New data from A Place for Mom reveals senior care costs are rising faster than inflation, putting mounting pressure on families navigating one of life’s most emotional decisions.

A Place for Mom, the leading platform guiding families through every stage of the aging journey, today released its 2026 Costs of Long-Term Care and Senior Living Report, one of the most comprehensive proprietary snapshots of real-world senior care pricing in the United States.

The findings are telling: national median monthly costs now top $5,419 for assisted living (up from $5,190 in 2025) and $6,690 for memory care (up from $6,450). Independent living averages $3,200 per month (up from $3,145), while home care has risen to $34 per hour (up from $33). These year-over-year increases, 4.4% for assisted living, 3.7% for memory care, 1.75% for independent living, and 3% for home care, reflect a sustained, multi-year trend that is reshaping family budgets, accelerating financial planning pressures, and raising urgent questions about access to aging support.

"These aren’t just numbers. They are the lived experiences of families under pressure," said Tatyana Zlotsky, CEO of A Place for Mom. "Every price point in this report represents a daughter trying to support her father, or a husband figuring out how to keep his wife safe and cared for. Our mission is to bring clarity, guidance, and compassion to those navigating one of life’s most complex and emotional decisions."

The 2026 report reveals:

• Costs are rising across major senior care types, continuing a multi-year affordability squeeze for families.
• Larger assisted living floor plans carry meaningful cost premiums: Two-bedroom assisted living apartments typically cost significantly more than studio units, often pushing total monthly costs above $7,000 in higher-cost markets.
• Regional disparities remain pronounced: Assisted living costs range from under $4,000 per month in parts of the South to nearly $9,000 in the District of Columbia.

Nationally, the gap between the highest- and lowest-cost states continues to widen. Assisted living costs remain lowest in parts of the South and Midwest, including states like Louisiana, Alabama, and Mississippi, where monthly medians are near or below $4,100. High-cost markets such as the District of Columbia, New Jersey, and Massachusetts now average between $7,000 to $9,000 per month. These extremes underscore how location increasingly shapes families’ access to senior care. Variation across states reflects structural differences, including labor markets, housing costs, limited supply, and care availability, not just inflation.

As America’s aging population grows, rising senior care costs are becoming central to national conversations about health care access, retirement security, and caregiving policy. Yet, according to A Place for Mom’s “The Cost of Waiting to Talk About Senior Care,” many families dramatically underestimate senior care costs, with only 18% of people feeling they understand care costs well and nearly one-third reporting they paid more than expected after a move.

A Place for Mom is recognized as a trusted benchmark by families, providers, and policymakers because it reflects actual costs paid by families across its nationwide network of senior living communities and home care providers. APFM’s data is sourced from the nation’s largest senior living and home care referral network, providing an unmatched level of transparency into the real financial decisions families face when navigating senior care.

"Our data gives families an informed, grounded starting point for planning and helps surface where support is most urgently needed," Zlotsky added. "The first step toward better solutions is understanding what care truly costs."

The full report can be found here.

Methodology
In addition to proprietary cost data from A Place for Mom’s partner network, this report references publicly available government data and industry research to provide general context on labor markets, housing costs, inflation, and senior living supply and demand. These sources are not used to calculate the cost figures presented in this report. Sources referenced for context include the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care, and Senior Housing News.

About A Place for Mom
A Place for Mom is the leading platform that guides families through every stage of the aging journey. We simplify the search for senior care by offering free, personalized support—and when families are ready, we refer them to partners from our network of over 15,000 senior living communities and home care agencies. Our mission is to guide caregivers and their loved ones to a confident place, so families can focus on what matters most: their love for each other. A Place for Mom: Where love finds its place. For more information, please visit aplaceformom.com.

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