I definitely am the person who has high rates. That is because I asked myself what amount of money I’m willing to take the safety risk for and what I feel my time, conversations, etc is valued at. Realistically I am a woman going into a private area with a man who is a stranger and these services are definitely under a luxury category. I also am self employed with many different streams of revenue and if I asked for any less my time would be better spent elsewhere. You also have to take into account this site does take a potion of the profit 30% to be exact in addition even though I am outcall only I usually spend a minimum of $30 sometimes more in the cost of Ubers back and forth. With those factors in mind even though I charge $200 an hour I only profit a maximum of $140. If you take time to build relationships you receive intimacy for free money wise but you’re paying in time, effort, and emotional energy. This site is catering to the needs of people who do not have that need met for one reason or another and are willing to pay and skip that. I am human and giving my emotional energy and time to open up and focus solely on their needs is valuable. At the end of the day you have to ask yourself what costs you less, going and getting your cuddle needs met in the real world by spending time making real world connections or by finding someone in your price range who can meet your needs. there are so many providers on this site at different rates you can always find someone to meet your needs without demanding others to lower their perceived value to accommodate your special needs
@lolajane just clarifying : the site takes 15%, not 30% 😊😊
My pricing is currently sliding scale- I’m a two year professional cuddler with a cuddler certification. I am currently only charging $75-$125 per hour. ☺️
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I know this is gonna be weird... but why do I get the feeling that only women are pros on this site? And why do the moderators allow women to charge insane pricing for something that's supposed to be platonic? I think that's where some of the bad vibes in this community start. If people are gonna charge $175 per hour and $1000 overnights, people are gonna think that you can do more than cuddling. But this is just outside looking in. There's no way I'm gonna spend 300 to do that research nor do I think it's worth it.
You are free to make the choice not to cuddle someone.
As long as someone else does, they can charge what they like.
This question has been addressed many times. A forum search would give you a lot of useful information on the topic.
🍿 3, 2, 1…
There was a pro on the megathread about pricing who mentioned that she got more clients looking for more when she charged lower rates. shrug
And... flagging away. We're allowed to charge what we want and the clients decide. Sure we've got some unhappy people who don't want to pay for services from women. It's the market. Doesn't matter what people think. Its economics. I'm sorry cuddles seem to be out of YOUR price range. The service is platonic. Suggesting other wise also can be seen as a forum no no.
You say, "Women Pros" I say, "Personal issues, women blaming, and bitter."
Some of us charge far less and some more...find someone in your price range Some of us live in NY and some in AZ or CO or wherever depends on a lot of things.
Plenty of people are charging under 100 an hour. Some in my area are even charging around 40 an hour. Why not give them a shot?
like @stormydaycuddle says it's basically a free market. People can charge what they want. But people can also spend what they want.
My assumption is that the people charging higher want fewer clients but more money per session, and the people charging lower want more sessions but more money overall. As a male enthusiast I am already nervous going in the session because I don't know what to expect. I can't even imagine what it's like for pros. They should be allowed to charge for their service how they want.
So because they charge a high amount thay automatically means they offer more??
Soooo…because it’s platonic it should be free? Help me understand.
🍿time! It’s a free enterprise, like it or not!
Merged into price mega thread
It's a service. I posted my opinion on it and it got removed. Honestly the moderators of this site should fix the pricing so that people know to expect a platonic experience. Because if the pricing is competitive with strip clubs, members are going to expect a similar experience.
@Calthegreat your comparison makes no sense. Professional cuddling costs roughly the same as a whole bunch of things: any association is entirely in your own head.
Secondly, there are men professionals and they are encouraged by the site. The problem is that very few attract any clients.
Thirdly, this is fundamentally a social media site. Cuddle Comfort doesn't have any say in prices, in the same way that Facebook doesn't have any say in how much people charge for services offered there.
Fourthly, clients should be expecting a platonic experience a) because cuddling is intrinsically a platonic experience (parents and children, soldiers comforting their dying buddies) and b) because the site has the word "platonic" plastered all over it, especially when you join.
I think it depends on how you perceive your time and knowledge towards this craft. Some people really worked hard on becoming a great listener and someone that can comfort you in any situation you bring to them.
I started at $75 on my own, then raised it to $80 when I came here due to the suggested minimum. I eventually raised it to $90 because of how much work and rent cost goes into maintaining my own office space, plus the fee we pay on here. I had nine appointments this past week, so I didn't think my price was hurting my chances at booking, although I do now wonder if I should reduce back down to $80 to increase my chances of booking more. I get a lot of profile views and my Karma speaks for itself, so I'm thinking price may be holding some potential clients back.
@lolajane, your response is amazing and just reminded me of how justified my pricing is. Between the effort involved and risks we take... I don't think I'll be pricing down after all. (Won't be pricing up either, but I feel more comfortable at $90/hr now.)
My opinion?
For cuddling/spooning/hugging? $30/hr is more than enough. I mean all you are doing is hugging your client, is not like you are performing anything magical or something
For massages/specialized services? Ok, your $150/hr is justified
For me, I am willing to pay $30/hr to cuddle, $40/hr is umm alright, and $50/hr is pushing it, anything past $55 is a no go for me if all I am looking for is a pro to cuddle only. fortunately there are pros in my area that operate within my price bracket, sure the list is not extensive but I at least appreciate that they exist.
I mean all you are doing is hugging your client, is not like you are performing anything magical or something
I'm afraid that's where you're wrong. Cuddling can and does change lives, that's pretty magical. And doing it safely and well is a skilled job. Sadly there are many untrained and inexperienced professionals out there who do not understand what they are doing. Most don't last very long, and some do real harm to themselves or others along the way.
You're also forgetting the many, many hours of unpaid work that professional cuddling involves. Clients that never happen, timewasters, preparation and aftercare for sessions that do happen, marketing, etc. It's a lot. Not to mention the expenses, for example clothes and laundry.
Professional cuddling is emotionally very demanding indeed - nobody can do more than about 20 hours a week. It also carries a fair amount of risk of various kinds. If you are not familiar with the concept of tranference I suggest you read up, it will give you a greater understanding of some of the challenges that professional cuddling involves.
It's up to each professional cuddler to decide what to charge. And obviously to each client as to how much they pay.
It's noticeable that over the last several years the average rate for professional cuddling has risen steadily, even though there is plentiful supply of keen, new professionals. Most of these new professionals quickly discover that it isn't worth it even at the newer, higher rates. Many of them are looking for easy money, and cuddling ain't it.
For me I'm not sure what I'd charge in USD, which I assume most of this discussion is in.
However, I take this very seriously, I hire a workspace, I have website and marketing costs and buy tickets for any educational events I can find.
I also will work with your mental health care provider if asked as well as chats with the client after, to help any drop in emotions after. (This happens to some clients due to the rush of happy hormones, simply, what goes up must come down) So that's time outside of the appointment.
I charge $100AUD but have been told by both clients and marketing managers that I need to charge more. I won't be doing that for as long as possible though, I do care about cost to the client.
I pay $80 an hour for a massage and they won't provide services such as linking up with your health care providers, or after care chats. 😊
@CuddleDuncan - ~applauds~ Holy smokes, well said. You summed it up PERFECTLY. I booked nine sessions one week and one of them was 11 hours long. I was grateful but a bit burnt out after. Like you said - risks, prep time... laundry, Lol.
Have seen some professional here charge 200/hr f(hell even paid one) for a session for something that requires no educational background and going to college but just empathy to share a bond and lending someone an ear. Genuine questions to pro cuddlers out here, how do you justify such exorbitant and inexcusable amount even if cc charges take 15 or 20% of the hr charge? Like what are you exactly be doing in the session to charge such an amount? I'm genuinely curious. Don't take this in a negative connotation.
@pandabear61 $200 is too much FOR YOU. It's not for others. No justification is needed. Don't like it, then find someone in your price range. Don't make it a negative connotation.
When cuddling is your primary job, it has to be able to sustain itself. Just like any other job. What you see as $200 for an hour usually is $200 for 2-3 hours (there's travel time.) As a client, you're not not looking at any overhead, but it's still there.
It's often erratic hours, last minute appts, and last minute cancellations (which aren't always reimbursed, despite the site recommendation, as accts are often closed.)
Cuddling isn't my main job. My hourly rate here isn't profitable for me to take time off from my dayjob. I'd be missing 2-3 hours (due to travel), OT, and even PTO (which is determined by my hours worked). I'm already losing money at hour #2.
My expenses: Vehicle: I have to pay for gas, tolls, parking, wear/tear/insurance, plus I still have a loan. Accessories: clothing, candles, oils, snacks, breath fresheners, music, and a bag to carry everything. Misc.: laptop, biz license, taxes, tax professional ($25/month plus returns), cash to my safe contact person.
Other paid cuddlers will have other expenses, like a babysitter, rent or traveling fees. It's totally up to them how and why they price. Justifying isn't required.
but just empathy to share a bond and lending someone an ear.
Professional cuddling involves vastly more than that. Start by reading up on the concept of transference. Better still, do one of the training courses.
And before you all come at me with the economy and just find cheaper jabs understand I'm well aware of every counter point because I've used them on my own brain 😅.
This is mostly just a lamenting and venting post, I remember a few years ago when the average price for Texas in general was 60 to 80 an hour. Which was the going rate for say something like a massage, which made a lot of sense to me because you're spending an hour or more while a person is using their talent or skill in some way to provide a service. I look around different states and area and notice the average for most other places is still around that range $60-80 an hour for a cuddle session. However here in Texas it's gotten quite out of hand in my opinion the average now seems to be 125-150 an hour for a pro with zero reviews who just joined the site and claims no experience or prior work of the sort.
Don't get me wrong I don't necessarily believe you have to have training or experience to be a great cuddler, and I understand a person has every right to charge what they feel they are worth. However here is the cruz of the issue I think. I see new pro cuddlers joined the site set their original price for 70 or 80 an hour The following day they bumped their price to 100 or all the way to 150 an hour because they see many other people doing the same thing. And I assume they think why I don't want to miss out on that extra money that I could be charging an hour and so they adjust their price accordingly. They stay on the site for a few weeks never get any reviews and then leave the site and deactivate their profiles. And I'm just wondering if people are pricing themselves out of getting booked because a lot of clients here aren't willing to pay that high mark for an unknown?
I don't know I know this is longer than I intended to post and I know ultimately it won't really have an impact on anyone or anything. I'm aware people become aware of this particular field, niche, service, whatever people view this as and jump on expecting to make a decent amount of money for something they enjoy in regular life and don't really get a proper introduction to it or have a sense of longevity.
Rant over.
If they deactivate instead of lowering their prices, I think they were here for the wrong reasons. 🤷♀️
Awesome one of these threads
This thread might get moved to the professional forum section,
But I believe with @INurturePeace that if they rather leave the site than lower their prices to get clients, they were here for that wrong reasons and they wouldn’t have made it anyway