Cat sitting jobs across Australia
A$25 to 45 a drop-in visit, in 49 cities from Cairns to Hobart. Visit cats in their own homes, set your own rate, choose your hours, and keep up to 90% of every booking.
Pick your city below for local rates and the suburbs visits come from, or build your sitter profile and start taking cat bookings near home.
What cat sitting looks like in Australia
Cats live in 34% of Australian households, on Animal Medicines Australia's 2025 survey, and in the policy data pet insurers publish the Domestic Shorthair sits well ahead of every purebred. The shape of the work follows from one fact: the cat stays home. A booking is a round of visits to somebody else's flat or house rather than a stay at yours, so what you are really building is a set of homes close enough together to cover in an hour.
Apartment cities set the round
The 2021 Census put Greater Sydney at the centre of high-rise living in Australia, holding around 45% of everyone in the country who lives in a high-rise flat, and inner Melbourne is on the same track. Flats are where cat visits cluster, because a cat in a unit with no yard depends entirely on whoever comes through the door.
Strata rules changed the maths
A blanket ban on pets in a strata scheme is invalid in New South Wales and Victoria. An owners corporation can set reasonable conditions on noise, hygiene and carrying an animal across common property, but it cannot ban one outright, so apartment cats are ordinary now and the questions are lifts, lobbies and keys rather than permission.
Summer and tick season change the visit
Through December and January the visit means shade, airflow and fresh water rather than a different schedule. On the eastern coastal strip, from far north Queensland to East Gippsland, a search through the coat for paralysis ticks belongs in the warmer-month visit, and a dog tick or flea product must never go on a cat.
A flexible job you run around your life
Cat visits are short and easy to fit around everything else. You run the work like your own business: your hours, your clients, your rate. It slots in around a day job, study, or other gigs.
Work around your life
Visits are short and easy to cluster. Fit a morning and evening round near home, or pick up extra visits while owners travel. No fixed shifts and no minimum hours.
Self-employed, not a shift worker
You are your own boss on Petme. You pick every booking, set your own rate, and answer to the owner, not a dispatcher. Build your own round of regular cats.
Start small, scale when ready
Many cat sitters start with a handful of visits a week alongside another job, then add house sitting and more regular clients as their reviews grow.
Visit cats on your terms, earn per visit
No shift rosters, no platform-set pricing, no minimum hours. You control the rate, the area you cover, and the visits you accept.
A$25 to 45 per visit
Typical drop-in visit rates across Australian metros, with house sitting for cats charged per night. You set every rate, and keep up to 90%.
Visit cats in their own home
Most bookings are drop-in visits: feed, fresh water, litter, play, and photo updates. Cats stay relaxed in familiar surroundings, and you cover homes near you.
A$32,000 Protection Plan
Every confirmed cat booking on Petme automatically includes up to A$32,000 through the Protection Plan. Free for you and the owner, on every booking.
What the work pays around the country
These are the bands Australian owners are used to seeing on Petme. Cat work is priced per visit, so the round matters more than the headline number: three homes within a few streets pays better for the same afternoon than three spread across a city. Sydney and Melbourne sit at the top of the band and regional centres nearer the bottom, and you set the rate either way.
| Service | Typical rate | Billed |
|---|---|---|
| Cat sitting | A$25 to 45 | per visit |
| Drop-in visit | A$25 to 40 | per visit |
| House sitting | A$50 to 90 | per night |
| Dog walking | A$25 to 40 | per 30 min walk |
| Doggy daycare | A$40 to 65 | per day |
| Dog boarding | A$45 to 75 | per night |
You set every rate yourself, so read these as the range owners expect rather than a price list. You keep up to 90% of each booking, and payouts reach your bank within 2 business days.
Built for cat sitters
You set your own rate and keep up to 90%, owners earn cashback that keeps them rebooking, and every visit is protected with A$32,000 through the Protection Plan.
Per-visit earnings, your rate
You set your rate per visit. No platform-dictated pricing. Petme keeps a small service fee, and you keep up to 90% of every booking.
Recurring clients built in
Cat owners travel often and earn cashback on every Petme booking, so they have a reason to rebook the sitter their cat already knows. Regulars come back trip after trip.
Protected on every visit
A$32,000 emergency Protection Plan on every confirmed booking. You never carry the liability alone, even on a quick drop-in visit.
Cat sitting work in 49 Australian cities
Petme recruits cat sitters in all six states and both territories, in capitals, coastal metros and regional centres. Open the city closest to you for local rates, the suburbs visits come from, and what owners there ask for.
New South Wales
Queensland
South Australia
Tasmania
Australian Capital Territory
Northern Territory
Questions cat sitters ask before they start
Pay, visits, apartments and the seasons, answered for Australia.
How much can I earn cat sitting in Australia?
Cat sitting on Petme in Australia typically pays A$25 to A$45 per drop-in visit, with house sitting for cats charged per night. You set your own rate and keep up to 90% of every booking. Several visits a day across nearby homes builds a steady weekly income.
What does a cat sitting booking involve?
Most cat bookings are drop-in visits: you go to the owner's home to feed the cat, refresh water, clean the litter tray, play, and send photo updates. Some owners book house sitting where you stay overnight. You choose which you offer and set a rate for each.
What do I need to become a cat sitter?
You must be 18 or over, based in Australia, and able to pass ID verification. Cat-specific know-how is what makes a profile stand out: recognising stress signals, safe handling, and medication routines. A short pet first aid course builds trust with owners comparing two sitters at the same rate.
Can I set my own rates and hours?
Yes. You set your rate per visit and control your own availability. There are no assigned shifts and no minimum hours. You accept or decline each request, so cat sitting fits neatly around a job, study, or other commitments.
How do payouts work for cat sitters?
Earnings land in your bank account within 2 business days of each completed visit. You set your own rate, Petme keeps a small service fee, and you keep up to 90% of every booking. There is no invoicing.
Are cats covered if something goes wrong?
Every confirmed Petme booking, including cat visits, automatically includes up to A$32,000 through the Protection Plan for the cat in your care. It is included at no extra cost to you or the owner, on every booking.
Is cat sitting a good side income?
Yes. Drop-in visits are short and often clustered close together, so you can fit several around your week. Many cat sitters on Petme start with a few visits alongside another job and build a base of regulars who rebook during every trip.
Can I take cat bookings in apartment buildings?
Yes, and a lot of cat work is exactly that. A blanket ban on pets in a strata scheme is invalid in New South Wales and Victoria: an owners corporation can set reasonable conditions about noise, hygiene and carrying an animal across common property, but it cannot prohibit one outright. What you sort out at the meet and greet is the practical side, keys, lift access, and where the litter tray lives.
What changes for cats over an Australian summer?
Less than for dogs, because the cat stays home, but the visit still changes. Check shade, airflow and fresh water at every drop-in through December and January, the hottest weeks of the year here. On the eastern coastal strip a coat check for paralysis ticks belongs in the visit, and never use a dog tick or flea product on a cat, because it can be fatal.
When do cat owners in Australia book a sitter?
Around the four school-holiday blocks, and above all the summer break from mid-December to late January. Each state and territory sets its own term dates, so those weeks stagger around the country. Cat bookings also run outside the holidays more than dog ones do, because a long weekend away is enough to need someone visiting the cat.
Which Australian cities have cat sitting demand?
Cat work is strongest in the dense inner metros, and the 2021 Census put Greater Sydney at the centre of Australian high-rise living. Petme lists cat sitting work in 49 cities across all six states and both territories, from Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide through to Canberra, Hobart, Darwin and regional centres like Ballarat and Bunbury.
Start earning as a cat sitter in Australia
Set your own rate per visit. A$32,000 Protection Plan on every booking, cashback that keeps your clients rebooking, and payouts to your bank within 2 business days.