Fancy Hands alternatives for busy owners
Fancy Hands sells a set number of requests a month, each up to 20 minutes of work, from $35 for 3. It's good for a few quick, separate tasks. If you need more than that, an hourly assistant service or a part-time virtual assistant usually costs less per hour.
Updated 29 Oct 2026. Browsing and the AI shortlist are free.
Fancy Hands's fees for clients, as of Oct 2026
- 3 requests a month
- $35 a month
Fancy Hands pricing (opens in a new tab), checked 29 Oct 2026
- 5 requests a month
- $55 a month
Fancy Hands pricing (opens in a new tab), checked 29 Oct 2026
- 15 requests a month
- $125 a month
Fancy Hands pricing (opens in a new tab), checked 29 Oct 2026
Unused requests roll over and build up while you're a member, per Fancy Hands' pricing page.
How the options compare
Fees as each company publishes them, as of Oct 2026. Prices change, so check the linked page before you sign up.
Fancy Hands pricing (opens in a new tab), checked 29 Oct 2026
Athena pricing (opens in a new tab), checked 29 Oct 2026
When Fancy Hands is the better choice
- You need a handful of quick, separate tasks a month, like booking a table, finding a gift or researching a product.
- You want to send requests by text, email, phone, the web or its apps, with no one to manage.
- Your needs come and go, and unused requests rolling over suits you.
What an hour of help costs: Fancy Hands vs the alternatives
If every request uses its full 20 minutes, Fancy Hands works out at $25 to $35 an hour of help. Hourly agencies and freelance VAs can cost less once you need more than a few hours a month.
| Option | Monthly price | Hours of help | Per hour |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fancy Hands, 3 requests | $35 | Up to 1 | From $35 |
| Fancy Hands, 15 requests | $125 | Up to 5 | From $25 |
| Time Etc, 10 hours | $390 | 10 | $39 |
| Wing, 80 hours | $699 | 80 | $9 |
| Freelance VA on Upwork | Your hours times their rate | As agreed | $10–20 typical, plus a 5% fee |
| StaffPick (ours) | $79 Hire Direct, plus their pay | As agreed | Each person's own rate, on their profile |
Fancy Hands' per-hour figure assumes every request uses the full 20 minutes; shorter requests cost more per minute of work. Agency plans include the assistant's pay.
Fancy Hands pricing (opens in a new tab), checked 29 Oct 2026
Time Etc pricing (opens in a new tab), as of Oct 2026
Wing pricing (opens in a new tab), as of Oct 2026
Upwork (opens in a new tab), checked Oct 2026
Which Fancy Hands alternative fits?
Pick by how much help you need each week, not by the price of the smallest plan.
| You need | Look at | Why |
|---|---|---|
| A few quick tasks a month | Fancy Hands | Pay per request, with no one to manage |
| A few hours a week, same person | Time Etc or a part-time freelancer | One assistant who learns how you work |
| Half-time to full-time help | Wing, or hiring a VA directly | A lower cost per hour at more hours |
| A full-time executive assistant | Athena | $3,000 a month for one dedicated EA |
| To choose and pay someone yourself | StaffPick or OnlineJobs.ph | Tested profiles (StaffPick) or a Philippine job board (OnlineJobs.ph) |
Athena pricing (opens in a new tab), checked 29 Oct 2026
OnlineJobs.ph pricing (opens in a new tab), checked 29 Oct 2026
How StaffPick is different
StaffPick covers ten roles, from virtual assistants to developers, for ongoing remote work.
- Tested before you see them
- English (a CEFR band), a 60-second typing test, a quiz for the role and an ID check. The scores are on every profile.
- Free to browse
- Look at every profile and get an AI shortlist from one sentence, without paying.
- Hire Direct, a flat fee
- $79 a month to request intros. You pay the person directly, in the way you agree.
- Done For You, if you'd rather not
- Their pay plus $399 a month. StaffPick pays them and replaces them free if it doesn't work out.
Questions about Fancy Hands
Still unsure? Contact us. A person reads every message.
Company names on this page are trademarks of their owners. StaffPick isn't affiliated with any of them. Every fee above comes from the company's own page, linked beside it, as of Oct 2026.
Keep reading
- Athena alternatives for executive assistantsAthena's published fees, and when it's the better choice.
- Virtual assistant companies compared (2026)Where to hire a virtual assistant: marketplaces from a 5% fee, full-time agencies from $999 a month, or direct with no markup. 2026 prices, side by side.
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