A babysitting app and a child care center are very different businesses under New York rules. One connects families with sitters; the other cares for groups of children and faces licensing, inspections, and staffing standards.
What child care workers earn in New York
Median hourly wage for childcare workers, May 2025. Nearly 49,000 work in the New York metro.
How a child care business works in NYC
Child care in NYC is expensive and hard to find, which is why sitter and nanny marketplaces keep appearing. The demand is real, but so is the risk: parents choose based on trust, so screening, insurance, and clear policies are the product as much as the app is. Centers and home-based programs are a separate, more regulated route.
Licenses and rules for a child care business in New York
- Group child care: child care programs in NYC are regulated by the Health Department, and operating one requires a permit and inspections. Check DOHMH for the current rules for your program type.
- Home-based care: generally, caring for three or more unrelated children for more than three hours a day triggers child care registration or licensing rules in New York. Check the state Office of Children and Family Services and the Health Department.
- Sitter marketplaces: occasional babysitting in a family’s home is not licensed, but a platform that vets and places caregivers takes on screening and liability questions. Talk to an attorney about how you structure it.
- Nanny employment: families who employ nannies are subject to New York’s domestic worker protections, including overtime, rest days, and paid leave rules, and NYC paid sick leave requirements.
- Screening: background checks, references, and CPR and first aid training are the practical baseline that parents expect.
What it costs to start
Budget for these before you open:
- Background check and screening fees for every caregiver
- General liability insurance, plus coverage that addresses abuse and molestation claims
- Platform development, payments, and trust-and-safety tools
- Training, including CPR and first aid
- Marketing to win families and caregivers
- For a center: rent, build-out, permits, and staffing, which are far larger
NYC child care companies to know
Two New York child care companies that show how this business runs in the city. Details were checked in October 2026; call ahead before you visit.
Vivvi
Operator of early learning and child care campuses in NYC that sells care both to families and to employers as a workplace benefit.
- Address: 620 W 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036
- Phone: (646) 343-9817
- LinkedIn: Company page
- Funding: Venture backed; announced a $15M Series B led by Tribeca Venture Partners in February 2022. (source)
Curated Care
Babysitting app and website that matches NYC and LA families with screened creative professionals for babysitting, tutoring and enrichment.
- Address: 116 W 23rd St, Floor 5, Suite 72, New York, NY 10011
- Phone: (646) 450-2750
- LinkedIn: Company page
- Funding: No funding round found; AlleyWatch profiled the founders in 2015 without naming investors. Funding status unknown. (source)
- Founded: 2014
How to finance a child care business
A marketplace has modest startup capital needs, mostly technology, screening, and marketing, so savings, a small loan, or investor money are common. A center is a capital project with rent, build-out, and payroll, where an SBA loan or a community lender is usually a better fit than an advance. Check the annualized cost of any financing offer before you accept.
Before you take an advance to bridge a slow stretch, read how a merchant cash advance works. If you already have one and the daily debits hurt, the getting out guide lists your options in order.
NYC Small Business Services runs NYC Business Solutions centers that help with licensing, permits and financing questions at no charge.
Common questions
Do I need a license to babysit in NYC?
Occasional babysitting in a family’s home is not licensed. Running a child care program, or regularly caring for several unrelated children, triggers permit or registration rules. Check DOHMH and the state Office of Children and Family Services.
Who regulates child care centers in NYC?
The NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene issues permits and inspects group child care programs in the city.
What insurance does a sitter app need?
At minimum general liability, and coverage designed for child care risks. A broker who insures child care businesses can advise on abuse and molestation coverage and on how independent caregivers are treated.
Related guides
Updated October 2026. This is general information, not legal, tax, or financial advice. Rules and fees change, so confirm current requirements with the agency named before you act.