2026 Orientation Cohort — Now Open

A spare bedroom. A world
opened.

Hearth pairs traveling young adults with host families — threading language and culture through the rhythm of daily life. Morning school runs. Bedtime stories in a second tongue. Weekend hikes with someone else's children who slowly become your own.

Browse Community

1,400+

Matches Made

38

Countries

4.9★

Family Rating

✦ Hover each room to explore
🇫🇷 French · Lyon·🇩🇪 German · Munich·🇯🇵 Japanese · Osaka·🇪🇸 Spanish · Seville·🇧🇷 Portuguese · São Paulo·🇮🇹 Italian · Florence·🇰🇷 Korean · Seoul·🇳🇱 Dutch · Amsterdam·🇲🇽 Spanish · Mexico City·🇦🇺 English · Sydney·🇫🇷 French · Lyon·🇩🇪 German · Munich·🇯🇵 Japanese · Osaka·🇪🇸 Spanish · Seville·🇧🇷 Portuguese · São Paulo·🇮🇹 Italian · Florence·🇰🇷 Korean · Seoul·🇳🇱 Dutch · Amsterdam·🇲🇽 Spanish · Mexico City·🇦🇺 English · Sydney

Living Community Board

Every pin is a real person.

Browse au pair and family profiles. Click any card to read their story.

Show:
Language:Region:
Léa Moreau cover photo
✈ Au Pair
🇫🇷
Léa Moreau profile photo

Léa Moreau

Lyon, France

"Teaching their kids French over morning crêpes felt like magic."
FrenchCookingMusic
The Nakamura Family cover photo
🏠 Host Family
🇺🇸
The Nakamura Family profile photo

The Nakamura Family

Portland, OR

"Our kids now ask for sushi AND tamales at the same dinner."
JapaneseFamily2 kids
Carlos Ruiz cover photo
✈ Au Pair
🇪🇸
Carlos Ruiz profile photo

Carlos Ruiz

Seville, Spain

"They became my American family. I still call every Sunday."
SpanishSoccerCooking
The Okonkwo Family cover photo
🏠 Host Family
🇺🇸
The Okonkwo Family profile photo

The Okonkwo Family

Austin, TX

"We wanted our roots to travel with our children."
IgboCulture3 kids
Hana Yoshida cover photo
✈ Au Pair
🇯🇵
Hana Yoshida profile photo

Hana Yoshida

Kyoto, Japan

"Every morning school run was a Japanese lesson disguised as a walk."
JapaneseArtsTea
The Andersons cover photo
🏠 Host Family
🇺🇸
The Andersons profile photo

The Andersons

Minneapolis, MN

"We gave Max a room and he gave our daughter a worldview."
GermanMusic1 kid
Amara Diallo cover photo
✈ Au Pair
🇸🇳
Amara Diallo profile photo

Amara Diallo

Dakar, Senegal

"I came to learn English. I left having taught them how to really listen."
FrenchWolofMusic
The Petrov Family cover photo
🏠 Host Family
🇺🇸
The Petrov Family profile photo

The Petrov Family

Chicago, IL

"Hearth found us someone who felt like family from week one."
RussianLiterature2 kids

The Process

From profile to first dinner in four steps.

We've placed 1,400+ au pairs. Every match starts the same way — with careful listening.

🏡
01

Tell us about your household

Families share their home, language goals, and what kind of cultural exchange they're dreaming of. Au pairs describe where they're from, what they love, and where they want to grow.

Average profile setup: 18 minutes.
🤝
02

Meet your curated matches

Our placement advisors hand-review every match. No algorithm decides who lives in your spare bedroom. Real humans read every profile.

3–5 curated matches within 10 days.
03

Video calls over coffee

We facilitate three structured intro calls between families and au pairs — each one designed to go deeper than small talk. You'll know by the third call.

82% of matches finalize after call two.
✈️
04

Orientation & arrival

Au pairs attend a 3-day in-person orientation in their host city. Families receive a preparation guide. Day one together starts with a shared meal, not paperwork.

Orientation cohorts run 4x per year.

Match Stories

Told in their own words, months after goodbyes.

"
"I thought I was hiring a babysitter. I found a daughter. Léa taught my kids that France isn't just a flag on a map — it's crêpe batter on a Sunday morning and a grandmother's voice on FaceTime."
Margaret Harrison photo

Margaret Harrison

Host Mother, Portland OR

✦ Matched with Léa Moreau, France
🇯🇵
"The Nakamura kids call me Onee-chan. Big sister. I didn't expect to cry at the airport."
Yuna Tanaka photo

Yuna Tanaka

Au Pair, Osaka Japan · 18 months

🇺🇸
"Our placement advisor called us three times before the match to make sure it was right. That care shows in everything Hearth does."
Dmitri Petrov photo

Dmitri Petrov

Host Father, Chicago IL · 14 months

"I arrived not knowing what 'suburban' even meant. I left knowing every neighbor by name, and understanding what community can really mean."
Carlos Ruiz photo

Carlos Ruiz

Au Pair, Seville Spain · 16 months

"Hearth didn't just find us childcare. They found us a window into another world — and our kids pressed their noses against it every single day."
Adaeze Okonkwo photo

Adaeze Okonkwo

Host Mother, Austin TX · 12 months

Featured Event

Spring Orientation 2026

📅

April 12–14, 2026

3-day in-person orientation

📍

8 cities simultaneously

NYC · SF · Chicago · Austin · Seattle + more

🎤

Guest Speaker: Dr. Priya Mehta

Author of "The Third Culture Kitchen" · Cross-cultural family researcher

👥

Limited to 40 families per city

28 seats remaining in NYC · 12 in SF

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