Is Pawshake available across all of Australia?

Pawshake operates across Australia including in metro and some regional areas. Availability depends on how many sitters have signed up in a given suburb — in less dense areas, the pool may be small or empty.

Does Pawshake do police checks in Australia?

Pawshake does not require an ACIC National Police Check as a standard step. Sitters complete ID verification and provide references, but criminal history screening is not a mandatory part of Pawshake's Australian onboarding.

How does Pawshake handle insurance?

Pawshake has insurance provisions that vary by country. Australian owners should confirm the specific coverage terms directly with Pawshake before booking an overnight or extended stay, as the policy details for Australia may differ from the global product description.

What is the average cost of a Pawshake booking in Australia?

Pawshake sitters set their own rates, and there is no disclosed national average. Rates in Australian metros are broadly comparable to other platforms for the same service type, though individual sitters vary widely. The 19% commission paid by sitters shapes how they price their services.

Is Pawshake better than Mad Paws?

Neither platform is universally better. Mad Paws requires a police check (Pawshake doesn't) and has a larger Australian sitter pool. Pawshake has a global footprint that's useful for owners who travel internationally. For owners who want the most rigorous Australian-specific verification, TruePath's three-step process goes further than either.

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Is Pawshake Legit? What Australian Pet Owners Should Know (2026)

Pawshake is a legitimate, established platform operating in 25+ countries including Australia. Here's what Australian owners should know about how it works, what verification it does, and when it makes sense to use.

By atticus · 8 min read · Last updated 17 May 2026

Pawshake is a legitimate pet sitting and dog walking platform — it's not a scam, its sitters are real people, and its payment system is genuine. The questions Australian owners should actually be asking are about how Pawshake's verification compares to Australian standards, what its 19% commission model means for sitter quality and pricing, and when a global platform designed for 25+ countries is the right tool for an Australian booking.

What Pawshake actually is

Pawshake was founded in Belgium in 2013 and has expanded to operate in more than 25 countries. In Australia, it offers dog walking, dog sitting, home-boarding, and drop-in visit services. Sitters set their own rates and are paid through the platform after a booking is completed.

The platform is independently operated — it is not owned by Mad Paws, Rover, or any other Australian or US competitor. It has been operating continuously since 2013 and has processed millions of bookings globally.

The short answer to "is Pawshake legit?" is: yes. It is a real company with real sitters, secure payments, and genuine customer support. The more useful question is whether it's the right platform for an Australian owner's specific situation.

How Pawshake verifies sitters

Pawshake's sitter verification uses the following steps:

Identity verification — sitters upload government ID, which is verified by the platform
Profile references — sitters provide references that are displayed on their profile
Review history — once a sitter has completed bookings, their review record is visible to owners

What Pawshake does not require as a standard step:

An ACIC National Police Check or equivalent criminal history check
Platform-conducted calls to references (references are submitted by the sitter, not independently verified)
An in-person interview with a platform representative

The absence of a police check is the most significant gap for Australian owners accustomed to platforms that require one. Pawshake's verification is primarily identity-based — it confirms you're dealing with a real person, but not what that person's background or history looks like.

Pawshake does encourage owners to conduct a meet-and-greet with a new sitter before the first stay, which places some of the evaluation burden on the owner. For an initial overnight or extended booking, this is a sensible precaution regardless of platform.

The 19% commission model and what it means for you

Sitters on Pawshake pay approximately 19% commission to the platform from each booking. This is how Pawshake generates revenue — owners pay the listed rate, and the platform retains approximately 19% of that before passing the remainder to the sitter.

What this means in practice:

Sitter pricing decisions. A sitter who wants to take home $60 per night needs to list their rate at roughly $74 to account for the 19% commission. Some sitters absorb this and list lower rates to stay competitive; others price it into their listed rate. As an owner, you may see different rate strategies across sitters on the platform.

Sitter turnover risk. A 19% commission is a meaningful cut for sitters who rely on the income. Sitters who find the commission model financially unattractive may move to other platforms or reduce their Pawshake availability. Owners who build relationships with specific sitters may find those sitters less consistently available over time.

Comparison with other platforms. Platforms that charge owners a checkout fee (like Mad Paws) rather than a sitter-side commission may show lower listed rates. Platforms like TruePath that use an all-in model quote the total cost upfront, making comparisons easier.

The global platform question

Pawshake is a Belgian-founded platform designed to work in 25+ countries simultaneously. This is a genuine strength in some ways and a limitation in others.

Where global design works well: If you travel internationally and want to use a single platform to find sitters in multiple countries, Pawshake's international footprint is genuinely useful. The app and booking flow are consistent across markets. If you've had a good experience with Pawshake overseas and want to use it at home, the continuity is real.

Where global design creates limitations for Australian owners:

Verification standards. Pawshake's verification framework is calibrated to work across 25+ countries with very different legal and background-check infrastructure. In Australia, the ACIC National Police Check is the standard for criminal history screening — but implementing that as a mandatory step globally isn't feasible, so Pawshake doesn't require it in any market. Owners who specifically want an ACIC check will need to use a platform that mandates it.

Pricing benchmarks. Pawshake doesn't publish Australian market averages in the way a domestic platform would. Sitters set their own rates, and what's "reasonable" in Sydney is calibrated by the individual sitter rather than a platform-wide standard.

Customer support timezone. Pawshake's support team operates across multiple countries. Response times during Australian-hours queries can vary.

When Pawshake makes sense for Australian owners

You have an existing Pawshake sitter you trust. If you've used a Pawshake sitter before and your dog knows them, there's no strong reason to disrupt that relationship. Platform continuity matters less than sitter continuity for your dog.

You travel internationally and want one platform. If you regularly use Pawshake in Europe or Asia for your dog when you're overseas, using it domestically gives you a consistent experience.

Your area has limited alternatives. In some Australian suburbs, the pool of available sitters on any platform is thin. If a trusted sitter in your area is on Pawshake and not on other platforms, that's where you book.

You're comfortable with a meet-and-greet as your primary vetting step. Pawshake's model places more responsibility on owners to evaluate sitters through the initial meeting. If you're confident in your ability to assess a sitter in person and the review record looks good, Pawshake's lighter platform-side vetting may not feel like a gap.

When to consider an alternative

If a police check is non-negotiable. For owners who want to know their dog's walker has passed an ACIC National Police Check, Pawshake is not the right platform. Mad Paws and TruePath both require one as a standard step.

If your dog has specific needs. Dogs with medical conditions, reactive behaviour, or specific handling requirements benefit from a sitter who has been assessed for those capabilities — not just identity-verified. Platforms with in-person interviews (TruePath) can confirm sitter capability more thoroughly.

If you want all-in pricing visibility. Pawshake's listed rate is close to what you pay, but the commission structure means pricing can vary in ways that are harder to benchmark. TruePath's all-in pricing model gives a clear national average to compare against.

If you want GPS tracking on every walk. Pawshake doesn't include GPS as a platform standard. Some sitters use tracking apps; many don't. If live tracking matters, you'll need a platform where it's built in.

Is Pawshake safe?

Pawshake is a safe platform in the sense that it is legitimate, has a genuine vetting step (ID verification), and uses a review system that helps surface problematic sitters over time. It is not a scam, and its payment system is secure.

The safety question Australian owners should ask is whether Pawshake's verification bar meets their own threshold. For owners who are satisfied with an ID-verified sitter whose reviews look good, Pawshake is a reasonable choice. For owners who want an ACIC police check, a platform-conducted reference call, or an in-person assessment, a different platform will better meet that need.

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