Time To Pet provides business management software for pet sitters who already have clients. The Pet Sitter combines a client-facing marketplace with business tools in one subscription. Here is how the two approaches compare.
| Metric | The Pet Sitter | Time To Pet |
|---|---|---|
| What it provides | Marketplace + business tools | Business management tools only |
| Client acquisition | Built-in marketplace + SEO profile | Not included — you find clients yourself |
| Pricing model | Single flat subscription | SaaS subscription (no marketplace) |
| Typical total cost | $199/year (tools + marketplace) | $50/month SaaS + marketplace commission |
Time To Pet is a business management software platform — not a marketplace. It provides scheduling, invoicing, GPS tracking, and client communication tools for pet care businesses. What it does not do is help you find clients. Client acquisition is a separate problem you solve separately.
Tools-only SaaS works well for a specific situation: sitters who already have a full client roster and need operational software to manage their business more efficiently. If you have 20+ regular clients from referrals and your bottleneck is scheduling and invoicing — not finding clients — then dedicated business tools make sense. The gap appears for sitters who need both tools and a way to acquire new clients.
Time To Pet has built a respected product with deep operational features, especially for multi-person pet care businesses with employees. Their Solo plan starts at $50/month. Since it does not include a marketplace, most sitters using Time To Pet pair it with one or more separate client acquisition channels. For sitters using a commission marketplace alongside Time To Pet, the combined annual cost at $2,000/month revenue is $50/month SaaS + $400/month commission = $5,400/year in platform fees.
The comparison here is not just about monthly software fees — it is about total cost of operations. Time To Pet solves the tools problem but not the client acquisition problem. Most sitters need both. When you add a commission marketplace to fill the gap, costs add up quickly.
If you use Time To Pet ($50/month) alongside a 20% commission marketplace, your combined annual cost at $2,000/month in bookings is $5,400. A $199/year integrated subscription covering both tools and marketplace costs $199/year. That is a $5,201 difference — enough to fund significant business growth.
Time To Pet ($50/mo) + 20% marketplace commission on $800/mo revenue = $2,520/year in combined platform fees. An integrated subscription at $199/year = $199/year. Difference: $2,321 retained in your business.
At $2,000/month: Time To Pet + marketplace = $5,400/year. Integrated subscription = $199/year. Difference: $5,201. That is enough to invest in professional photography, a branded vehicle wrap, or local advertising.
At full-time volume: Time To Pet + marketplace = $10,200/year. Integrated subscription = $199/year. Difference: $10,001. Over 3 years, that is over $30,000 in reduced platform costs.
The two-platform approach creates a compounding cost problem. As your business grows and you book more revenue through the marketplace, your commission costs grow proportionally — but your SaaS fee stays the same on top. You are paying a fixed cost for tools AND a variable cost for clients. An integrated model with a single flat fee eliminates the variable cost entirely.
Estimate your annual platform costs based on your monthly booking revenue.
Annual combined cost (Time To Pet stack)
$7,800
Time To Pet Solo + 20% marketplace commission
Annual cost on The Pet Sitter
$199
Flat subscription, no commission
Estimated annual fee savings with The Pet Sitter
$7,601
Based on fee difference only
| Annual gross booking revenue | $36,000 |
|---|---|
| Estimated net on Time To Pet | $28,200 |
| Estimated net on The Pet Sitter | $35,801 |
Structural differences between the two business models.
Not included — separate marketplace, advertising, or referrals needed
Built-in marketplace with searchable sitter profiles
Comprehensive — scheduling, invoicing, GPS, route optimisation, team management
Booking, invoicing, GPS tracking, report cards, client CRM
SaaS subscription + separate client acquisition costs
Single flat annual subscription
Split across SaaS tool and marketplace — may not sync
Unified — one platform, one client record
Marketplace still charges commission on repeat bookings
No incremental cost per booking — repeat clients are pure margin
Strong — built for multi-person businesses
Designed for solo and small operations
Two platforms to manage, data in two places
One platform for everything
Operational depth for existing businesses
Time To Pet invests deeply in scheduling, route optimisation, and team management features. It is built for businesses that already have a client pipeline and need to run operations efficiently.
Multi-person team operations
Time To Pet's team management features — staff scheduling, permissions, payroll tracking — are designed for businesses with employees, not just solo sitters.
Software flexibility
As a dedicated tools platform, Time To Pet can focus entirely on operational software without the complexity of also running a marketplace.
Full business lifecycle
An integrated model covers the entire journey: client finds sitter in marketplace → books → sitter delivers service with professional tools → client rebooks directly. No hand-off between platforms.
Total cost reduction
One subscription replaces the need for separate SaaS tools and marketplace fees. The savings compound as your revenue grows because there is no commission component.
Growing businesses that need clients
Sitters building their client base benefit most from an integrated approach — the marketplace brings new clients while the tools help serve them professionally from day one.
Time To Pet is a genuinely good product. It has earned its reputation through years of focused development on operational tools for pet care businesses. The question is not whether Time To Pet makes good software — it does. The question is whether paying separately for tools and client acquisition is the most efficient approach, or whether an integrated platform that combines both serves you better at a lower total cost.
The choice depends on where your business is today and what problem you are trying to solve. If your bottleneck is operations, tools-only software makes sense. If your bottleneck is finding clients — or if you need both — an integrated approach may be more efficient.
If you have 20+ regular clients and your challenge is managing schedules, invoices, and routes — not finding new clients — then dedicated operational software focuses entirely on that need.
Time To Pet's team management features (staff scheduling, permissions, payroll tracking) are built for businesses with employees. If you have a team, this is a genuine advantage.
If your clients come from your own website, local networking, or strong referral chains and you do not need a marketplace, you are not paying the two-platform penalty.
Most sitters — especially those still building — need help finding clients. An integrated platform solves both problems in one subscription.
A single $199/year subscription is simpler and significantly cheaper than $50/month SaaS + commission marketplace. The gap grows as your revenue increases.
Managing clients in one system — from initial enquiry through booking, service delivery, and follow-up — reduces complexity and prevents data fragmentation.
If you have room for more clients, the marketplace component helps you grow while the tools help you serve clients professionally from the start.
The Pet Sitter is early. Our marketplace is building city by city, and our business tools are growing with each release. Time To Pet has years of mature operational software development and a loyal customer base.
If you are an established multi-person business with a full client roster and need advanced team management, staff scheduling, or deep operational features today, Time To Pet's dedicated software may serve that specific need better right now. We are honest about this.
What we are building is an integrated platform where marketplace and tools work together from day one — a single subscription that helps you find clients, serve them professionally, and grow your business without the compounding cost of separate tools and marketplace fees. If that vision aligns with where your business is heading, we would like to build this with you.
No. Time To Pet is business management software only. It provides scheduling, invoicing, GPS, and client communication tools, but it does not connect you with pet owners looking for sitters. To find clients, you need a separate marketplace, paid advertising, or your own referral network. Your total cost includes both the software fee and whatever you spend on client acquisition.
In operational features, yes. Time To Pet has been building dedicated business management tools for pet care businesses for years and offers deep functionality for scheduling, team management, and invoicing. The Pet Sitter is earlier in development but combines marketplace and tools in a single platform. The trade-off is tool depth vs integrated client acquisition.
Time To Pet's Solo plan is $50/month ($600/year). If you also use a commission marketplace like Rover (20%), the combined annual cost at $2,000/month in bookings is $600 (TTP) + $4,800 (commission) = $5,400/year. The Pet Sitter's integrated subscription is $199/year total. Over three years at this revenue level, the difference is over $15,000.
Time To Pet is the stronger choice if you already have a full client roster, do not need a marketplace for client acquisition, and want deep operational tools — especially team management for businesses with employees. If finding clients is not your problem and managing a growing team is, Time To Pet's focused software may be the better fit today.
We believe client acquisition and business tools belong together — in one platform, at one price.
Your tools. Your clients. Your business.