Dog sitting rates in Philadelphia
Every sitter sets their own rate, and you see the exact figure on their profile before you book. The bands below are what Philadelphia sitters on Petme charge, with the national drop-in and house sitting bands where the city has no separate figure.
| Service | Rate | Unit | Where it fits in a rowhome |
|---|---|---|---|
| Drop-in visit | $15 - $25 | per visit | Midday let-out, feed, short walk on the block |
| Dog walk | $20 - $32 | per hour | Longer exercise while you are at work |
| Boarding (dog stays at the sitter's home) | $45 - $80 | per night | Social dogs, trips of two nights or more |
| House sitting (sitter stays at yours) | $50 - $100 | per night | Anxious or older dogs, keeping the routine |
The true cost of pet sitting in Philadelphia page adds the fees, and the pet sitting cost calculator lets you try your own dates.
Drop-ins and walks, one visit at a time
A drop-in is a short visit. The sitter lets the dog out, refills water and food and stays for a bit of company. Two a day, one mid-morning and one mid-afternoon, comes to $30 to $50 a day.
Walks are priced by the hour at $20 to $32, so a shorter walk costs less than the full figure. If your dog has the energy of a young retriever, a walk plus a drop-in covers more than two drop-ins would.
Both are cheaper than overnight care, and both leave the dog alone for the stretch between visits. Whether that suits your dog depends on how long they are comfortable on their own, which you know better than any price list. The national dog sitting cost guide covers how to match the service to the dog.
Overnight care by neighborhood
Boarding is where Philadelphia prices spread out most. Sitters in tight Center City blocks charge more than sitters in Manayunk or Chestnut Hill, mainly because yard access and demand differ. These are per-night boarding ranges.
| Neighborhood | Boarding per night | What you usually find |
|---|---|---|
| Rittenhouse Square | $60 - $85 | Condo and rowhome sitters, mostly small to mid-size dogs |
| Center City | $55 - $80 | High demand, stoops and trinity-house stairs |
| Fishtown / Northern Liberties | $50 - $75 | Rowhomes and flats, dog-friendly side streets |
| Queen Village / Bella Vista | $50 - $72 | Rowhomes near the Italian Market and the river |
| Fairmount | $48 - $70 | Walking distance to Fairmount Park, some yards |
| East Passyunk | $45 - $68 | Rowhome blocks, family-friendly, some yards |
| Manayunk / Chestnut Hill | $45 - $68 | Single-family homes, fenced yards, suits large dogs |
Large breeds tend to do better at the outer-neighborhood end, where there is a fenced yard. You can browse dog sitters in Philadelphia by area and read each sitter's rate before you message them.
Budget for a five-day workweek
Say you are away Monday to Friday. Here are three ways to cover five days, using the bands above. The fee column is what a typical platform's 11% to 15% owner service fee would add on top of the sitter's rate.
| Plan | Sitter total | Typical platform fee | You pay with a fee | You pay on Petme |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Two drop-ins a day, 10 visits at $15 - $25 | $150 - $250 | $16.50 - $37.50 | $166.50 - $287.50 | $150 - $250 |
| Boarding, 5 nights at $45 - $80 | $225 - $400 | $24.75 - $60 | $249.75 - $460 | $225 - $400 |
| House sitting, 5 nights at $50 - $100 | $250 - $500 | $27.50 - $75 | $277.50 - $575 | $250 - $500 |
A single example makes the fee easier to see. Five nights of boarding at $60 a night is $300, and a typical platform's fee on that would be $33 to $45. On Petme the owner service fee is $0, so the sitter's $300 is the whole bill.
Drop-ins are the lowest total, but they leave the dog alone overnight. If your dog is fine with that, they are the sensible pick for a short working week. If not, boarding is the cheaper of the two overnight options in most neighborhoods.
What moves prices in Philadelphia
Rowhomes shape the routine. The Healthy Rowhouse Project says 70 percent of Philadelphia's housing units are rowhomes, according to Philadelphia magazine. Many dogs have no private yard to use, so the standard daily service is a drop-in or a walk instead of a yard let-out.
Parks are leash-only. The city requires dogs on a six-foot or shorter leash on Parks & Recreation property, with exceptions for fenced dog runs and a ban in posted animal-free areas, per the city's dog regulations page. A short visit therefore means a leashed walk on the block or in the park, not off-leash running, so a high-energy dog may need a longer walk than a visit allows.
Travel weeks fill up too. Thanksgiving week, the stretch from Christmas to New Year and the summer Shore getaways keep boarding tight. Sitters book out early in those windows, and the cost of waiting is usually a smaller choice of sitters. The holiday pet sitting guide covers when to book.
Winter is the wild card. A nor'easter between December and March can cancel flights and stretch a trip by a night or two, so ask your sitter up front whether they can extend if your return slips.
Boarding or a sitter at your house
Boarding costs less per night, $45 to $80 against $50 to $100, because the dog goes to the sitter and a sitter can host more than one. House sitting keeps your dog in a place they know, which matters for anxious or older dogs and for homes with more than one pet. The in-home care versus boarding guide goes through the trade-offs. To compare local options, look at dog boarding in Philadelphia and house sitting in Philadelphia.
FAQ: Philadelphia dog sitting prices
What are dog boarding prices in Philadelphia?
Dog boarding in Philadelphia runs $45 to $80 a night on Petme. Rittenhouse Square and Center City sit at the upper end, and Manayunk, Chestnut Hill and East Passyunk run lower. The sitter sets the rate, and you see it on their profile before you book.
What are typical dog sitting rates in Philadelphia?
Typical rates depend on the service. A drop-in visit is $15 to $25, a walk is $20 to $32 an hour, boarding is $45 to $80 a night and house sitting is $50 to $100 a night. Pick the service your dog needs first, then compare sitters within that band.
How much does a dog sitter cost per hour?
A dog walker in Philadelphia costs $20 to $32 an hour, and shorter walks cost less than the full hourly figure. A drop-in visit is a separate service at $15 to $25 per visit. Overnight care is priced per night rather than per hour.
How much does dog boarding cost for a week?
Seven nights of boarding in Philadelphia comes to $315 to $560 at the $45 to $80 nightly band. The total depends on the neighborhood and the sitter's own rate. On Petme there is no owner service fee added, so the sitter's total is the bill.
How much does pet sitting cost per day?
Two drop-ins a day cost $30 to $50, using the $15 to $25 visit band. Overnight care costs $45 to $80 a night for boarding and $50 to $100 for house sitting. A rowhome dog that is fine alone between visits is usually the cheapest to cover.
Where to go next
Booking happens in the Petme app, not on the web. To see sitters before you download it, start with pet sitters in Philadelphia, and read the questions to ask a pet sitter before you message one. Every sitter is ID verified and background checked, and the Petme Protection Plan can contribute up to $22,000 toward eligible vet costs.
