Average Care Home Costs in the UK: The Data

The most-cited official estimate of the average care home cost in the UK is around £44,000 a year for someone who funds their own care, a figure the Competition and Markets Authority put at 41% more than local authorities pay on average for the same homes (CMA Care Homes Market Study, final report, 30 November 2017, subject to change).

Care home fees are one of the largest costs many families ever face, and they vary widely by home, region, level of need and who is paying. This piece gathers the most authoritative figures from named official sources: the CMA market study, gov.uk local-authority fee data, ONS estimates of how many people self-fund, and the statutory capital limits that decide when a council helps. It sits within our estate planning guide, alongside our detailed note on Care Home Fees. Every figure carries its source and reference period, figures are current as at July 2026 and subject to change, and nothing here is advice on any individual situation.

The headline care home cost numbers

A self-funded UK care home place cost an estimated £44,000 a year, or nearly £846 a week, at the time of the Competition and Markets Authority's market study, against an average of £621 a week paid by local authorities (CMA Care Homes Market Study, final report, 30 November 2017, subject to change). More recent gov.uk data on the fees councils actually pay puts the average local-authority fee for a place in a care home with nursing for people aged 65 and over at £1,089 a week, and £956 a week without nursing, for 2025 to 2026 (gov.uk Market Sustainability and Improvement Fund provider fee reporting, 2025 to 2026, provisional, subject to change). Because self-funders are generally charged more than councils for the same home, the amount an individual pays can be higher again, depending on the home and region.

Key figures at a glance

Care home costs run into tens of thousands of pounds a year, and what a person pays depends heavily on whether a council is funding the place. The table below sets out each statistic with its source and reference period. The CMA self-funder estimate dates from 2017, while the gov.uk fee data covers what councils paid in 2025 to 2026, so the two are not directly comparable and are best read as separate reference points.

Sources: CMA Care Homes Market Study, final report (30 November 2017), gov.uk MSIF provider fee reporting (2025 to 2026), ONS Care homes and estimating the self-funding population, England (published 6 July 2023), and the gov.uk social care charging circular (published 17 February 2026). Figures as at July 2026 and subject to change.

How the picture differs across the UK

The gov.uk fee data covers England, where the average local-authority fee for a care home with nursing for people aged 65 and over was £1,089 a week in 2025 to 2026, up 4.9% on the prior year, and £956 a week without nursing, up 5.3% (gov.uk MSIF provider fee reporting, 2025 to 2026, provisional, subject to change). Care and its funding rules are devolved, so Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland set their own systems and fee levels, and the England figures do not carry across directly.

Source: gov.uk Market Sustainability and Improvement Fund provider fee reporting, 2025 to 2026 (provisional). These are the fees councils in England reported paying, not what self-funders are charged, which is generally higher. Figures as at July 2026 and subject to change.

Where the means test bites

In England, whether a council helps with residential care fees turns on a means test with two capital thresholds. Where someone has capital above the upper limit of £23,250, they are generally expected to meet the full cost of their care; below the lower limit of £14,250, capital is not counted in the assessment, and between the two a tariff income is applied (gov.uk social care charging circular, 2026 to 2027, published 17 February 2026, subject to change). Those in a care home also keep a personal expenses allowance, set at £31.80 a week for 2026 to 2027 (gov.uk charging circular, 2026 to 2027, subject to change). Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland set their own limits.

Because these thresholds are relatively low against typical fees, many people who would not consider themselves wealthy end up self-funding. It is worth being aware that when a council carries out a financial assessment it can look at whether assets have been given away, under what is known as the deprivation of assets rule; deliberately giving away assets to reduce a care contribution can be challenged and the council may still treat the person as owning them (gov.uk charging circular, 2026 to 2027, subject to change). For that reason this piece frames planning around limiting and mitigating the impact of care fees, never as a way to deliberately avoid them, and many people choose to discuss their options with a qualified professional. Our note on care home fees sets out the wider rules.

Read together, the data suggests care home costs are high, common and unevenly shared, with people who fund their own care generally paying more than councils for the same home (CMA market study, 30 November 2017, subject to change). The CMA figures are now several years old, so the cash amounts will have risen, and the more recent gov.uk fee data reflects what councils pay rather than what self-funders are charged (gov.uk MSIF, 2025 to 2026, subject to change). These are observations about published data, not predictions, and any individual's cost depends on the home, their needs, their capital and where they live.

For anyone weighing how care fees might affect an estate, many people choose to look at the rules early and, where the figures are significant, to discuss options for limiting and mitigating the impact of care fees with a qualified professional. General reading such as our note on care home fees can help frame those conversations, but it is not a substitute for advice on individual circumstances.

Sources and methodology

Every statistic on this page comes from a named source and has been checked against the current published figures. The CMA estimates date from its 2017 market study and are quoted as published. The gov.uk fee data is provisional for 2025 to 2026 and covers England only. The ONS self-funder estimate covers the year to February 2023. Capital limits are the statutory England figures for 2026 to 2027. Where figures come from different years or definitions, they are not directly comparable and nothing has been estimated, extrapolated or rounded beyond the source.

• CMA Care Homes Market Study, final report (30 November 2017): the ~£44,000 a year and ~£846 a week self-funder estimates, the ~£621 a week average local-authority fee, the 41% average premium, the ~£236 a week differential in mixed homes, and the 41% self-funded / 49% LA-funded split. gov.uk
• gov.uk Market Sustainability and Improvement Fund provider fee reporting, 2025 to 2026 (provisional): average local-authority fees for care homes with and without nursing for people aged 65 and over, and the year-on-year increases. gov.uk
• ONS Care homes and estimating the self-funding population, England (published 6 July 2023): the estimate that 37.0% of care home residents (137,480 people) self-funded in the year to February 2023. ons.gov.uk
• gov.uk social care charging local authority circular, 2026 to 2027 (published 17 February 2026): the upper and lower capital limits of £23,250 and £14,250 and the £31.80 a week personal expenses allowance for England. gov.uk

All figures are current as at July 2026 and are subject to change. Statistics are quoted as published; the £846 a week and £236 a week figures appear in the CMA report and nothing on this page has been estimated, extrapolated or rounded beyond the source.

Frequently asked questions