Home Health and Personal Care Aides Salary - BLS OEWS Wage Benchmarks
SOC 31-1120 · National · May 2025 OEWS Data
Median Annual Salary
$35,797
$17.21/hr
Verified BLS OEWS data · Updated May 18, 2026
Is this a competitive Home Health and Personal Care Aides salary in 2026?
Based on BLS OEWS wage percentiles, JOLTS June 2026 demand signals, and ECI Q2 2026 wage growth.
$Competitive · ~P50
P10$27K
P25$32K
P50$36K
P75$39K
P90$45K
Drag the dot or type an amount above.
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Demand: HOT. Demand is hot -- health care job openings are running at 5.3% (JOLTS, June 2026), a tight market. Candidates have leverage, so a competitive offer sits at or above the median; below-median offers often will not close.
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Merit budget: Wages in health care are rising about 3.6% a year (BLS ECI, Q2 2026). Budget a 3.2-3.7% merit increase to hold this role at market.
Our read
For a competitive 2026 offer, target $35,797 to $39,478 (market median to the 75th percentile). Lean toward the top of the range for senior or hard-to-fill roles.
Figures are market benchmarks from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics; apply professional judgment before making pay decisions.
How Home Health and Personal Care Aides pay is moving in 2026
Trend, demand, and spread context from BLS OEWS, JOLTS, and ECI
Pay trend
Median pay for this role rose 2.6% between the May 2024 and May 2025 BLS surveys, trailing the 3.6% wage growth of Health Care & Social Assistance (BLS ECI).
Hiring demand · HOT
Health Care & Social Assistance is running a 5.3% job-openings rate with quits at 1.9% (BLS JOLTS). Demand has cooled for 2 straight months (6.1% down to 5.3%).
Pay spread
Top earners (P90) make about 1.7 times what entry-level (P10) workers make in this role. That spread is narrower than typical, so pay is fairly standardized; small differences move a candidate across the market.
What changed recently
Aug 4, 2026JOLTS June 2026: sector openings fell from 5.9% to 5.3% (down 147K), the sharpest monthly cooling this year, though still the second-tightest market.
Jul 31, 2026ECI Q2 2026: sector wages growing 3.6% per year, the fastest of any major sector. Health benefit costs rose 6.0% nationally.
Commentary is generated from published BLS figures (OEWS May 2025 vs May 2024, JOLTS June 2026, ECI Q2 2026) and refreshed each release. It is interpretation, not a BLS product.
Source: BLS OEWS · Published May 15, 2026
Next refresh: May 2027
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The national median salary for Home Health and Personal Care Aides is $35,797 per year ($17.21/hr) according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2025. The middle 50% of earners make between $31,928 and $39,478 annually. Top earners at the 90th percentile reach $45,032 per year. There are approximately 4,305,810 home health and personal care aides employed in the United States.
Career Outlook
BLS Employment Projections · 2024-2034
10-year growth
+17.0%
Much faster than average
Annual openings
766K
per year, on avg
Workforce today
4.3M
as of 2024
Why those openings exist
10% from new growth90% from people leaving the role
Most openings come from replacement, not growth. Retention matters more than recruiting here.
Typical entry requirements
Education
High school diploma or equivalent
Experience
None
On-the-job training
Short-term on-the-job training
Industry Wage Breakdown
Top 5 industries by employment · median annual wage, sector-specific
Industry
Workforce
Median Pay
Individual and Family Services
NAICS 624100
2.3M
$34,900
Home Health Care Services
NAICS 621600
1.1M
$36,230
Residential Intellectual and Developmental Disability, Mental Health, and Substance Abuse Facilities
NAICS 623200
321K
$37,400
Continuing Care Retirement Communities and Assisted Living Facilities for the Elderly
NAICS 623300
265K
$37,060
Vocational Rehabilitation Services
NAICS 624300
57K
$36,500
Wage Percentiles
Hourly & annualized (2,080 hours)
Percentile
Hourly Rate
Annual Salary
P10
$13.00
$27,040
P25
$15.35
$31,928
P50MEDIAN
$17.21
$35,797
P75
$18.98
$39,478
P90
$21.65
$45,032
Market Context Signal
JOLTS · health sector
Hot
Openings Rate
5.3%
Quits Rate
1.9%
Health Care & Social Assistance openings fell 147K to 1.35M in June, rate down from 5.9% to 5.3% -- the sector's biggest monthly cooling this year, though it remains the second-tightest market. Quits edged up to 1.9%; compensation pressure persists for clinical roles.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the average home health and personal care aides salary?
The national median salary for Home Health and Personal Care Aides is $35,797 per year ($17.21/hr) according to BLS OEWS May 2025 data. The middle 50% earn between $31,928 and $39,478 annually.
How much do top-earning home health and personal care aides make?
The 90th percentile salary for Home Health and Personal Care Aides is $45,032 per year ($21.65/hr). The 75th percentile is $39,478 per year.
What is the entry-level salary for home health and personal care aides?
Entry-level Home Health and Personal Care Aides (10th percentile) earn approximately $27,040 per year ($13.00/hr). The 25th percentile is $31,928 per year.
Wage figures on this page come from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2025 release. OEWS surveys roughly 1.1 million establishments annually. It is the most comprehensive employer-reported wage dataset in the United States.
P10 through P90 percentiles represent the wage distribution across all surveyed employers (not self-reported by workers). Geographic adjustments use BLS-derived cost multipliers calibrated from regional wage variation.
Wages are estimates. Individual compensation depends on experience, education, employer size, industry, and negotiation. Use this as benchmark context, not absolute ground truth.
CompSignal is a free labor market intelligence tool built for HR, compensation, and talent acquisition teams. We make BLS data, the same primary source Mercer and Radford cross-reference in their paid surveys, searchable and actionable without an enterprise subscription.
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