Can You Be a Part-Time Doula or Work Around Another Job?

Short answer? Yes.

Longer answer? Yes, but you need a strategy.

One of the most common questions we hear inside doula training is this:

Can you be a doula part time?

This is an important question for many reasons. Because the image most people see online is a birth doula who is fully on call, fully immersed, and fully available at all times. And while that is one version of this career, it is not the only one. 

You can absolutely be a part time doula. You can be a doula with full time job. You can be a postpartum doula on weekends. You can take one client a month. One of the many awesome things about doula work is how flexible this work is and you can build your business at any pace!

Our founder, Bianca, started her private practice which eventually grew to be bebo mia with a 10 day old baby and a part time job. Sooo, it is doable! 

The real question is not whether it is possible, but rather how to structure it so it actually works.

Sooooo, let’s get into it so that we can make sure this is a sustainable and reasonable option for you to add to your life. 

Yes, you can be a part-time doula

There is no rule that says you must go all in from day one even though some of our alumni definitely do!

But real talk, most new doulas do not.

Many students in our online doula training are parents. Or working professionals. Or caregivers. Or in school. Or navigating health realities. For many people, transitioning into a doula career gradually is the safest and smartest move.

That is key for sustainability, y’all!

The idea that you must quit your job immediately to be legitimate is rooted in hustle culture, not in care work. In fact, creating a viable side hustle that can grow into your #1 money maker (if that is the goal) is smart as heck. 

What it looks like to be a doula with full-time job

If you are a birth doula and you work another job, the biggest logistical factor is on call time.

As you know, birth does not follow a schedule. So if you are a doula with full time job, you need clarity around:

Your workplace flexibility
Backup doulas
How many clients you can realistically support

Many part time birth doulas take one client per month or even 1 every other month. Some take one every quarter instead. Some only take clients whose due dates align with their vacation time.

There are also doulas who work night shifts in other industries and take daytime birth clients. Others work remotely and can step away when needed. 

The key is communication. With your employer. With your clients. With your backup doula.

If you cannot leave work when a client is in labor, you must have a clear backup agreement in place. That is ethical practice and a must… like really though. 

You can also do a shared care model where you do certain days or times of the day. So if you work a day job, you and your doula partner split it so if someone goes into labor between 7am-7pm they call the other doula and if someone has contractions between 7pm-7am, they call you. You can do the same for weekdays versus weekends. 

Bianca loved the idea of being off call at night and on weekends so she partnered up with a doula with 2 little kids at home that could ONLY do nights and weekends when her husband was home from work. And if a birth was going long from night into day or from Sunday into Monday, they would switch back so their clients always had fresh and wonderful team care. 

There are so many ways to make this work if you also bank your sick days and that is how many days you take off for births. Also check your contracts because there are many days that could be owed to you as an employee depending on where you live. 

Postpartum doula work is often more flexible

If you are asking can you be a doula part time because of schedule concerns, postpartum doula work may feel more aligned.

Unlike birth work, postpartum shifts are scheduled in advance which can make it easy if you have a full plate but have been bitten by the doula bug. You and the family agree on specific days and hours.

This makes it much easier to be a part time doula while holding another job or having dependents at home. Many postpartum doulas work evenings, weekends, or a few mornings per week.

Some doulas begin with postpartum support only while keeping their full time job. Then, if they choose, they add birth work later.

We also want to do a plug for providing overnight care here. Overnight shifts can be billed at $250-$500 per night depending where you live and for many postpartum doulas, they sleep through the majority of that shift. This means they can go home to do the care work with their dependants or go to their full time job. The overnight shifts are typically 10pm-6am (you can offer extended from 8 or 9pm to 6 or 7am for additional fees.) That is perfect timing to get yourself ready for work and kids ready and off to school. A few of those shifts a month and you can have an additional $10K-30K per year in your pocket!

How many clients can you realistically take?

People often ask how many clients per month is sustainable if you are part time.

There is no magic number to answer this.

For birth doulas working another job, one client per month is often the upper limit when starting out. That allows room for unpredictability and rest.

For postpartum doulas, it depends on how many hours per week you want to work. You might support two families for ten hours each per week. Or one family for twenty hours.

The mistake new doulas make is overestimating their availability because they are excited. We feel this so hard and have made this mistake because the excitement is beautiful. Trust us though, the exhaustion is not.

Bianca took 6 clients one month and spent most of it crying and dreading her next call to a birth!

Start smaller than you think because you can always increase.

What an online doula training needs to prepare you for

If you plan to be a part time doula, your doula training must address real life logistics.

Does the program teach you about backup systems?
Does it talk about contracts and boundaries?
Does it discuss burnout prevention?
Does it acknowledge that not everyone is building a forty hour per week birth practice? Not that this is really a thing, but you can be working on and in your business!

Not all doula training programs prepare folks adequately. If you want to hear our case for this, check out why weekend trainings are failing doulas. 

Some programs assume you are stepping into full time birth work immediately and that can leave part time doulas feeling behind or inadequate.

A good online doula training recognizes that people build careers in phases. And you do a little bit at a time at the beginning. It will gain momentum year over year if you do this part right. 

Financial expectations as a part-time doula

Let’s be honest about money for a moment.

Being a part time doula likely means slower income growth at first. And that is okay.

For many people, the stability of another job provides breathing room while you build confidence, client referrals, and systems.

In the United States, birth doulas often charge anywhere from $1000 to $3500 per client depending on region and experience. Even one client per month at the lower end of that range can create meaningful supplemental income.

Postpartum doulas commonly charge hourly rates ranging from $25 to $50 per hour or more depending on location.

That is some nice additional income… what would you do with an additional $12,000 – $40,000+ income a year?? (Tell us in the comments!)

If you want to see more about how much doulas make, go here.

Want to know how to figure out what to charge as a doula, go here.

The emotional reality of doing both

Let’s also talk about something important for those of you thinking about becoming a doula.

Being a birth doula while holding another job requires strong boundaries and energy management. You cannot be half present in either role. Being a doula means you show up with your whole heart and presence when you are with your clients. The love of birth work can typically shine a light on what you want to do with your life and we see ‘part time side hustle’ doulas go full time right quick! 

But when you are thinking about showing up in your doula work, that means:

Clear sleep plans

Good body care (like massage therapy and chiropractive care)
Strong communication
Reliable backup
Time for your own nervous system to reset

Part time does not mean casual, it still means intentional.

And sometimes being part time actually protects your love for the work. When doula work is not your only income source, you may feel less pressure to take every client or tolerate misalignment. You get to cherry pick only the best for you!

That can be powerful and super exciting.

When you are good at what you do and exclusive to work with (not to be all fancy, but just because you only have X spots on your roster) things change so much. Bianca went down to part time since she teaches full time for bebo mia and people started writing to her saying ‘please say you can take us for October’ which was so different from back when she had 60 spots a year and people would want to interview and hold her up against the 2-5 other doulas they were interviewing. 

So can you be a doula part-time?

Yes.

You can be a birth doula with one client at a time.
You can be a postpartum doula on weekends.
You can complete a doula training while keeping your career.
You can build slowly.

The better question is not can you. It is how do you want your life to feel while you build this.

A doula career does not have to start at full volume. It can grow alongside your responsibilities, your health, your family, and your goals.

If you are exploring an online doula training and wondering whether this fits into your real life, the answer is likely yes, with planning and support. You can check out our program here.

Care work should expand your world, not collapse it because we need you to be well to do the good work you are called to do!

And sometimes the smartest move is starting part time, building confidence, and letting your practice grow at the pace your life can hold.

If you want to ever jump on a call and talk to us about our online doula training or about life as a doula, email us at [email protected]. We love meeting new people and are happy to chat!