What’s the cost of in-home care?

Options for hiring in-home care can be overwhelming, and costs seem to add up no matter which way you turn. Should you go with an agency or an online platform?Should you place your own ad on a job board? What’s right for your friend or neighbor might not work for you and your loved ones, so it’s essential to understand all the options. 

How much does in-home care cost?

How much you pay for in-home care depends on several key factors, including your location, the type of support you need, and the type of care provider you’re working with.

Typically the cost of in-home care is calculated per hour, but depending on the type of care provider, the hourly cost can get bloated by high service fees or premium monthly subscriptions.

Let’s take a closer look at the most popular types of in-home care providers, their fee structures, and what they offer.

What to know about fee structures

Let’s dig into the details and break down where your money goes when you hire care through these different types of providers. 

Herewith 

• Hire a caregiver that fits your budget

• With no minimum hours, you won't pay extra for hours of care you don't need

• Pay your caregiver securely via autopay, plus a set 20% service fee, no subscription needed, to Herewith

• Employment tax support and workers' comp included

Online Platforms

• Hire a caregiver that fits your budget

• Pay your caregiver’s hourly wages directly, plus a monthly platform subscription fee, plus add-ons for “premium” services

• Some tax support available

Traditional Agencies 

• Pay the rate set by the agency 

• Agency sets minimum number of hours of care per week

• Agency keeps up to 50% of the hourly rate paid, the remainder goes to the caregiver

• Tax support included

Job boards 

• Hire a caregiver that fits your budget

• Pay caregiver directly 

• Tax responsibilities are up to the individual

Herewith’s cost estimator

When you’re assessing your options, it’s important to understand how your service fees work, what they cover, and who they’re paid to. 

At Herewith, we try to simplify this process. When you enter your budget for care, Herewith helps do the math for you, and brings you caregiver candidates that fall within your budget, so your total hourly rate, including our Herewith fee, estimated employment taxes, and caregiver wages, matches what you want to spend. 

We also work to give you complete transparency with live shift updates, time tracking, automatic payroll tools, and weekly invoices and receipts. 

If a caregiver’s preferred hourly rate is $20, your cost estimate might look something like this: 

So, if you aim to spend a maximum of $30/hour for care, this caregiver would come in under your budget. When you work with Herewith, our live customer support team will help do the calculations to make sure that we find a caregiver whose hourly rate fits within the scope of your care budget.  

Have questions about setting your care budget? We’d love to help you out. Call 415-506-9776 to speak with our team today.