Live-In Nanny in South Florida: Cost & Rules 2026

What live-in nannies earn from Miami to Palm Beach, how Florida’s new minimum wage and the federal overtime rules apply, and what to plan for in a South Florida household.

In the Miami area, live-in nannies generally earn $800 to $1,500 a week, rising to $900 to $1,600 in Coral Gables, Miami Beach and on Key Biscayne, with room and board included. Florida’s minimum wage rose to $15.00 an hour on September 30, 2026, and it applies to every hour a live-in works. Live-ins are exempt from federal overtime, and Florida has no state income tax.

Hiring a live-in nanny in South Florida? We will help you structure the role before we recruit. Tell us about your household or call 1-844-626-6922.

Dream Nannies has spent 23 years placing Career Nannies and household professionals, including live-in placements across South Florida. The market here is its own. You have high-rise towers in Brickell, waterfront estates in Coral Gables’ Cocoplum and on Las Olas Isles, families who spend the winter season in Palm Beach, and international households looking for bilingual care. For the general comparison, see our guide to live-in vs. live-out nannies. This guide covers what is specific to South Florida.

How much does a live-in nanny cost in South Florida?

Each figure below comes from that area’s own page. Where a page does not publish a live-in figure, we quote what it does say.

Area	Typical live-in pay	What shapes it
Miami (Miami area)	$800–$1,500/week, room and board included	The baseline for the Miami area
Brickell	$850–$1,500/week, room and board included	High-rise living, bilingual fluency, travel
Coral Gables	$900–$1,600/week, room and board included	Bilingual nannies (Spanish-English, Portuguese-English) command $5–$8/hr over the base rate; Cocoplum estates at the top
Miami Beach	$900–$1,600/week, room and board included	Bilingual nannies command an additional $4–$8/hr; seasonal placements available
Key Biscayne	$900–$1,600/week, room and board included	Premium on discretion and multilingual fluency; staffing for seasonal or secondary properties
Pinecrest	$800–$1,400/week, room and board included	Education-focused nannies and governesses command $5–$10/hr over the base rate
Coconut Grove	$800–$1,400/week, room and board included	Bilingual premium of $4–$7/hr; estate and outdoor-lifestyle experience
Fort Lauderdale	Full-time nanny $25–$45/hr by experience, plus a live-in premium of $5,000–$10,000/yr	Las Olas Isles and Victoria Park estates
Boca Raton	Professional nannies $30–$40/hr (2026); no separate live-in figure published	A premium market within Florida, about $2–$3/hr over standard Florida rates
Palm Beach	Professional nannies $30–$40/hr (2026); no separate live-in figure published	Peak winter residency (November through April); we match nannies who are flexible with travel

Several things push a rate higher here:

Bilingual fluency. Spanish-English is our most requested placement in Brickell and Coral Gables, and we also place Portuguese-English and French-English nannies in Miami. In Brickell, bilingual nannies command a premium of $4 to $8 per hour above the base rate.
Infant and household-manager skills. Our Miami and Palm Beach salary guides put the top of the range with infant specialists, bilingual nannies and those taking on household-manager responsibilities.
Travel. Our Florida rates scale with specialized education, bilingual fluency and extensive travel requirements.

Beyond the salary, budget roughly 10% for employer taxes, plus meals, utilities and the space itself. Our Fort Lauderdale guide notes that top candidates expect health insurance, paid vacation (2–3 weeks), guaranteed hours and mileage reimbursement.

What is the minimum wage for a live-in nanny in Florida?

$15.00 an hour, effective September 30, 2026. That is the final $1 step in the schedule written into Florida’s Constitution (Article X, Section 24). From September 30, 2027, the state calculates an inflation adjustment each year, and each adjusted rate takes effect the following January 1.

The minimum applies to every hour worked, live-in or not. Pay at South Florida levels is well above it. The risk is hours nobody counted. A $1,050 weekly salary covers at most 70 hours of work before the effective rate falls below $15.00. Evening “quick favors” add up, which is one more reason to track hours.

Do live-in nannies get overtime in Florida?

Florida has no state overtime-pay requirement (see the U.S. Department of Labor’s state minimum wage table), so federal rules apply:

Live-out nannies must be paid time and a half for hours over 40 in a workweek.
Live-in nannies employed directly by a family are exempt from federal overtime, but they must receive at least minimum wage (in Florida, $15.00) for every hour worked.
The family must record actual hours. Any agreement to exclude meal periods, sleep and off-duty time should be in writing, and interruptions count as hours worked.

This matters for seasonal households. Under DOL guidance, a nanny only counts as live-in if she resides on your premises permanently or for extended periods, meaning five days a week (120+ hours) or five consecutive days or nights. Someone hired to cover a couple of weeks at your winter home does not qualify, and neither does someone working 24-hour shifts without living there. Both are owed overtime. See DOL Fact Sheet #79B.

How does room and board work in a live-in salary?

Room and board are part of the live-in package rather than a cash addition to it. When a live-in role is offered at a given salary, that is the salary, and housing and meals come with the position. It is why a live-in figure can read lower than live-out pay for similar hours — the nanny is not paying South Florida rent.

Federal law separately allows an employer to credit the reasonable cost of meals and lodging toward minimum wage under narrow conditions, with records to support it. That is a minimum-wage rule and is not how we structure placements. Set out the salary and the living arrangement clearly in the written agreement, and ask your payroll provider how lodging and meals are treated for tax purposes.

Does Florida’s lack of state income tax simplify nanny payroll?

Somewhat. Florida’s Constitution bars a state tax on residents’ personal income, so there is no state income tax to withhold. Everything else still applies:

You are a household employer. Your nanny is a W-2 employee, not a 1099 contractor.
Federal taxes: once you pay a household employee $3,000 or more in cash wages in 2026, you withhold and pay Social Security and Medicare taxes and file a W-2. Federal unemployment tax applies once you pay $1,000 or more in cash wages in any calendar quarter. You are not required to withhold federal income tax unless you and your nanny agree to it (IRS Publication 926).
Florida reemployment tax: household employers who pay $1,000 or more in cash wages in a calendar quarter must register and pay Florida reemployment tax.

We refer families to GTM Payroll Services, who specialize in household employment.

What housing should you provide a live-in nanny in South Florida?

Live-in placements require a private room and bathroom for the employee. What that looks like depends on the home.

Estates (Coral Gables, Pinecrest, Las Olas Isles, Palm Beach): a guest house, staff suite or separate wing works best. Distance is what makes a live-in arrangement last.

High-rise residences (Brickell, Miami Beach, Sunny Isles): space is tighter, so privacy has to be built in. Check these before you make an offer:

A bedroom and bathroom that are hers alone, not shared with the children
Registration with building security, fob or key access, and a parking space
Clarity on which amenities she can use off-duty
A door that locks

Everywhere: reliable Wi-Fi, a car or mileage for school runs and activities, and off-duty time that stays off-duty.

Seasonal, snowbird and travel households

Many South Florida families do not live here all year. Many Palm Beach families have peak residency during the winter season (November through April). We also place seasonal nannies for Miami Beach homes and help with staffing for seasonal or secondary properties on Key Biscayne. Settle these questions before the offer:

Where she lives when you are away. Does she stay on to look after the home, travel with you, or keep her own place for the off-season?
Pay when you are away. Guaranteed pay through the off-season keeps the strongest candidates. Unpaid gaps lose them.
Travel terms: travel days, lodging, per diems and time off on the road.
Working in another state. Wage rules can change when she works outside Florida, so check with your payroll provider before extended stays elsewhere.

Hurricane season: agree the plan in writing

The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30 (National Hurricane Center). A live-in nanny’s agreement should cover:

Whether she evacuates with your family or goes to her own
Whether pay continues if you evacuate or close the house (we recommend it does)
Which storm preparation tasks, if any, are part of her role
How you will reach each other if power or cell service goes down

Her own safety and her family’s come first.

How to hire a live-in nanny in South Florida

Start with the role. Define hours, days off, the living space, seasonal travel and your hurricane plan.
Targeted search. We recruit for your neighborhood, language needs and schedule.
Screening before you meet anyone. Every candidate completes an in-depth interview with our team, structured reference checks through SkillSurvey, verification of professional experience and online presence screening. Here is what that screening covers.
Interview a short list, then hold an unpaid extended second interview: a couple of hours in your home with your children, including a look at her living space. We recommend this instead of a paid trial day.
Background check before the start date. Once you decide to move forward, a comprehensive background check is completed before she starts.
Written agreement and payroll. Hours, recordkeeping, housing, travel, storms and move-out notice go in writing, and payroll is set up with GTM.

In Miami, complex placements such as live-in positions may take 4 to 8 weeks. Every placement carries our 6-month placement guarantee, with the specific terms set out in your client agreement. For the full process, see how hiring with Dream Nannies works and our step-by-step hiring guide.

Live-In Nannies in South Florida — Frequently Asked Questions

Live-in nannies in the Miami area generally earn $800 to $1,500 a week, and $900 to $1,600 a week in Coral Gables, Miami Beach and on Key Biscayne, with room and board included in the package. Bilingual fluency, travel and household management duties push toward the top.

Florida’s minimum wage is $15.00 an hour as of September 30, 2026, and it applies to every hour a live-in nanny works. Starting with the September 30, 2027 calculation, it is adjusted annually for inflation, with each new rate taking effect the following January 1.

Florida has no state overtime law, so federal rules apply. A live-in nanny employed directly by a family is exempt from federal overtime but must be paid at least Florida’s minimum wage for all hours worked, and the family must record hours. Live-out and short-term nannies are owed time and a half over 40 hours.

Room and board are part of the live-in package rather than a cash addition to it. A live-in role offered at a given salary is that salary with housing and meals included, which is why live-in figures can read lower than live-out pay for similar hours.

No. Florida has no state income tax. You are still a household employer: at 2026 thresholds you handle Social Security and Medicare ($3,000 or more in cash wages to one employee) and federal unemployment tax ($1,000 or more in a calendar quarter), and issue a W-2. Florida reemployment tax also applies once you pay $1,000 or more in cash wages in a calendar quarter.

A private bedroom with its own bathroom at minimum. In an estate, a guest house or staff suite is ideal. In a high-rise, add building access, parking and clear amenity rules. Wi-Fi, a car or mileage, and protected off-duty time matter everywhere.

Yes, if it is agreed upfront. Put in writing where she lives while you are away, guaranteed pay through the off-season, and travel terms. Working outside Florida can change which wage rules apply, so check with your payroll provider.

In Miami, complex placements such as live-in positions may take 4 to 8 weeks from the initial consultation to a confirmed placement.

Ready to start your search?

Tell us about your home, your schedule and your season, and we will recruit and screen live-in candidates who fit — from Brickell to Boca Raton to Palm Beach. Backed by our 6-month guarantee.

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Prefer to talk it through? Call 1-844-626-6922.