Home Health Aide Salary in 2026: National, by State, City, Specialty & Real Value
A home health aide in the United States earns a median of $35,800 a year, about $17.21 an hour, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2025). Pay runs from roughly $27,040 at the 10th percentile to $45,040 at the 90th, and it swings further once you account for state, metro, setting, specialty, cost of living, and tax. About 4,305,810 home health and personal care aides work nationwide. This guide is the complete picture: national and percentile pay, all 50 states ranked by real (cost-adjusted) value, top metros, settings, specialties, take-home after tax, the path in, the return on the degree, and answers to the questions people ask most.
- National pay overview
- Pay by experience
- Salary by state: all 50 states ranked by real value
- Highest-paying metros
- Salary by work setting
- How it compares to related careers
- Training, setting, and what they mean for pay
- Specialties and where the pay is
- What moves the pay
- Salary, hourly, and total compensation
- Take-home pay after tax
- How to maximize earnings
- How pay is changing
- Job outlook
- How to become a home health aide
- Is it worth it? The return on the degree
- Frequently asked questions
- State guides and tools
National pay overview
The national median for home health and personal care aides is $35,800 a year ($17.21 an hour), with a mean of $36,120. The full wage curve, from entry to senior:
| Percentile | Annual | Hourly |
|---|---|---|
| 10th (entry) | $27,040 | $13.00 |
| 25th | $31,920 | $15.35 |
| 50th (median) | $35,800 | $17.21 |
| 75th | $39,470 | $18.98 |
| 90th (senior) | $45,040 | $21.65 |
The gap from the 10th to the 90th percentile is about $18,000. A single national number hides that range, which is why the rest of this guide breaks pay down by every factor that moves it, and then translates the headline into cost-adjusted, after-tax dollars.
The mean of $36,120 sits above the median, which tells you the top of the field pulls the average up: a meaningful share of home health and personal care aides earn well into the upper percentiles through specialty, setting, geography, and seniority. The practical question is what you can earn given where you work, what you specialize in, and how you structure your hours, which matters far more than the field-wide average. Each section below answers one piece of that.
Pay by experience
BLS does not publish pay by years of experience, but the percentiles map closely to a career arc:
| Stage | Typical percentile | Annual |
|---|---|---|
| New graduate | 10th to 25th | $27,040 to $31,920 |
| Mid-career | ~50th | around $35,800 |
| Experienced | ~75th | around $39,470 |
| Senior / specialized / lead | 90th+ | $45,040 and up |
The climb from new graduate to senior is roughly $18,000. Early raises tend to come fastest as you move off new-grad pay; by mid-career the curve flattens, and the people who keep climbing usually do so by specializing, switching to a higher-paying setting or state, taking on lead and management duties, or adding hours through overtime and extra work. Geography and setting can outweigh experience entirely: an experienced home health aide in a low-paying state can earn less than a new graduate in a top-paying one.
Salary by state: all 50 states ranked by real value
This is the table most home health aide salary pages leave out. Below are every state and Washington, D.C., ranked by real value (the median adjusted for that state’s cost of living (BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024)) rather than by sticker pay. A high-paying state with high costs can leave you worse off than a moderate-paying, low-cost one. Tap a linked state for the full local breakdown.
| # | State | Median (nominal) | Cost level (US=100) | Real value | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Washington | $47,730 | 107.0 | $44,602 | 103,260 |
| 2 | North Dakota | $39,440 | 89.0 | $44,335 | 7,730 |
| 3 | Oregon | $44,410 | 103.4 | $42,966 | 42,330 |
| 4 | Rhode Island | $43,680 | 102.3 | $42,706 | 7,490 |
| 5 | South Dakota | $37,740 | 88.6 | $42,603 | 4,210 |
| 6 | Vermont | $41,600 | 98.0 | $42,467 | 7,700 |
| 7 | Iowa | $36,080 | 87.8 | $41,111 | 25,800 |
| 8 | Kentucky | $36,440 | 90.2 | $40,417 | 31,260 |
| 9 | Nebraska | $36,150 | 90.1 | $40,121 | 13,660 |
| 10 | Maine | $38,580 | 97.0 | $39,753 | 18,630 |
| 11 | Minnesota | $38,370 | 98.6 | $38,907 | 128,680 |
| 12 | District of Columbia | $42,700 | 109.9 | $38,853 | 12,810 |
| 13 | Alaska | $39,740 | 102.4 | $38,824 | 6,530 |
| 14 | Montana | $36,630 | 94.6 | $38,703 | 10,400 |
| 15 | Massachusetts | $40,910 | 105.8 | $38,683 | 117,940 |
| 16 | Wisconsin | $36,340 | 94.1 | $38,621 | 82,430 |
| 17 | Illinois | $38,060 | 100.0 | $38,076 | 134,100 |
| 18 | Connecticut | $38,990 | 103.6 | $37,632 | 49,510 |
| 19 | Indiana | $35,060 | 93.3 | $37,566 | 57,050 |
| 20 | Colorado | $38,540 | 103.1 | $37,399 | 44,650 |
| 21 | New Hampshire | $38,760 | 104.2 | $37,210 | 9,440 |
| 22 | Ohio | $34,460 | 92.8 | $37,144 | 106,940 |
| 23 | New York | $39,620 | 107.9 | $36,712 | 663,140 |
| 24 | Idaho | $34,790 | 95.5 | $36,432 | 20,770 |
| 25 | Missouri | $33,080 | 90.8 | $36,425 | 94,810 |
| 26 | Michigan | $35,000 | 96.2 | $36,376 | 95,020 |
| 27 | Utah | $35,880 | 98.9 | $36,292 | 17,130 |
| 28 | Maryland | $38,040 | 105.0 | $36,243 | 46,560 |
| 29 | Arizona | $36,420 | 100.7 | $36,175 | 74,540 |
| 30 | Wyoming | $33,190 | 92.7 | $35,807 | 3,410 |
| 31 | Tennessee | $32,130 | 91.9 | $34,973 | 35,950 |
| 32 | Kansas | $31,260 | 90.1 | $34,707 | 25,350 |
| 33 | Hawaii | $38,110 | 110.0 | $34,661 | 6,150 |
| 34 | Delaware | $34,320 | 99.8 | $34,386 | 11,820 |
| 35 | New Jersey | $37,090 | 108.8 | $34,089 | 117,080 |
| 36 | Nevada | $33,670 | 100.0 | $33,677 | 17,940 |
| 37 | North Carolina | $31,240 | 94.3 | $33,119 | 58,880 |
| 38 | Florida | $33,800 | 103.4 | $32,684 | 90,170 |
| 39 | South Carolina | $30,110 | 93.7 | $32,118 | 40,750 |
| 40 | Arkansas | $27,660 | 86.9 | $31,816 | 19,840 |
| 41 | Oklahoma | $27,710 | 87.8 | $31,545 | 20,310 |
| 42 | Alabama | $27,840 | 88.8 | $31,343 | 20,930 |
| 43 | West Virginia | $28,010 | 89.5 | $31,297 | 18,890 |
| 44 | California | $34,320 | 110.7 | $30,997 | 970,150 |
| 45 | New Mexico | $28,520 | 92.2 | $30,929 | 38,910 |
| 46 | Georgia | $29,270 | 96.3 | $30,397 | 50,870 |
| 47 | Pennsylvania | $29,420 | 97.6 | $30,152 | 257,370 |
| 48 | Virginia | $30,300 | 101.1 | $29,969 | 70,070 |
| 49 | Mississippi | $23,860 | 87.0 | $27,440 | 21,800 |
| 50 | Louisiana | $22,520 | 88.2 | $25,531 | 45,060 |
| 51 | Texas | $24,230 | 97.1 | $24,965 | 329,590 |
On real, cost-adjusted value, Washington leads at $44,602, while Texas trails at $24,965. By raw sticker pay the order is different: Washington ($47,730), Oregon ($44,410), and Rhode Island ($43,680) pay the most nominally, but several of them slide down the list once high housing and prices are counted. That reordering is the single most useful thing this page does, and it is why national averages and sticker rankings can steer you wrong.
Concrete example of the flip: Hawaii ranks #15 by sticker pay ($38,110) but only #33 once its cost level of 110 is applied, because high prices eat the higher salary. Meanwhile Iowa looks middling on sticker (#25) yet climbs to #7 on real value, since a 36,080-dollar median goes much further at a cost level of 88. If you are willing to relocate, the real-value column, not the sticker column, is the one that should guide the decision.
The geographic pattern: the highest sticker pay clusters on the West Coast and in the Northeast, while the best real value often shows up in lower-cost states in the South, Midwest, and Mountain West where a strong salary meets cheap housing. There is no single best state, only the best fit for where you want to live and what your money will buy there.
Highest-paying metros
Within states, metros drive pay further. The largest home health aide job markets by employment, with median pay:
| Metro | Median | Employed |
|---|---|---|
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY | $39,680 | 644,700 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | $34,320 | 385,530 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA | $29,800 | 158,280 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | $35,950 | 119,120 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL | $38,180 | 108,520 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | $34,320 | 102,760 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN | $38,860 | 93,560 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA | $40,910 | 72,420 |
| Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX | $23,440 | 63,820 |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA | $34,320 | 60,350 |
The same cost-of-living rule applies inside a state: a higher-paying big metro can lose to a cheaper mid-size city once housing is counted. Big metros also hold the deepest job markets, so they pair the most pay with the most openings, while rural and smaller markets sometimes pay premiums to attract candidates. The state pages work the metro and cost math out city by city.
Salary by work setting
Where home health and personal care aides work changes pay as much as geography. National medians by employer type:
| Setting | Employed (U.S.) | Median |
|---|---|---|
| Individual and Family Services | 2,312,380 | $34,900 |
| Individual and Family Services | 2,312,380 | $34,900 |
| Home Health Care Services | 1,079,060 | $36,230 |
| Home Health Care Services | 1,079,060 | $36,230 |
| Residential Intellectual and Developmental Disability, Mental Health, and Substance Abuse Facilities | 321,290 | $37,400 |
| Residential Intellectual and Developmental Disability, Mental Health, and Substance Abuse Facilities | 321,290 | $37,400 |
| Continuing Care Retirement Communities and Assisted Living Facilities for the Elderly | 265,100 | $37,060 |
The gap between the highest- and lowest-paying settings is real money over a career, and it usually comes with trade-offs in pace, caseload, autonomy, and schedule rather than in difficulty alone. The largest employer is not always the best payer, so it is worth weighing where the volume of jobs is against where the pay is when you choose a setting.
How it compares to related careers
It helps to see a home health aide beside the roles people weigh against it, with pay set next to the education each requires:
| Role | National median | Education |
|---|---|---|
| Home Health/Personal Care Aide (this role) | $35,800 | HS / short training |
| Nursing Assistant | $42,260 | CNA certificate |
| Licensed Practical Nurse | $64,400 | Practical nursing certificate |
| Registered Nurse | $97,550 | Bachelor’s (BSN) |
The higher-paid nursing assistant ($42,260) sits $6,460 above, but on a longer or different training path. The right comparison is always pay set against the time, cost, and debt of the credential, not pay alone.
Training, setting, and what they mean for pay
Pay is gated mostly by the setting, the funding source, and the state rather than credentials. Many aides enter with a high-school diploma and short training, though aides in Medicare-certified home-health agencies must complete formal training and a competency evaluation. The biggest pay differences come from the state and its minimum wage and Medicaid rates, the employer (agency versus private-pay), and whether work includes nights, weekends, or live-in care.
Licensing is not just a hurdle, it shapes pay. Where a role can practice more independently or bill for more services, it tends to command more, and license portability between states affects how easily you can chase a higher-paying market. Always confirm the current rules with the relevant state board, since scope and requirements change and vary widely.
Specialties and where the pay is
Pay is generally low and varies most by geography and funding: states with higher minimum wages and Medicaid reimbursement, and private-pay clients, pay above low-wage states. The most reliable way to raise pay is to move up the care ladder, becoming a certified nursing assistant, then an LPN or RN, where pay rises substantially, so many use the aide role as an entry point into healthcare.
The practical takeaway: within home health and personal care aides, specialty and setting usually move pay more than another year of general experience. The top earners are rarely just the most tenured, they are the ones in the higher-paying focus areas, settings, or leadership and ownership roles.
If you are early in the field, the decisions with the biggest long-run payoff are which specialty to pursue and which setting to enter, because both compound over a career and are easier to choose early than to switch later. A credential that takes a year to earn can pay for itself many times over through higher pay and more job options, which is the same logic the ROI section applies to the degree itself.
What moves the pay
- State and metro, and crucially the cost of living that goes with them, which the real-value table reorders.
- Experience, which lifts pay steadily and then plateaus without a specialty or a step up.
- Work setting and employer, since some settings and employers pay well above others, as the settings table shows.
- Specialty and board certification, a clear premium in most of these fields.
- Hours and structure, since overtime, extra shifts, and contract or travel work can push total pay well above base.
Salary, hourly, and total compensation
The $35,800 median is base pay, and real total compensation often runs higher. Most aide roles are hourly, with extra pay mainly from overtime, weekend, and live-in or overnight differentials rather than bonuses; benefits are often limited, especially with agencies. The single biggest lever is moving up the care ladder, to CNA, then LPN or RN, since pay within the aide role itself is constrained by funding and wage floors. When comparing offers, weigh the whole package, base, any bonus or equity, overtime or premiums where they apply, retirement match, and paid time off, since two offers with the same base can differ by thousands once the rest is counted.
Take-home pay after tax
Two home health and personal care aides on the same $35,800 salary keep very different amounts depending on the state. Worked examples on the national median, single filer, 2026 federal plus FICA plus state:
| State | Gross | Est. take-home | Effective rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Texas (no state income tax) | $35,800 | $30,804 | 14.0% |
| New York | $35,800 | $29,440 | 17.8% |
| California | $35,800 | $30,211 | 15.6% |
That is roughly $593 a year more in take-home in no-tax Texas than in California on an identical salary, before cost of living is even counted. Nine states levy no income tax.
Take-home also scales with where you sit on the pay curve. In Texas, an entry-level home health aide earning $31,920 nets about $27,686, while a senior one at $45,040 keeps about $38,228, since higher pay pushes more income into higher federal brackets. The effective rate climbs with income, so a raise is worth somewhat less on take-home than on the headline. Every state page includes a full breakdown and a paycheck calculator to run your own number.
How to maximize earnings
- Target a high-real-value state or metro using the table above, not the highest sticker.
- Move into the higher-paying setting and specialty for your field.
- Add board certification or a specialty credential, which pays a clear premium.
- Use overtime, contract, or travel work to lift total pay, and negotiate the full package.
- Consider leadership or ownership for the higher ceiling.
How pay is changing
Wages for home health and personal care aides have broadly risen with demand and inflation, but the real story is in the mix: pay grows fastest where labor is scarce and where the role takes on more responsibility. Watch three things if you are planning a career here, the spread between settings (which keeps widening as specialized and higher-skill roles pull ahead), the value of cost-of-living arbitrage (a strong salary in a cheap state has rarely been worth more relative to expensive coastal markets), and the premium on specialty credentials. The figures on this page are the May 2025 BLS estimates, the most recent national data, and the state pages carry the same detail locally.
Job outlook
Employment of home health and personal care aides is projected to grow about 17% from 2024 to 2034, much faster than the average for all occupations, with a very large roughly 765,800 openings a year, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. It is the largest occupation in the economy and is projected to add the most jobs of any occupation, as an aging population and a shift of long-term care from nursing homes to home and community settings drive demand.
For context, the average growth rate across all U.S. occupations through 2034 is about 3%. A large share of yearly openings also comes from replacing workers who retire or move on, so real hiring tends to run ahead of the net-growth figure, and shortage and rural areas often pay the most to attract candidates.
How to become a home health aide
Home health aide is an accessible entry point into healthcare with a clear ladder upward:
- Start with a high-school diploma (or equivalent) and compassion for hands-on care.
- Complete short training, on the job or, for Medicare-certified agencies, a formal program with a competency evaluation.
- Gain experience across home and community settings.
- Move up the care ladder to CNA, then LPN or RN, where pay rises substantially.
Is it worth it? The return on the degree
As a stepping stone, the return is strong because almost no upfront cost or education is required to start, and demand is the highest of any occupation. Pay within the role is constrained near $35,800, so the real return comes from using it to move up the care ladder to CNA, LPN, and RN. Weigh program cost, your starting state and setting, and the specialties you can reach against the debt. The pay tables above, set next to the education column in the comparison section, are the honest way to run that math before committing.
Two levers change the answer most: the price of the program you choose, since cost varies enormously between public and private schools, and the state and setting you start in, since the same degree pays very differently across the by-state and settings tables above. A graduate who controls program cost and starts in a high-real-value state can clear the debt years faster than one who does neither, on the identical credential.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a home health aide make?
The U.S. median is $35,800 a year, about $17.21 an hour (BLS, 2025), ranging from roughly $27,040 at the 10th percentile to $45,040 at the 90th.
What is the highest-paying state for home health and personal care aides?
By sticker pay, Washington ($47,730) leads. But adjusted for cost of living, Washington delivers the most real value ($44,602). The full ranking is in the by-state table.
Do home health and personal care aides make six figures?
Many do. The median is $35,800, and home health and personal care aides in top-paying states, metros, and specialties often reach six figures.
What is the entry-level salary for home health and personal care aides?
New graduates typically start around the 10th to 25th percentile, roughly $27,040 to $31,920, rising with experience, setting, and specialty.
Where do home health and personal care aides earn the most after cost of living?
On real value, Washington, North Dakota, and Oregon top the list. High-sticker states often fall once their housing and prices are counted.
Can home health and personal care aides increase pay with overtime or extra work?
Yes. At $17.21 an hour, overtime at time-and-a-half is about $25.82, and contract or travel roles pay higher hourly rates in exchange for fewer benefits, so total pay can run well above the salary median.
Do these roles pay more in states with no income tax?
On take-home, yes. On the median salary, a single filer keeps about $593 more a year in no-tax Texas than in California, before cost of living.
What education do you need to become a home health aide?
A high-school diploma and short training are typical; aides in Medicare-certified home-health agencies must complete a formal training program and competency evaluation. Requirements and any certification vary by state and funding source.
Is home health aide a good career?
It depends on your goal. At a median near $35,800, pay is low and the work is physically and emotionally demanding, so as a long-term destination it is hard. As an entry point it is excellent: demand is enormous, training is short, and it opens a clear path up to CNA, LPN, and RN, where pay climbs sharply.
What setting pays home health and personal care aides the most?
Nationally, individual and family services and the higher-paying employer types in the settings table tend to lead, while others pay somewhat less. Specialty and setting matter as much as the employer category.
How long does it take to become a home health aide?
Entry is fast, often days to a few weeks of training. Moving up the care ladder to CNA (weeks), LPN (about a year), or RN (two to four years) takes more time but raises pay substantially.
What is the highest a home health aide can earn?
The top 10% earn above $45,040, and the ceiling climbs higher with leadership, ownership, specialty certification, and high-cost metros, plus overtime, contract, and travel pay layered on top of base.
Is the home health aide field oversaturated?
Employment of home health and personal care aides is projected to grow about 17% from 2024 to 2034, much faster than the average for all occupations, with a very large roughly 765,800 openings a year, according to the U. Demand varies by region and setting, and rural and shortage areas often compete hardest on pay, so saturation is local rather than national.
Do home health and personal care aides get paid salary or hourly?
Almost always hourly, with extra pay mainly from overtime, weekend, and live-in or overnight differentials; benefits are often limited. Moving up the care ladder is the biggest lever.
Can home health and personal care aides work part-time or flexibly?
Yes, part-time and flexible scheduling are very common, since care is needed across many hours, days, and live-in arrangements, which is part of the role’s accessibility.
What earns more than a home health aide?
Nursing Assistant, at a national median of $42,260, about $6,460 more, though on a longer or different training path.
How much do these roles vary by state?
A lot. State medians span more than $25,210, and after cost of living and state tax the real ranking shifts again. That is what the by-state and take-home sections are for.
State guides and tools
Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 and Occupational Outlook Handbook (SOC 31-1120 and related codes); national, state, and metro estimates. U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024. Take-home figures are 2026 estimates (federal, FICA, and state) for a single filer and will vary with deductions and filing status. See our methodology.