We staff nationally
10,000+
Placements
Since 2010
Over a decade of global household staffing experience across eight international offices.
Multilingual Recruiting
Team
Fluent in English, French, Spanish, Arabic, and Tagalog for sourcing candidates across global markets.
96%
Placement Success Rate
Formal Childcare Qualifications Verified
NNEB, NCT training, neonatal certificates, and documented HNW/UHNW family experience all thoroughly checked.
Why choose Morgan & Mallet as your Governess Agency?
Our founders built this business from the staff side.
Morgan Richez worked as a butler and chauffeur for UHNW families. Laurine Mallet worked as a nanny in private households. They understand how educational roles work in homes with large teams of household staff.
We maintain relationships with European-trained candidates.
Our offices in London, Paris, and Geneva give us direct access to French, British, and Spanish governesses looking for placements in the US market. Most US agencies don’t have these networks.
Our ATS tracks educational qualifications further than basic childcare.
We filter for: teaching certifications, language fluency levels, private school preparation expertise, and comfort with travel between different properties.
Quality control makes sure credentials are always checked.
Eric Rios in our New York office checks every profile, making sure teaching certifications are valid, language assessments completed, references contacted, and criminal records checked.
Why Wealthy Families
Hire Governesses
Our co-founder Morgan Richez explained the increasing demand we see: “Wealthy families are really concerned about education and language. They hire a governess especially for education. It’s a must for them to find a good school and a good governess for children between 5 and 12 years.”
Most governesses work after school (typically 3 PM – 7 PM) and weekends.
While your children are at school during the day, the governess prepares lessons, researches activities, and might coordinate with tutors or music instructors.
What you'll pay: $70,000 - $130,000+ Annually
Data from our annual household staff salaries report specifically in the governess agency section of the business shows US salaries range from $70,000 for entry-level candidates to $130,000+ for governesses with formal teaching certifications, fluency in multiple languages, and experience in UHNW households.
What European-Trained
Governesses Provide
Why European education remains highly valued:
French governesses
emphasise manners and discipline.
Morgan described the French approach: “In France, education for children is strict. You need to be polite. You need to stand up at the table. You can’t leave the table until dinner is finished. You need to say thank you, say hello. As a French child, you can’t avoid this. If your parents correct you, you don’t answer back because it’s very impolite.”
British governesses focus on language
precision and elite school preparation.
Spanish governesses
provide cultural education.
For families wanting bilingual children or connections to the Spanish speaking business world, Spanish governesses bring language immersion mixed with European traditions.
To learn more about what a governess does day to day, read our governess job description.
What Makes a Strong
Governess Placement
One of our recruiters, Julie Mauro, shared feedback from a family about their successful governess placement:
“Our governess has become so much more than an educator, she’s a true part of our family. Her commitment, kindness, and constant desire to grow make her presence invaluable to our child’s development and to our family’s daily life.
Since welcoming our governess, life at home has changed for the better. She’s become part of our rhythm, our values, and most importantly, our child’s lives.”
This outcome needs specific capabilities we verify during the selection process.
Balancing education
with emotional connection.
Coordinating with parents
on educational philosophy.
Discretion about family
dynamics and children's challenges.
Integration with existing
household staff.
In households with housekeepers, chefs, and nannies, governesses need clear boundaries. Can she ask for snacks from the chef for the children?
Does she coordinate transport with your driver or handle it herself? Who does she report to, you directly or your house manager?
Our experience shows that placements succeed when these boundaries are established before the governess starts in the role.
Flexible Schedules That
Challenge Standard Candidates
One of our recruiters, Lia Correa, described a difficult governess placement in Versailles, France:
“The client had very specific requirements, particularly regarding the schedule: one week part-time, followed by one week full-time, with flexibility needed to travel with the family during school holidays.
This irregular rhythm made the role less appealing to many candidates, especially those looking for stability or a more traditional working pattern.”
Families with multiple properties or who travel a lot need governesses comfortable with schedule changes. Morgan confirmed: “When you work with VVIP clients, many governesses travel with the family.”
We filter for candidates who’ve successfully managed different schedules and travel requirements in previous placements.
How We Verify Educational
Credentials and Teaching Ability
We conduct 90-minute interviews
which include educational philosophy discussions.
We verify language fluency beyond conversation.
For governesses marketing themselves as French or Spanish instructors, we assess whether they can actually teach grammar, correct pronunciation, and explain language concepts to children. Being able to speak a language conversationally is very different from being able to teach it.
We check references with education-specific questions.
When we call former employers, we ask: “How did the governess handle the child’s frustration when lessons became difficult? Describe the child’s academic progress during the governess’s time with your family.”
This tells us whether candidates actually improve children’s learning outcomes or just supervise homework.
Why This Role Faces
Candidate Shortages
Morgan explains the supply challenge: “We get so many requests, but we miss a lot of candidates for governess positions. There’s not enough candidates for the positions. We negotiate with clients to offer very good conditions, a good job with good compensation, to attract the best candidates.”
Governess roles make up only 3.71% of childcare specialists in our database, making competition for qualified candidates strong.
Governess Salaries
in the US Market
Annual salary: $70,000 - $130,000+
Factors that increase compensation
- European teaching certification or formal education degree: +$10,000-15,000
- Native fluency in French, Spanish, or another target language: +$8,000-12,000
- Experience preparing children for elite private school admissions: +$10,000-15,000
- Willingness to travel between multiple properties: +$8,000-10,000
- Specialised subject expertise (advanced mathematics, classical languages, music theory): +$10,000-15,000
Governess/housekeeper hybrid roles:
Some families hire governesses who also do light housekeeping duties (39.91% of governesses in our database). These roles typically pay $55,000-75,000.
Ready to Hire
a Governess?
Contact our governess agency to start your search. Our recruiters will present candidates from our database of 200,000+ household professionals, with the ability and experience to integrate into a UHNW household.