Adult Day Care Cost by State (2026)
Adult day care costs $2,058 a month in the middle state, across 45 states with published 2025 figures. Half of states fall between $1,798 and $3,033. Alabama is the least expensive at $1,246 and Montana the most expensive at $5,783.
Figures are for adult day health care, five days a week, from the CareScout Cost of Care Survey 2025.
By ElderCareCosts Research · Updated Aug 10, 2026
Median of 45 state medians, monthly
$2,058/mo
Range across state medians $1,798 – $3,033 how this range is derived
● the United States $2,058
What this national number is, and what it is not
This is a median of 45 state medians, not a survey of households. Each state contributes one figure regardless of how many people live there, so a small state moves the number exactly as much as a large one. Read it as the typical state, not the typical family. 6 of the 51 state-level jurisdictions we track have no published 2025 figure for adult day care, so they are left out rather than filled in with a guess. Your own cost depends on the metro you are in, the level of care, and the room type, which is why the state and city pages carry a narrower figure than this one.
Why our figure differs from other sites. CareScout's own 2025 national figure is $95 a day, about $2,058 a month at five days a week, a median across every provider it surveyed. Ours is the middle of the 45 state medians, so each state counts once and the two can differ. Other sites may quote a different survey year or an average of facility prices. Every figure here states its source and period so you can compare like with like.
Every care type side by side: the 2026 Cost of Senior Care Index.
What can you afford?
Every family starts with a number. Here is roughly what each monthly budget buys at national midpoints. Bands shift with your state, so check the state page before planning against them.
Part-time home care or entry assisted living
Assisted living with room to spare
Nursing care or heavy home-care schedules
How people pay for adult day care
Almost nobody pays for long-term care out of one pocket. Most families start with savings and income, then add a second source once the first thins out. The five payers below are ordered by how often they carry the bill, not by how much they pay. Eligibility for the government programs is set state by state, so the state page is where the rules get specific.
- Private pay (savings, income, home equity)Most common
- The default payer for most families at the start, especially for assisted living and in-home care. Often combined with a second source once savings run low.
- Long-term care insuranceCommon
- Pays toward care costs if a policy was purchased in advance, usually years before care is needed. Policy terms (daily/monthly benefit caps, elimination periods) vary widely. Check the policy documents directly.
- Medicaid (state-run, income- and asset-limited)Common
- Covers nursing home care in every state, and many states offer Home & Community-Based Services (HCBS) waivers that extend Medicaid to assisted living or in-home care. Eligibility rules and waiver availability are state-specific.
- VA Aid & Attendance (veterans and surviving spouses)Situational
- An added benefit on top of a VA pension for eligible wartime veterans (or surviving spouses) who need help with daily activities. Requires meeting service, income, and care-need criteria.
- MedicareNarrow eligibility
- Does not cover long-term custodial care (help with daily living). It can cover short-term skilled nursing or home health following a qualifying hospital stay, under specific conditions.
Medicaid and every admission will ask who can sign for your parent. Get the power of attorney done online. Sponsored
Between visits, a medical alert button covers the hours no one is in the house. See plans and the current offer. Sponsored
Guides that go deeper
Adult day care cost by state
Open a state for its own range, city detail, and funding rules.
The gap between the cheapest and most expensive state is the single largest thing on this page. Montana at $5,783 is 4.6 times Alabama at $1,246 for the same category of adult day care. Local wages, real estate, and staffing rules drive most of that, which is why a national figure is a starting point and a state figure is the one to plan against.
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Blank rows are honest. A state with no figure means we have no published source for it, not that care is unavailable there. We would rather show a gap than a guess.
Estimate your own number
Start from your state's figure in the table above, then adjust for your schedule and city with these tools.
Family tools
How to cite this page
Cite this: According to ElderCareCosts' 2026 index, adult day care in the United States costs $2,058/month (median, 2025 data).
APA: ElderCareCosts Research. (2026). Adult Day Care Cost by State, United States (2025). ElderCareCosts. Retrieved October 31, 2026, from https://www.eldercarecosts.com/cost-of-care/adult-day-care/
Chicago: ElderCareCosts Research. "Adult Day Care Cost by State, United States (2025)." ElderCareCosts. Last modified August 10, 2026. Accessed October 31, 2026. https://www.eldercarecosts.com/cost-of-care/adult-day-care/.
These figures may be quoted and reproduced with attribution and a link back to this page. No permission needed. Methodology · Data sources · Who produces this · Corrections
Frequently asked questions
How much does adult day care cost?
$2,058 a month in the middle state, across 45 states with published 2025 figures. Half of states fall between $1,798 and $3,033. Your state's own figure is in the table above and is the better number to plan against.
Why does adult day care cost so much more in some states?
Direct-care wages are the largest single input, and they track the local labor market. Real estate, staffing ratios set by state regulation, and general cost of living account for most of the rest.
Is this a national average?
No. It is the median of 45 state medians, so every state counts once regardless of population. A mean would sit higher because a few expensive states pull it up.
Can I get the raw data?
Yes. The CSV on this page has one row per state plus a national summary row, with the period, methodology version, and source tags on every row. Reuse it with attribution.
Find care options near you
Tell us needs and budget once. We email you licensed options with the cost data we publish, the same day. Data stays free either way.
Trust and methodology
The state figures on this page come from BLS wage data, May 2025, CareScout Cost of Care Survey 2025, carried under methodology cost-model-v1.4.0. The national row is computed from those state figures on this page and is not itself a survey result.
We correct figures in public when a source revises or we get one wrong. If a number here does not match what a provider quoted you, tell us and we will check it.