How it works

Looking for some extra help and a cultural exchange? Become part of the community as a Workaway host

Please accept marketing-cookies to watch this video.

There are thousands of Workawayers looking to share their skills and experience in return for a welcoming stay and a taste of life in your part of the world. The help offered could be some extra hands for gardening or DIY, creative projects with the kids, house-sitting, charity work, natural building, teaching or practising a language…the list is endless!

Hosts who are businesses or asking for help with a business activity should be offering accommodation plus at least minimum wage for each hour worked.

How do I become a Workaway host?

Create your profile

Register for free. Build a profile describing your place and the help you need.

Connect with workawayers

Workawayers contact you through the site to offer their time and skills. You can also search and contact workawayers whose profiles match your needs.

Let the world come to you

Receive new friends from all over the world. Get the help you need and learn about one another's way of life.

Join as a Host

Benefits of Workaway

Free and user-friendly

It’s completely free to be a host and we make it easy for you to create your profile and arrange stays.

Make confident decisions

Read full profiles for workawayers and use our feedback system to help you find the perfect fit.

Find help fast

View workawayers who are already in your area and find people who can start immediately.

Open up a world of learning

Discover other cultures, practice a language, learn new skills, get fresh ideas and perspectives.

24 hour support

Our multilingual Workaway team is here 24/7 to give email advice and support.

Dedicated helpers

Workawayers want to contribute to the places they visit. Find enthusiastic and committed helpers for your projects.

Any questions?

You should be able to provide a welcoming, friendly environment for Workawayers.

Workaway is primarily about cultural exchange and learning opportunities so it’s important that you interact with your visitors as much as you can and make them feel part of the family, community or team. Hosts generally are asked to provide accommodation and food in exchange for help from Workawayers of around 4-5 hours per day 5 days a week.

For hosts who are businesses (or asking for help with a business activity) free accommodation plus at least minimum wage should be offered for each hour worked.

Workaway is open to all and our hosts come in many different shapes and sizes! We are a global community with Workawayers being welcomed in many different locations around the world - in cities, villages, on farms and boats, in small eco-communities and even in the middle of the jungle. The help asked for is just as diverse from babysitting to animal welfare to building treehouses for example. Every profile is assessed by our team on an individual basis and we look forward to reading about your place and how hosting Workawayers could make a positive impact.

No, to register as a host is totally free. Though we do encourage hosts to make a donation to charity.

When creating your profile, include plenty of info about the people involved, your place, the local area and the activities that Workawayers could do in their spare time. It's a great idea to include a description of how you will interact with your Workawayers, what you can teach them and what you hope to learn from hosting. The cultural exchange aspect is an important part of how we decide the suitability of a new host profile.

Make sure the help you need is clearly described and what the accommodation offered will be so that your visitors know what to expect. Adding photos to your profile really makes it stand out.

You can add up to 15 photos to your profile once online. It's best to show unique images (i.e images not online elsewhere). These can be of your place, family, project or area.

If you are looking for more than volunteer help you should ensure that you include info about how you are meeting the minimum wage requirements of your country.

No, we provide a way so that they can contact you via the website. Your messages will be delivered to your registered email address as well as appearing in your Workaway inbox. After you have established contact you can choose if you would like to reveal your email address.

As a listing site, we provide the opportunity for hosts who are businesses (or asking for some help with a business activity) to offer a wage to Workawayers and be listed as a paying host. This is to help hosts comply with any relevant laws in their own country regarding labour and workers.

When calculating payment, we ask hosts to ensure that at least the minimum wage is offered and that this is for every hour worked. Accommodation should be provided for free. 

Although we still encourage shared meals as a way to enjoy a cultural exchange, if you pay a wage, you can ask helpers to be responsible for their own food expenses.

BE INSPIRED

Should I sign up to be a Workaway host ?

read more

Trusted and reviewed

We've been around since 2002 and are proud of the trust and respect that has developed in our community ever since!

4.9

Average rating across
576,863 reviews on Workaway

More about hosting

How to be a great host
Download hosting guide
Host stories