A sober companion runs roughly $800 to $4,000 a day, and mine sits at $1,000 to $1,500. Here's exactly what you're paying for, and how to hire someone actually qualified.
Go ahead and research it. Call around to different treatment programs, dig through the internet, shop it however you want. What you are going to find is that a sober companion generally runs anywhere from $800 a day all the way up to, and beyond, $4,000.
Why am I bringing that up right out of the gate? Because I believe in transparency, and that is something a lot of places, programs, and people in this space simply will not give you.
For me, it lands somewhere between $1,000 and $1,500 a day, depending on the specific circumstances, the clinical intention the situation calls for, and the activities involved. There is almost always a little wiggle room in there, but that is the honest range I work within.
Let me give you a little context on who you would actually be working with. I have been sober since I was 21, which is more than 19 years now, and along the way I earned two master's degrees, one of them specifically in Addiction Counseling from the Hazelden Betty Ford Graduate School. I have worked directly with families and interventions, with adolescents and with adult men and women, and with people carrying a wide range of co-occurring conditions, from bipolar disorder to eating disorders, phobias, anxiety, and plenty more.
I do not share that to rattle off credentials. I share it so you know the depth of what you are actually hiring. I work as a sober companion, so let me walk you through what this looks like and what you can expect, especially the parts most people are too afraid to speak to, or more likely to keep vague.
What a Sober Companion Actually Costs
Let me put the numbers on the table, since almost nobody in this space will.
Day rate. The widely reported market range is $800 to $4,000 per day. Mine is $1,000 to $1,500 per day, and where it lands depends on the intensity of the situation, the location, and whether it is live-in.
Live-in and around-the-clock. Full-time, 24/7 presence sits at the higher end, because you are paying for someone to actually be there through the night and the hard hours, not just the easy ones.
Travel. If we are traveling, flights, lodging, and expenses are on top of the day rate. I am based in Bali and have traveled sober through more than 50 countries, so travel and flight companionship is a big part of what I do.
Coaching, the accessible entry point. Not everyone needs a full companion. I also offer 1:1 therapeutic sessions at $250 an hour, and a structured 90-day-plus coaching program at $1,500 a month. It includes weekly 1:1 sessions designed to taper as you progress, daily accountability, and access to me between sessions. For a lot of people, that is the right level of support.
It is cash-pay. Insurance does not cover sober companions. Treat it as a private investment in a specific, high-stakes stretch of your life, because that is what it is.
What You Are Actually Paying For
Here is the uncomfortable truth the industry is built on: the sober companion field is unregulated. There is no license required to call yourself one. Anyone can.
That is exactly why what you are paying for matters more than the day rate. You are not paying for a warm body who happens to be sober. You are paying for judgment in the moments that count.
In my case, that judgment comes from the clinical training and experience I described above, plus an MBA from Pepperdine, and 19 years of living this rather than only studying it. If you want the full picture of the role itself, I wrote a whole piece on what a sober companion actually does.
Independent vs. Agency
When you go through an agency, you are usually paying two things: the companion, and the agency's markup for coordinating it. Agencies also tend to keep the actual practitioner anonymous until you have signed, so often you do not know who is showing up until they are at your door.
An independent, credentialed companion is usually more transparent and more cost-effective, because you are hiring the person doing the work directly. You know exactly who you are getting, what they are trained in, and how long they have been sober, before you commit a dollar.
You also get the freedom to vet the person yourself. You can interview them, get on a call before anything is booked, and make sure it is a genuine fit, instead of letting an agency place whoever happens to be available. That matters more than people realize. The alternative a lot of folks fall into is sinking a heavy investment into a treatment facility, then finding it hard to leave, stuck somewhere that no longer fits with their options narrowed.
How to Vet a Sober Companion
Use this checklist. It is the same one the good agencies quietly tell people to use, so use it on everyone, including me.
Credentials and training. Real addiction or clinical education, not a weekend certificate.
Verified sobriety. Five or more years is a common floor. Ask directly. I am at 19.
References. People you can actually talk to about their experience.
Clarity on scope. A straight answer on what they do, what they do not do, and when they bring in a therapist or doctor.
A named, findable human. Someone with a track record you can verify, not a faceless profile.
If a companion or an agency dodges any of these, keep looking. The willingness to answer them honestly is itself part of what you are paying for.
When You Need a Companion, and When Coaching Is Enough
A companion is for the high-stakes, immersive stretches. Early sobriety. A big international trip. A wedding or a bachelor party. The transition home from treatment, which is where a lot of relapses happen. An executive who genuinely cannot afford to slip during a critical window.
Coaching is for the ongoing, steadier work of building a sober life. Lower intensity, lower cost, still real support. If you are weighing companion against sponsor against coach, I laid out the differences in sober companion vs. sober coach vs. sponsor, and if you are looking into this for someone you love, start with hiring a sober companion for a family member.
If you are not sure which level you need, that is exactly the conversation worth having before anyone quotes you a number.
So here is my honest ask. Do not hire the cheapest option, and do not hire the most expensive one assuming price equals quality. Hire the person who will answer every question on that checklist without flinching, and who has actually lived the thing they are helping you through.
Thinking about a sober companion or coaching?
Whether you need a companion for a high-stakes trip, someone to travel alongside you, or ongoing 1:1 coaching, let's talk it through and figure out the right level of support. Learn more at Nomadic Addictt or start a conversation with me.