Agency vs. Private Caregiver: Cost Comparison and How to Decide What’s Right for Your Family

The $10–$20/Hour Gap: What Families Actually Pay vs. What Caregivers Earn

When you hire a home care agency, the rate you see on the invoice is not what the caregiver takes home. That gap — often $10 to $20 per hour — is the central tension in the agency-versus-private decision.

In a typical arrangement, a home care agency charges the family $35 to $45 per hour while paying the caregiver $14 to $20 per hour. The caregiver who works directly for a family, by contrast, typically earns about $25 per hour — meaning the caregiver takes home more, and the family often pays less overall. Data from Alula, based on a Charlottesville, Virginia case study, illustrates this dynamic clearly: agency rates of $35–$45/hr versus a private caregiver rate of $25/hr.

To put this in perspective, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports a 2024 national median wage of $16.78 per hour for home health and personal care aides. The agency markup — roughly 20% to 30% above what the caregiver earns — covers real costs, but it also means families are paying a significant premium for the infrastructure behind the caregiver.

Monthly Cost Comparison: Agency vs. Private Caregiver at 20 Hours per Week

The most common home care schedule is approximately 20 nonsleeping hours per week. At this level of care, the cost difference between an agency and a private caregiver becomes substantial — typically $400 to $1,200 per month.