Assisted living: costs and options
Assisted living, memory care or independent living. Answer a few questions and a free advisor helps you compare communities near you that fit the care needed and your budget.
- Assisted living, memory care, independent livingMatched to the care your parent needs.
- A free care advisorFrom our partner Caring.com, with prices, openings and tours.
- No obligationYou choose where to visit and whether to move.
Who are you looking for help for?
Which kind of community fits
- Assisted living: help with daily tasks like bathing, dressing and medications, plus meals, housekeeping and activities.
- Memory care: a secure setting with staff trained in Alzheimer's and other dementia.
- Independent living: an apartment in a community with meals and activities, for people who need little or no care.
- Nursing homes: 24-hour skilled nursing. Compare Medicare's ratings, inspections and staffing for every certified nursing home.
See assisted living vs. a nursing home for how to tell which fits, and who pays for each.
What drives the monthly cost
- The level of care: residents pay more as they need more help or special care, such as memory care.
- The apartment: a private apartment costs more than a shared room.
- Extra services: some communities include care in one monthly price; others charge for each service on top of rent, meals and housekeeping.
- Where: prices vary widely from one area to the next. Medicare doesn't pay for assisted living; in many states Medicaid pays for some services, but not room and board.
Questions to ask on a tour
- What does the monthly price include, and what costs extra? Can we have it in writing?
- How much does the price go up if more care is needed, and when would a resident have to move to a nursing home?
- Who is on staff at night, and is a nurse on site or on call?
- How are medications handled, and who helps with bathing and dressing?
- For memory care: what dementia training do staff have, and how are residents kept safe from wandering?
- Has the state cited the community for problems? Assisted living is licensed by each state.
Many of the questions to ask on a nursing home tour work here too.
While you decide
A move takes time. A medical alert adds a way to get help fast in the meantime, and a few hours of help at home can cover the tasks that are getting harder.
Common questions
What's the difference between assisted living and a nursing home?
Assisted living is for people who need help with daily tasks like bathing, dressing and medications but not round-the-clock medical care. Residents usually have their own apartment, with meals and activities. A nursing home provides 24-hour skilled nursing care. Medicare rates every certified nursing home; assisted living is licensed by each state.
What is memory care?
Memory care is assisted living for people with Alzheimer's disease or another dementia, in a secure setting with staff trained in dementia care. Many assisted living communities have a memory care wing.
Does Medicare pay for assisted living?
No. Medicare doesn't pay for room and board or help with daily tasks in assisted living. Families usually pay from savings or income, long-term care insurance or VA benefits. Many state Medicaid programs pay for some assisted living services.
How does a care advisor help?
An advisor from our partner Caring.com learns what your parent needs, your budget and where you want to look, then shares communities near you with prices and openings, and can help set up tours. It's free, with no obligation.
What if care will be paid for by Medicaid?
Our advisor partner works with families paying privately or through insurance or VA benefits. For Medicaid-covered care, your local Area Agency on Aging is the best place to start, and we'll point you there.
Why it's free
ParentNextStep is free for families. Medical alert companies may pay us a commission when you buy through our links, and our care partner pays us when you request a call from an advisor through our link. What we suggest comes from your answers, not from what we earn. More about how we're paid.