This study explores what the field of domestic work looks like in Sri Lanka: what general employment practices are like (e.g. salaries, recruitment, living conditions for live-ins, nature of agreements), what attitudes towards domestic work(ers) are, and perceptions about workers rights. It uses the findings of three methods: an online survey carried out with employers (primarily from Colombo), in-depth interviews with live-in and live-out workers from Nuwara Eliya and Colombo, and an analysis of newspaper advertisements for domestic work. The study considers the gendered dimensions of paid domestic work, the micropolitics of employer-employee relationships and being like part of the family, attitudes towards agencies, while also establishing descriptive statistical information on salary variations and characteristics of demand.