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Alternatives to Curam for home and live-in care

Curam introduces families to self-employed carers and also runs a CQC-registered managed service. If you are looking at other options, the main choice is the same one Curam offers: an introductory service where you choose and direct the carer, or a managed agency that takes on the running of the care. These are the alternatives families are most often pointed to, with what each one says about itself.

By PrimeCarers, the service that wrote this comparison  ·  Updated October 2026  ·  6 min read

What it is

What Curam is, in its own words

Curam describes itself as a UK home care platform that connects families directly with self-employed carers, for live-in, hourly and overnight care. Its client information page says a 12% client fee is added to your invoices, a 15% carer fee comes out of the carer's agreed rate, and that the average rate charged was £20.50 an hour and £1,200 a week for live-in in August 2025.

It asks carers for two UK work references and a Care Certificate from the last three years, and it says it accepts council direct payments and NHS Continuing Healthcare funding (with the CHC team's agreement), and is used by personal budget holders. Separately, Curam Managed Care is a service it says is CQC registered. On Trustpilot Curam showed 4.4 from 636 reviews on 19 October 2026.

The alternatives

6 alternatives to Curam

Listed in no particular order. Each is labelled by how it works, with one line from its own website and a price only where it publishes one. Checked on 19 October 2026, 4 November 2026 and 5 November 2026.

  • Elder

    Alternatives to ElderIntroductory

    Describes itself as an introductory agency connecting families across Great Britain with vetted, self-employed carers, and says it does not provide regulated care. It offers live-in care, respite stays and, in some cities, visiting care.

    Published price: Live-in from £1,195 a week and respite from £1,595 a week, with its booking fee inside the price.

    Source: Elder, introductory agency, Elder pricing, checked 5 November 2026

  • TrustonTap

    Alternatives to TrustonTapIntroductory

    Says the CQC defines it as an introductory agency that is not required to register, that all its carers are self-employed and set their own rates, and that it checks identity, right to work and training certificates and takes two references on each carer.

    Published price: £23 to £34 an hour (average £26), live-in from £1,200 a week, plus a client administration fee of 5% plus VAT.

    Source: TrustonTap FAQs, TrustonTap pricing, checked 4 November 2026

  • PrimeCarers

    Alternatives to PrimeCarersIntroductory

    The service that wrote this page. Families search self-employed carers near them, see each carer's own rate and choose who to hire. It is not a care agency and is not CQC registered. Every carer has an ID check, a right to work check, an enhanced DBS (or PVG or Access NI) issued within the last 2 years and an online interview. We do not verify references, qualifications or training.

    Published price: Hourly visits £18 to £25, live-in £1,050 to £1,400 a week, our fee included.

    Source: PrimeCarers pricing, what we check, checked 19 October 2026

  • Hometouch

    Alternatives to HometouchBoth

    Runs an introductory model, which it says has operated since 2015 and is not regulated by the CQC, and a separate managed care service that is CQC regulated.

    Published price: Introductory care from £1,400 a week, regulated care from £1,500 a week.

    Source: myhometouch.com, Hometouch pricing, checked 19 October 2026

  • Country Cousins

    Alternatives to Country CousinsIntroductory

    Says it has introduced live-in carers since 1959 and calls itself the UK's longest-serving introductory live-in care provider. Its carers are self-employed and contracted by you, and it is not CQC registered. Managed care comes from its sister company, Trinity Homecare.

    Published price: Live-in from £1,155 a week (its figure for October 2026), plus a one-off registration fee, an agency fee and the carer's travel.

    Source: country-cousins.co.uk, Country Cousins, introductory vs managed, Country Cousins live-in cost, checked 4 November 2026

  • Consultus Care & Nursing

    Alternatives to Consultus Care & NursingBoth

    Founded in 1962 and family-owned. It offers an introductory service, where a self-employed carer works for you and you pay them directly, and a fully managed live-in service that it says is regulated by the CQC in England. It also offers live-in nursing.

    Published price: Introductory live-in from £1,092 a week including its weekly agency fee, plus a £250 registration fee; managed live-in from £1,603 a week, subject to assessment.

    Source: consultuscare.com, Consultus live-in costs, checked 4 November 2026

Which kind suits you

Introductory or managed: which kind suits you

Most of the alternatives to Curam work the way Curam does. The question is less which name to pick than which of the two models fits your situation.

Who employs the carer

Introductory service
Nobody. The carer is self-employed and works for you
CQC-registered managed agency
The agency

Who chooses the carer

Introductory service
You, from profiles
CQC-registered managed agency
The agency, usually with your input

Who directs the care day to day

Introductory service
You and the carer
CQC-registered managed agency
The agency, through a care plan

If the carer cannot come

Introductory service
You find cover, with whatever help the service offers
CQC-registered managed agency
The agency arranges cover

Registered with the CQC in England

Introductory service
No, because it does not provide the care
CQC-registered managed agency
Yes, and its inspection reports are public

Price

Introductory service
Usually lower. On PrimeCarers, live-in is typically £1,120 a week
CQC-registered managed agency
Usually higher. A typical managed live-in week is £1,120 to £1,750

Some providers run both models, so ask which one you are being offered. The managed range is a typical figure, not any named agency's price.

An introductory service tends to suit a family that wants to choose the carer, can be the person the carer answers to, and wants more of the price to reach the carer. A managed agency tends to suit care that is complex or clinical, a family that cannot be on hand to direct it, or anyone who wants the provider to be responsible for cover. Either way, ask which checks were done on the carer you would get, not on the company in general.

Questions

Questions about alternatives to Curam

The services that work most like Curam are the other introductory platforms, where carers are self-employed and you choose and direct them: Elder, TrustonTap, PrimeCarers, Country Cousins and the introductory side of Hometouch and Consultus. They differ in the fee they charge, where they have carers and which checks they publish, so compare those three things for the carer you would hire.

Its main service is not a managed agency. Curam describes itself as a platform that connects families directly with self-employed carers. It also runs Curam Managed Care, which it says is registered with the CQC, so it offers both models.

It depends on the carer more than the platform, because on most introductory services each carer sets their own rate. Look at the fee as well. Curam publishes a 12% client fee added to invoices and a 15% carer fee. On PrimeCarers the standard fee is inside the price you see: 20% on hourly visits under 6 hours and 12.5% on live-in. PrimeCarers vs Curam sets the two side by side.

Often, yes. A direct payment can usually pay a self-employed carer your family has chosen, which is how most introductory services work, and Curam says it accepts direct payments too. Rules differ between councils, so ask your council's direct payments team before care starts.

Sources

Sources checked on 19 October 2026, 4 November 2026 and 5 November 2026

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