Rover Review: A Side Hustle App For Dog People

Pet sitting can be a fun experience for animal lovers, as well as a profitable side hustle. But it can be challenging to find enough interested pet owners in your area to find consistent work. 

That's where apps like Rover come in. Rover is a unique side hustle app that allows you to get paid to hang out with other people’s pets.

This Rover review takes an in-depth look at the money-making side of the Rover platform. We'll share the key features, pricing, pros and cons, and let you know who Rover is best suited for. If the idea of getting paid to take care of pets sounds enticing, you've come to the right place. 

What Is Rover?

Rover is a gig economy app that's designed to connect pet owners with pet sitters and dog walkers, who are able to offer a wide range of services. The platform has been around since 2011. Currently, Rover operates in 10 countries, including the U.S., Canada, the U.K., and some European countries. Since its founding, over 2 million users have booked a pet sitter through the app. 

What Does It Offer?

Pet owners and pet sitters will find Rover to be very useful. But for the purposes of this review, I will focus on Rover's capability as a side hustle app, and its ability to help aspiring pet sitters and dog walkers make some extra money. With that in mind, let's take a closer look at some of Rover's key features. 

Multiple Ways To Take Care Of Pets

When you join Rover as a pet sitter or dog walker, you aren’t limited to a single type of service. If you're interested, you can offer any the following services: 

• Boarding
• House Sitting
• Drop in Visits
• Doggy Day Care
• Dog Walking

Rover's flexibility allows you to stick with the services you are most comfortable with. For example, if you don’t feel comfortable watching pets in someone else's home, you can choose to offer boarding services at your home instead. 

In addition, you can pick the types of pets you are willing to work with. For example, you can choose to work with dogs or cats. Plus, you can select a size limit for pets you are willing to watch. 

The Rover Guarantee

If a pet needs to go to the vet for an emergency while under your care, the Rover will reimburse you through their Rover Guarantee. Depending on the situation, you can get reimbursed for up to $25,000 in vet care bills when you have to take an animal you are watching to the vet. Note that the Rover Guarantee is not the same as pet insurance, as eligible claims are usually paid directly from Rover. 

Beyond the Rover Guarantee, you’ll have access to support around the clock. If you have a medical question about the pet you are watching, you can get in contact with vet assistance.

Set Your Own Rates

Rover lets you set your own prices, which is a nice perk for any side hustle. But before you ask for the moon, consider doing some research to find out what the average pet sitting costs are in the area. You’ll likely want to set prices that keep you competitive with other pet sitters in the area. 

In addition to setting your own rates, you also have the option to accept or reject pet sitting gigs. With this power over your schedule, you’ll stay flexible to meet your other obligations. 

Fast Payment

After you complete a service, you’ll get paid by Rover within 48 hours. In order to get paid, you’ll need to provide your Social Security Number and bank account information. From there, the funds are automatically transferred to your account via direct deposit.

Are There Any Fees?

Rover charges a 20% to 25% commission, which is a definite downside of the app. The standard 20% commission applies to sitters who aren’t signed up for RoverGO. If you sign up for RoverGO, the platform prioritizes your profile in an effort to get you more gigs. But the catch is that anyone who signs up for RoverGO will face a 25% commission. 

How Does Rover Compare?

Rover.com is one of the best side hustle ideas for animal lovers, but it isn’t the only way to earn money as a pet sitter. That said, Rover makes it easier to connect with potential customers. 

Of course, you can always use Rover alongside the more traditional approach to a pet sitting business, through word of mouth and flyers in your neighborhood.  

When compared to other gig economy apps, Rover is more limited than some of your other choices. For example, you can offer a much wider range of services on freelancing platforms like Upwork and Fiverr.  

If you prefer to stick with a side hustle that involves pets, Sniffspot is an option that allows you to rent out space, such as your yard, for dog owners to bring their pets. You’ll need to own a space where pets can enjoy distraction-free off-leash time. Pet owners can rent the space from you through the Sniffspot platform.

How Do I Open An Account?

Getting started with Rover is easy. To open an account, head to Rover.com and click the ‘Become a Sitter’ button. Rover will ask you to choose one or more services you would like to provide.

From there, be prepared to provide an email, name, birthday, pet preferences, calendar availability, and choose a payment method. Importantly, you’ll also need to pay for a $25 background check and complete a profile about your pet car experience. If possible, add some photos of you with pets. 

Once you have completed the setup process, your application will be forwarded to Rover to be approved. According to Rover, someone from their Profile team may reach out for additional information, if required.

One downside is that it can take 10-20 business days for your profile to be approved. 

Is It Safe And Secure?

Rover uses Stripe as a payment processor, which is designed to keep payment information safe. While Rover makes the effort to protect your payment information, there are other parts of pet sitting that are out of the Rover's control.

For example, some pets are unpredictable. And unfortunately, it’s possible to get hurt when watching an unpredictable pet. It's one of the reasons Rover recommends offering a Meet & Greet to make sure you are comfortable with the pet before committing to a service. 

How Do I Contact Rover?

You can get in touch with Rover by connecting with their customer support team via the platform. Support is available 24/7 to pet sitters. Based on the thousands of 5-star reviews on Trustpilot, you should expect to find a good experience through the platform 

Is It Worth It?

If you want to work with pets and have enough room in your schedule, Rover is worth signing up for, although the commission fee of up to 25% is rather steep. You may be able keep more money in your pocket by sourcing your own clients. There is also the long approval process of up to 20 business days when you join.

But even if the fees are a deterrent and you decide to use other means to find pet sitting clients, you can still use Rover as a way to find additional work and fill gaps in your schedule. 

Check out Rover here >>

Rover Features