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Paying for care, made clear
What care actually costs, and who pays for it, is the hardest part to pin down — and the part families most often get wrong. Here are two free calculators, the key numbers, and plain-English guides, all in one place.
How much?
Care home vs care at home
Compare hourly home-care visits, live-in care and a residential or nursing home — side by side, weekly and yearly — and see where the cheapest option changes over as needs grow.
Compare the costsWho pays?
Care funding & means-test calculator
Enter your savings and property value to see whether you fund your own care or the council should help — the £23,250 limit, the 12-week property disregard, Attendance Allowance and NHS Continuing Healthcare.
Check what you payThe numbers that decide it
Care funding at a glance
Upper capital limit (England) — above this you fund your own care
Lower limit — below it your savings are left out of the assessment
Your property is disregarded at the start of a permanent care-home stay
Attendance Allowance & NHS Continuing Healthcare ignore your savings
England figures for 2025/26; Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland differ — the funding calculator adjusts for each.
Not sure what type of care you need yet?
Start with the 60-second care quiz — it points you to the right kind of care, then back here to work out the cost.
Read the guides
Funding & cost advice
Who Pays for Care Home Fees? A Plain-English Guide (2026)
The three ways care home fees get paid — self-funding, council funding and the NHS — and how to work out which applies to you.
How Much Does a Care Home Cost in the UK? (2026)
What care homes really cost in 2026, why prices vary so much, and the funding help that could bring the bill down.
Benefits You Can Claim in a Care Home (2026)
The benefits that can help with care home costs — including Attendance Allowance — and how moving into care affects them.
Care Home Top-Up Fees, Explained (2026)
What third-party top-up fees are, when they’re allowed, and when a care home top-up is unlawful.
The Care Home Means Test, Explained (2026)
How the local authority financial assessment works, the £23,250 and £14,250 thresholds, and what counts as your money.
What Happens When Your Savings Run Out in a Care Home? (2026)
How care funding changes as your savings fall toward £23,250 — the 12-week disregard, council rates and top-ups.
Still have questions about paying for care? Ask Bart, our AI concierge.