DATA-BACKED GUIDE · UPDATED JULY 2026
How much does home care cost per hour in the UK?
Home care, sometimes called domiciliary care, is a carer coming to the house to help with things like washing, dressing, meals and medication. It is priced by the hour, and that hourly rate is the building block of a whole care package. Fifteen minutes twice a day looks cheap, but several visits a day, seven days a week, adds up faster than people expect. Rates are rarely published, and what you pay depends heavily on whether the council arranges the care or you buy it yourself.
The quick version
- Home care is charged per hour, and short visits several times a day are how the weekly cost builds up.
- Rates rise at weekends, on bank holidays and for early or late calls.
- Councils negotiate lower hourly rates than a self-funder buying the same care privately.
- If your capital is below the upper capital limit, the council may fund some or all of your care after a means test.
- When needs grow, live-in care can work out cheaper per week than many hours of separate visits.
What people actually paid
The gap: advertised vs actually paid (medians)
People reported paying 23% less than the advertised list price for home care (hourly).
List prices are advertised prices; paid figures are what people reported, often for different cases. Treat the gap as a signal, not a quote.
Real prices, in people's own words
- £13“We paid my sister half the going rate for a carer for her to look after mum for 20 hours a week, at the time it worked out that we gave her £12.50 an hour.”
- £15“We used a brilliant agency called Extra Help. It was £15 per hour including agency fee.”
- £21“I pay £13.20 for a half hour, I think it's about £21 for a full hour.”
- £25“Depending on the requirements, it's anything between £18 to £25 an hour.”
- £25“In London I pay £25 for an hour visit in the morning for mum.”
- £26“Standard rates round here (Bristol) seem to be about £24-£28/h.”
Genuine amounts posted publicly. We publish the price and the quote, never the person.
Why the price varies so much
The hourly rate depends first on where you live, since carers' wages and travel costs differ across the country and feed straight into the price. Timing matters too, because early mornings, evenings, weekends and bank holidays usually carry a higher rate. Then there is how the care is arranged. Councils commission home care in bulk and pay less per hour, so someone buying privately is generally quoted more for the same visit. Complexity plays a part as well, since two carers for a hoist transfer, or specialist tasks, cost more than a simple check-in. Because so few agencies publish rates, the real figures other families report are the most reliable guide, especially once you add up a full week rather than a single visit.
How to pay less
- Ask your council for a needs assessment, since even self-funders can be pointed towards better-value providers.
- Get the hourly rate in writing, including weekend, bank holiday and short-visit charges.
- Check whether Attendance Allowance can help fund the visits, as it is not means tested.
- Work out the true weekly cost of all your visits, then compare it with live-in care if needs are heavy.
- Ask about a minimum visit length, because paying an hourly rate for a fifteen-minute call is poor value.
Common questions
Is home care cheaper than a care home?
It can be, particularly when someone needs only a few visits a day. The economics flip as needs grow. Once you are paying for several long visits daily, or overnight support, the weekly total can match or beat a residential care place, and live-in care may then be better value than lots of separate hourly calls.
Will the council pay for my home care?
Maybe, depending on a means test. If your capital is below the upper capital limit, the council may fund some or all of your care, though your income is usually taken into account. In Scotland, personal care at home is provided free to those assessed as needing it, and Wales caps what councils charge for non-residential care, so the rules differ by nation. This is general information, not financial advice.
Why do agencies charge for a full hour when the visit is shorter?
Some do, and it is worth asking about. Carers have to travel between clients, and agencies price that in, so a short call can still be billed at or near an hourly rate. Ask about minimum visit lengths and how travel time is charged before you commit, because it makes a real difference to the weekly bill.