How Much Does Long-Term Care Cost?

What care costs in 2025

The CareScout Cost of Care Survey, data collected July through November 2025, gives national medians. A non-medical caregiver at home costs $35 an hour, about $80,080 a year at 44 hours a week. Adult day health care costs $95 a day. An assisted living community costs $6,200 a month, or $74,400 a year. A semi-private nursing home room costs $9,581 a month, or $114,975 a year. A private room costs $10,798 a month, or $129,575 a year. Medians hide wide local differences, so treat these as a starting point, not a budget for Greensboro.

What insurance premiums look like by age

The AALTCI 2025 Price Index prices a standard policy: a $165,000 initial benefit pool, select health, benefits growing 3% a year, calculated January 2025 for Illinois. The table below shows the average yearly premium. Waiting raises the price: the same man's premium rises from $2,200 at 55 to $3,280 at 65, and a couple's combined premium rises from $5,050 to $7,150.

What Medicare covers, and what it does not

Medicare does not pay for ongoing help with everyday activities, such as bathing or dressing, when that is the only care needed. It covers skilled nursing facility care up to 100 days per benefit period, with no coinsurance for days 1 to 20 and $217 a day for days 21 to 100 in 2026. It covers skilled home health care in limited circumstances, not round-the-clock home care. Anything beyond that is paid from savings, a policy, or Medicaid if you qualify.

How long savings last

CareScout calculated that $250,000 covers about 2.8 years of long-term care on average nationally: 3.4 years of assisted living, 3.1 years of home caregiving, and 2.2 years in a semi-private nursing home room. A long need can outlast a lifetime of saving, which is the risk a policy is meant to cover.

What changes the price

Age and health at purchase matter most, then gender, because women use care longer on average. A larger benefit pool, a longer benefit period, and inflation growth all raise the premium. A longer elimination period, the waiting time before benefits start, lowers it. Prices vary by state and by insurer: for a couple both 65, the AALTCI index found top-three insurer prices from $7,137 to $12,250 a year for near-identical coverage.

Your records checklist

1. Price care in your own area, not just the national median.
2. Decide how many years of care you want a policy to cover.
3. Ask what the elimination period is and what triggers benefits.
4. Compare the same benefit pool and inflation growth across insurers.
5. Check what Medicare will and will not pay before counting on it.

Common questions

Does Medicare pay for long-term care?

No, not for ongoing custodial care. Medicare covers skilled nursing up to 100 days per benefit period and limited skilled home health care. Daily help with bathing, dressing, and eating is not covered.

How much does long-term care insurance cost at 65?

Per the AALTCI 2025 Price Index, a healthy 65-year-old paid on average $3,280 a year for a man and $5,290 for a woman, for a $165,000 pool growing 3% a year. A couple both 65 paid $7,150 combined.

Is home care cheaper than a nursing home?

At a few hours a week, yes. At 44 hours a week, a home caregiver cost about $80,080 a year in 2025, between assisted living at $74,400 and a semi-private nursing home room at $114,975. Round-the-clock home care costs more than a facility.

What happens if I wait to buy a policy?

Premiums rise with age, and health changes can make a policy harder to get or more expensive. The same coverage that cost a healthy 55-year-old man $2,200 a year cost $3,280 at 65.

Sources and current instructions

Check the tax year and any later updates before acting. These are the primary sources used for this guide.

• CareScout: Cost of Care Survey 2025
• AALTCI: 2025 Long-Term Care Insurance Price Index
• Medicare.gov: Long-term care coverage