elder Care
Shukshuk team · Updated September 2026
The Hebrew word "מטפלת" covers two completely different jobs, and searches mix them freely: a carer for a baby, and a carer for an elderly person. The prices differ several times over, the law differs, and public support exists for only one of them. This guide separates them, gives real ranges for each, and starts with a number that is not a market rate but a legal one: the minimum wage. Some of the rates circulating for this work are below it, and paying them is a criminal offence.
Carer cost ranges in Israel, as of September 2026
- Cost
- ₪40 to ₪60
- Note
- Usually above ₪50 in the centre
- Cost
- ₪50 to ₪80
- Note
- Cost
- ₪60 to ₪110
- Note
- Includes the agency's employer costs
- Cost
- ₪7,000 to ₪12,000
- Note
- About 4 to 6 hours a day
- Cost
- About ₪7,500 in year one
- Note
- About ₪8,700 from year two, all in
- Cost
- ₪35.40 per hour
- Note
- Minimum wage from 1.4.2026, not a range
| Type | Cost | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Babysitter per hour, one child | ₪40 to ₪60 | Usually above ₪50 in the centre |
| Babysitter per hour, two or more | ₪50 to ₪80 | |
| Elder carer via an agency, per hour | ₪60 to ₪110 | Includes the agency's employer costs |
| Part-time elder carer, per month | ₪7,000 to ₪12,000 | About 4 to 6 hours a day |
| Live-in foreign carer, per month | About ₪7,500 in year one | About ₪8,700 from year two, all in |
| The legal floor | ₪35.40 per hour | Minimum wage from 1.4.2026, not a range |
The live-in figure includes wages, national insurance, health insurance, pension and severance, which is why it looks higher than the wage itself. The long-term care benefit covers part of elder care, never childcare.
First: the minimum wage is not a suggestion
From 1 April 2026 the minimum wage in Israel is ₪35.40 per hour and ₪6,443.85 per month for a full-time post, under the Minimum Wage Law 5747-1987, which defines it as 47.5 percent of the average wage. Failing to pay it is a criminal offence, not a negotiating position. Why that opens a guide about prices: some of the figures circulating for this job sit below that floor. "₪30 an hour in the periphery" and "₪2,000 to ₪5,000 a month full time" both appear in Israeli sources, and for genuine full-time work they are simply unlawful: ₪2,000 a month is about a third of the legal minimum. Usually the explanation is that those numbers describe very part-time work, or undeclared work. If you are the employer, that distinction is yours to carry. And the point most people miss: the wage is not the whole cost. A regularly employed carer is also entitled to pension, severance, holiday, sick days and convalescence pay. A quoted hourly rate does not include them.
Childcare: by the hour and by the month
Two separate models, best not conflated: An hourly babysitter, for an evening or a few hours: about ₪40 to ₪60 an hour for one child, and about ₪50 to ₪80 for two or more, as of September 2026. In the centre, and Tel Aviv and Ramat Gan especially, rates are usually above ₪50; in the periphery they run lower, though never below the legal floor. A regular nanny on a fixed post: here Israeli sources diverge sharply, from ₪2,000 to ₪5,000 a month up to ₪5,000 to ₪10,000. That gap is not noise, it reflects completely different hours, from a few a day to a full one, and sometimes undeclared work. The only way to compare is to convert everything to hours and check against the minimum. What pushes the rate up: a valid CPR certificate, early-childhood training or a degree, experience with infants, willingness to take on extra tasks (cooking, nursery pickup, homework), awkward hours, and the number of children.
Elder care: an entirely different market
Care for an older person is priced differently, because it usually runs through an agency or through employing a foreign worker, and there is a public support system behind it. • An Israeli carer through an agency: about ₪60 to ₪110 an hour. That is higher than the carer receives, because it carries the agency's employer costs and its margin. • A part-time post of about 4 to 6 hours a day: roughly ₪7,000 to ₪12,000 a month. • A live-in foreign carer: about ₪7,500 a month in the first year and about ₪8,700 from the second, sometimes up to ₪9,500. That figure includes the wage itself (at minimum-wage level), national insurance, health insurance, pension and severance. Comparing it against a bare wage leads to the wrong conclusion. The long-term care benefit from the National Insurance Institute covers part of the cost according to an entitlement level, of which there are six, and can be taken as hours of care or, in certain conditions, partly converted to cash to pay a live-in carer directly. This is exactly the case where it pays to check which is better, so the National Insurance assessment is the first step rather than the last. Employing a foreign carer requires a permit and its own procedures. Read the Kol Zchut guide and the current rules before starting: this is not a field to learn from a classified ad.
What to ask before agreeing
• Is the rate gross or net, and who pays the deductions. • Does it include pension, convalescence, holiday and sick pay, or do those sit on top. • What happens on holidays, Shabbat and overtime: those carry different statutory rates. • Exactly what is included beyond supervision: cooking, cleaning, driving, homework. • Cancellation and notice, on both sides. • For childcare: a valid CPR certificate, and who collects from nursery. • For elder care: the long-term care entitlement level and what it covers, and who the actual employer is, you or the agency. And write it down, even briefly. Most disputes in this field are about what was agreed, not about how much.
FAQ
What does a babysitter cost per hour in Israel?
About ₪40 to ₪60 an hour for one child and ₪50 to ₪80 for two or more, as of September 2026, usually above ₪50 in the centre. In every case it cannot fall below the minimum wage of ₪35.40 an hour from 1.4.2026.
What does a full-time nanny cost per month?
Israeli sources diverge, from ₪2,000 to ₪5,000 up to ₪5,000 to ₪10,000, and the gap reflects very different hours. The floor is clear: a genuine full-time post cannot pay less than ₪6,443.85 a month, the minimum wage from 1.4.2026. Anything below that for full-time work is unlawful.
What does an elder carer cost?
Through an agency, about ₪60 to ₪110 an hour, and a part-time post of 4 to 6 hours a day runs ₪7,000 to ₪12,000 a month. A live-in foreign carer costs about ₪7,500 a month in year one and ₪8,700 from year two, including wages, national insurance, health insurance, pension and severance.
What does the long-term care benefit cover?
It covers part of the cost of caring for an older person according to an entitlement level, of which there are six, and can be taken as hours of care or partly converted to cash in certain conditions to pay a live-in carer. It applies to elder care only, never to childcare. Start with the National Insurance assessment.
Does the hourly rate cover the whole cost?
No. A regularly employed carer is also entitled to pension, severance, holiday, sick days and convalescence pay, which sit on top of the quoted rate. When you hire through an agency those costs are already built into what the agency charges, which is why its rate looks higher.
Sources
See also
The minimum wage is a legal figure current to 1.4.2026; the other amounts are market ranges collected in September 2026 and are not quotes. Employment terms, the long-term care benefit and foreign-worker employment follow rules that change: check with the National Insurance Institute and Kol Zchut before committing.