TrustedHousesitters Review [2024]: House and Pet Sitting for Free Lodging

TrustedHousesitters, also called THS, is the go-to house sitting platform for tens of thousands of pet owners, animal lovers, and digital nomads worldwide who want affordable pet care or economical lodging while they travel. It has a beautiful, easy-to-use website and highly rated mobile apps that make signing up fast and easy.

But membership costs between $129 and $319 per year, depending on the plan. Remember that this isn’t a side hustle where you make money but rather one where you save money on significant travel-related expenses, such as boarding your pets or finding lodging when you’re in another town or country.

Let’s jump into our TrustedHousesitters review to see how much money you may save on your travels by using this popular service.

Key takeaways:

• TrustedHousesitters is one of the largest house sitting companies worldwide, with more than 120,000 members and operations in more than 130 countries.
• You can’t earn money with TrustedHousesitters but can save on lodging when traveling.
• Memberships for TrustedHousesitters cost between $129 and $319 per year.
• 24/7 veterinary consultations and some forms of insurance are available on certain membership plans.
• House and pet-sitting responsibilities can include cleaning the home, feeding pets, and taking pets for walks.

TrustedHousesitters: Is it worth it?

Pros	Cons
Easy-to-use website Global network with many house sitting opportunities Highly rated mobile apps for iOS and Android devices 24/7 vet line with certain memberships Sitter accident and third-party liability insurance with certain memberships	Costs between $129 and $319 per year Sitters may find it hard to get started without testimonials/reviews Popular locations are highly competitive
Our verdict: TrustedHousesitters is a legit (not a scam) pet and house sitting site that can help you find nearly-free accommodation in many popular locations worldwide. You can’t make money using TrustedHousesitters because you actually pay a membership fee to use it. However, the money you may save on lodging can easily range into thousands of dollars, depending on how much you travel. Be aware that it can be challenging to get started because homeowners like to see users with reviews.

What is TrustedHousesitters?

TrustedHousesitters is a popular pet and house sitting website that acts as an intermediary between two groups of people:

1. People looking for someone to pet sit and house sit for them
2. People looking to pet sit and house sit while traveling

The TrustedHousesitters company has been quite successful since it was founded in 2010 by Andy Peck and Rachel Martin. After more than a decade of growth, TrustedHousesitters became one of the world's most well-known house sitting companies.

TrustedHousesitters operates in more than 130 countries, including Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the U.S., and throughout European countries.

How much can you earn with TrustedHousesitters?

You can’t necessarily make any money with TrustedHousesitters because you don’t get paid to house sit or pet sit.

Instead, the appeal of this house sitting service is that:

• As a homeowner: You can get nearly free pet care and have someone watch your house while you’re gone.
• As a traveler: You can pet or home sit and cut out the cost of lodging.

Let’s break down a potential scenario to see if TrustedHousesitters is worth using for you as a traveler who wants to pet and/or home sit.

After creating a free account, we were able to look at available house sitting opportunities worldwide. We found a sitter was needed close to Auckland, New Zealand, from May 25, 2023, to June 22, 2023.

The listing featured a four-bedroom, two-bathroom home in Parakai with high-speed Wi-Fi internet. Responsibilities included looking after a cat named Snapper and keeping the house clean and tidy. So you get four weeks’ worth of lodging in a giant home in a cool part of the world.

And if you’re a pet lover, you get the bonus of hanging out with a nice-looking kitty. All for the annual price of $129 to $319, depending on your chosen plan. Compare that with Airbnbs in the area on the exact dates featuring homes with four bedrooms and two bathrooms.

You’re looking at over $2,500 per month, with some homes reaching $10,000 and above.

Of course, you can always look for smaller homes at more affordable prices. And you don’t have to use Airbnb or necessarily input the same dates. But this example provides a good comparison to what you get with TrustedHousesitters, which is full use of an entire home, including its kitchen.

Considering these factors, TrustedHousesitters may open up travel opportunities that otherwise seemed out of reach because of budgetary constraints. It can help you save thousands of dollars on lodging. Additionally, having a kitchen can help you save money on eating out.

Again, you’re not making any money with TrustedHousesitters, and you must pay a membership fee. If you’re looking to earn income from a side hustle, there are other ways to learn how to make money.

How does TrustedHousesitters work?

The premise of becoming a sitter with TrustedHousesitters is simple. In general, you need to buy a membership, fill out your profile, and start applying for sitting opportunities. Paid memberships let you apply for as many sitting opportunities as you want.

You can also create an account without buying a membership. This will allow you to browse different sitting opportunities worldwide, but you can’t apply for them.

Sitting responsibilities vary by listing, but may include:

• Feeding and walking pets
• Watering plants
• Spending time with pets
• Keeping the home clean

In some situations, you may have more tasks. For example, certain pets may need medication administered. Or a homeowner may ask you to take care of the yard, shovel the driveway, or do any other small chores. But in general, the work shouldn’t be too difficult. Especially if you love pet cuddles.

The range of animals also varies by listing. Cats and dogs are common, but you may see listings for horses, chickens, fish, reptiles, birds, rabbits, and more. You can filter homes by the types of pets you’d like to care for. You can also choose “No Pets,” but there aren’t many listings without pets.

Keep in mind that sitting experiences will likely vary by listing because every homeowner is different, and so are their pets. If you reach a certain point in the application process, you can opt for scheduling a Skype or Zoom call to discuss expectations.

How to get started with TrustedHousesitters

Signing up for TrustedHousesitters is as easy as visiting the TrustedHousesitters website and filling out a short form to create your free account.

A free account only requires a name, email, and password. This lets you access listings worldwide, but you can’t apply for any opportunities.

To apply for sittings or list your home as an owner, you must purchase an annual membership.

After that, simply fill out your profile and apply for opportunities if you want to be a sitter. Or fill out your profile and create your listing if you need someone to house sit.

How to save money with TrustedHousesitters

Although you can’t earn money with TrustedHousesitters, you can save money on lodging or pet care. Lodging is often a significant expense for travelers, so TrustedHousesitters provides opportunities to erase that expense.

Getting to stay in a house and only having to take care of a pet or two and do a few minor chores sounds like a great deal for budget travelers. But you first have to qualify for sitting opportunities, which happens only if a host accepts your application.

The best way to increase your rate of accepted applications is to get homeowners to trust you. It’s a big ask for a host to let a stranger into their home to care for their furry friends. What would give you peace of mind and make you trust a sitter if you were in their shoes?

Here are three tips to increase your trustworthiness:

1. Complete verifications. TrustedHousesitters lets you complete different verification forms, including email, phone, ID, and external references. These verifications show up in your profile picture once completed.
2. Fill out your profile. More information is often better when filling out your profile. People want to get a feel for who you are, so help them with clear photos and descriptions.
3. Get good reviews. It’s up to homeowners to leave you a review after you complete a sitting. The best you can do to get good reviews is to ensure you complete all your responsibilities during the sitting and gently remind owners to leave a review. Getting reviews is likely the most challenging hurdle to overcome as a beginner.

How to get good reviews on TrustedHousesitters

There’s no guarantee you’ll get a good review on TrustedHousesitters, whether you’re a sitter or an owner. It simply comes down to whether the other person had a good experience and left a review.

You can’t force someone to leave a review. But it likely doesn’t hurt to give someone a gentle nudge toward leaving a review if you think the experience went well. If the experience felt off for some reason, maybe avoid reminding the other person about writing anything because getting a negative review can hurt your progress.

Apart from trying to get someone to leave a review, there’s only so much you can do to make the experience good for everyone involved.

As a sitter, you can:

• Follow all directions about taking care of the pets and the home
• Communicate clearly with owners and respond quickly to notifications

As an owner, you can:

• Leave detailed instructions about sitter responsibilities in a welcome guide and discuss responsibilities through messages and video chats
• Communicate clearly with sitters and respond quickly to notifications

And, of course, both sitters and owners can interact in a friendly manner with each other. This includes during the initial application process and during the actual sitting phase.

How to stay safe while working for TrustedHousesitters

Everyone on TrustedHousesitters is likely a stranger to you, but here are some tips to help keep you safe as a sitter or owner:

• Learn about the home and the pets in conversations with the owner
• Choose a plan with insurance
• Choose a plan with 24/7 vet consultation
• Work with U.S.-based sitters, as they’re required to complete background checks
• Ask if homes have cameras installed
• Research areas for crime rates before applying for a sitting position
• Work with sitters who have completed all available verifications
• Work with sitters who have good reviews
• Check past reviews about sitters and owners

Alternatives to TrustedHousesitters

TrustedHousesitters provides relatively cheap opportunities for someone to take care of your pets or for you to have lodging as you travel. But if you don’t think you’ll travel enough for the membership fee to be worth it, compare TrustedHousesitters to other side hustle options.

	TrustedHousesitters	Rover	Uber Eats
Services involved	Pet sitting House sitting	Pet boarding Pet sitting House sitting Dog walking Dog training Doggy day care Drop-in visits	Food delivery
Sign-up cost	$129 to $319 per year	$35 profile review fee	None
Requirements	Create your profile Buy a membership Complete email, phone, ID, and external references verifications	Create your profile Set your services, rates, and preferences Request testimonials Pass a safety quiz Complete a background check	Use an eligible four-door vehicle Have a valid U.S. driver’s license Have at least one year of licensed driving experience (three if under 25) Submit required documentation Complete an online screening
Potential income	None	Variable, depends on how much you work and the rates you charge	Variable, depends on how much you work and if you receive tips

TrustedHousesitters focuses a lot on providing services that cater to travelers. But if you simply want some side gig opportunities in your local community that involve pets, consider Rover instead. Rover pays you to pet sit, house sit, dog walk, board pets, take care of dogs at your home, and make drop-in visits.

Learn more in our Rover review.

If you have a vehicle and some spare time, making food deliveries with Uber Eats can make sense. Depending on where you live, you may also be able to use a motorized scooter or a bicycle. You can earn with Uber Eats by getting enough orders to make it worthwhile, so being in a busy area can be helpful for this particular side hustle.

Check out our Uber Eats review.

FAQs about TrustedHousesitters

TrustedHousesitters review: Bottom line

TrustedHousesitters may not provide income, but it saves you money in the same way that living rent-free with your parents saves you money. The idea here is saving money, as cash that’s not leaving your wallet can be useful for other things, including travel or starting a money-generating side hustle.

For more ideas to help boost your income, check out our list of the best side hustles.