What will long-term care cost, and can my savings pay for it?
See what a stretch of long-term care would cost when you need it, using 2025 national median prices, and whether your savings could pay for it or how much to set aside today.
LONG-TERM CAREYOUR SAVINGS COVER IT
$950,265
Assisted living community for 3 years from age 82 would cost about $307,440 in the first year and $950,265 in all, growing 3.0% a year from $74,400 a year at 2025 prices. To cover it you would need about $34,524 set aside today at a 7.0% return; your $420,000 covers it.
First year of care
$307,440
Set aside today
$34,524
Savings at care start
$10,806,141
Money lasts until
All years
Your savings and the cost of each year of care
Savings at the start of the yearCost of that year
Your $420,000 grows to $10,806,141 by age 82 at 7.0% a year. The first year of care costs $307,440 and the last $326,163. The savings cover every year and $12,149,819 is left after the last.
The same 3 years of care, by kind
| Kind of care | A year today | First year of care | All 3 | Set aside today |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assisted living community (yours) | $74,400 | $307,440 | $950,265 | $34,524 |
| Nursing home, semi-private room | $114,975 | $475,106 | $1,468,504 | $53,352 |
| Nursing home, private room | $129,575 | $535,437 | $1,654,981 | $60,127 |
| Care at home (non-medical caregiver) | $80,080 | $330,911 | $1,022,812 | $37,160 |
Prices are 2025 national medians from CareScout’s Cost of Care Survey (read September 29, 2026); care at home is $35 an hour at 44 hours a week. A private room in a nursing home costs about $14,600 a year more than a semi-private one at these medians.
How many people need long-term care, and for how long
| Among people turning 65 | Share | Average years of use |
|---|---|---|
| Use any long-term care | 69% | 3 |
| Use care at home | 65% | 2 |
| Use a nursing facility | 35% | 1 |
| Use assisted living | 13% | less than 1 |
HHS puts the chance that someone turning 65 will need some long-term care at almost 70%; about a third may never need it and 20% will need it for longer than 5 years. Women need care longer (3.7 years) than men (2.2). Medicare does not pay for long-term care; Medicaid may for people who meet a state’s rules, and private insurance can. These are averages for a group, not a prediction for you.
What moves the needle
Each row re-runs the calculation with one change. Click to apply.How it's computed
FORMULA
Cost in each care year = cost of a year today × (1 + growth)^(years until that year of care)
Savings at care start = savings × (1 + return)^(years until care); each year: pay the cost from what is left, then what remains grows at the return
Shortfall = the part of a year’s cost that is more than what is left
Set aside today = the sum of each year’s cost ÷ (1 + return)^(years until that year)
- Care costs $74,400 a year at 2025 prices (the national median); local prices differ a lot, and any one provider can differ from the median.
- Costs grow 3.0% a year and savings earn 7.0% a year, both steady; real prices and markets are not. Each year’s cost is paid at its start. Taxes on withdrawals are not counted.
- All of your savings and investments are treated as available for care. Income during care (Social Security, a pension), a spouse’s needs, Medicaid, and long-term care insurance are not counted.
- Medicare does not pay for long-term care (medicare.gov). The years of care and the age it starts are assumptions to try, not predictions: HHS’s averages describe a group.
WORKED EXAMPLE · SAMPLE NUMBERS
Cost today: $74,400 a year. 48 years of 3.0% growth take it to $307,440 in the first care year, and 3 years total $950,265. Savings: $420,000 at 7.0% for 48 years is $10,806,141 at age 82. That pays every year, leaving $12,149,819. Discounting each year’s cost at 7.0% gives $34,524 to set aside today.
SOURCES
[1]Cost of Care Survey: national median costs, 2025CareScout[2]How Much Care Will You Need?LongTermCare.gov, Administration for Community Living, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services[3]Long-term care: Medicare doesn’t pay for long-term careMedicare.govHSBuilt by Hussain Sehorewala · checked against worked examples · Sep 29, 2026
Keep this number honest as your life changes.
Put it on your Money Map and it re-runs as you change the seven numbers. It stays in this browser, and the calculator stays free.
Questions about this result
CareScout’s 2025 national medians: $6,200 a month for an assisted living community, $74,400 a year; $315 a day for a semi-private room in a nursing home, $114,975 a year, and $355 a day for a private room, $129,575; and $35 an hour for a non-medical caregiver at home, $80,080 a year at 44 hours a week. Costs vary widely by state and city.
No. Medicare and most health insurance, including Medigap, do not pay for long-term care, meaning custodial care in a nursing home or at home. You pay all costs unless you qualify for Medicaid under your state’s rules or buy private long-term care insurance.
HHS says someone turning 65 has almost a 70% chance of needing some long-term care in their remaining years. On average that is about 3 years, longer for women (3.7) than men (2.2). A third may never need it, and 20% will need it for longer than 5 years. These are group averages, so use them to try scenarios rather than to predict your own.
It is the amount that, invested at the return you choose, would pay for every year of care you entered as each comes due. On the example, assisted living for 3 years from age 82 for a 34-year-old costs $950,265 in all but only $34,524 today at a 7% return with costs growing 3%, because the money has 48 years to grow. Closer to care, the set-aside is much closer to the cost.
No. It asks only whether your savings could pay, which is the “self-insure” question. Insurance would change the cost you pay; Medicaid covers care for people who meet a state’s income and asset rules.
Taxes on the money you withdraw, income during care, a spouse’s care, local prices, and the chance that care is short, long, or never needed. Costs and returns are steady assumptions you can change.