The short answer
- Most people can stay in their own home for longer than they expectPaid care at home covers a huge range, from one visit a week to a carer living in permanently, so "staying at home" rarely means managing completely alone.
- Retirement housing and assisted living sit between a home and a care homeIndependent living gives a self-contained home among people the same age. Assisted living, also called extra care housing, adds staff on site and care arranged as needed.
- A care home is not one thingResidential care and nursing care answer different levels of need, and the difference shows up in both the weekly fee and who is on hand day and night.
- A short stay can answer a short problemRespite care gives a family carer a break, or covers a gap after a fall or a hospital stay, without anyone committing to a permanent move.
Where a figure appears on this page it is what PrimeCarers or a typical care home charges as of September 2026. Carers on PrimeCarers charge £18 to £25 an hour with our fee included, against £28 to £35 through most agencies for the same visit.
The choices at a glance
Six ways an older person can be cared for and housed
These are not strict stages that everyone passes through in order. Some families start at the top of this list and never move down it; others skip straight to a care home because that is what the situation needs. What the list gives you is the vocabulary, and a rough sense of how much support and cost sits behind each word.
Hourly care at home
£18–25 an hour on PrimeCarersA carer visits for an hour or more at a time, as often as needed. Suits someone managing at home but needing help with washing, meals, medication or getting out and about.
Live-in care at home
£1,050–£1,400+ a week on PrimeCarersA carer moves into a spare room and covers the day and night. Suits someone who needs support at unpredictable times, or whose hourly visits have grown to fill most of the day.
Independent or retirement living
Rent or buy, plus a service chargeA self-contained flat or bungalow on a scheme built for older residents, usually with neighbours a similar age and shops or a GP close by. No care is included; residents arrange their own.
Assisted living, also called extra care housing
Rent or buy, plus care chargesThe same self-contained setup as independent living, but with staff on site, sometimes around the clock, and personal care arranged through the scheme as and when it is needed.
Residential care home
around £1,160 a weekA room in a home with staff providing meals, personal care and activities day and night. Suits someone who needs more help than visits or a live-in carer can safely give.
Nursing home
around £1,410 a weekA care home with a registered nurse on site at all times, for residents with ongoing medical or nursing needs alongside their personal care.
Two of these, hourly and live-in care, are what PrimeCarers helps families arrange: you search and message carers directly, and there is no agency fee or contract to renegotiate as needs change. The other four are housing and care decisions that PrimeCarers does not provide or place people into; this page explains what each one is and where to go next. Care at home or a care home sets the money side of the two most common choices side by side, and the care cost calculator gives a fuller local estimate than the figures above.
Staying at home
Care at home: from an hourly visit to a live-in carer
Remaining in the home someone already knows is what most older people say they want, and for a large range of needs it is achievable without moving anyone anywhere.
Hourly care
£18–25 an hour
Live-in care
£1,050–£1,400+ a week
Retirement housing
Independent living and assisted living, explained
Moving is not the same decision as needing care, and these two housing types separate the two questions. Age UK's guide to housing options is a good primary source if you want to go further than this page.
| Support on site | Tends to suit | Worth knowing | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Independent or retirement living | None included; residents arrange their own care if they need any | Someone who is well but wants less to manage: no garden, no stairs, neighbours their own age | Sometimes called sheltered housing. Usually has an alarm system and a warden or manager, but not personal care |
| Assisted living / extra care housing | Staff on site, often around the clock, plus care arranged through the scheme | Someone who needs some help day to day but wants their own front door rather than a single room | Regulated by the CQC for the personal care it provides, in the same way a home care agency is |
Independent or retirement living
- Support on site
- None included; residents arrange their own care if they need any
- Tends to suit
- Someone who is well but wants less to manage: no garden, no stairs, neighbours their own age
- Worth knowing
- Sometimes called sheltered housing. Usually has an alarm system and a warden or manager, but not personal care
Assisted living / extra care housing
- Support on site
- Staff on site, often around the clock, plus care arranged through the scheme
- Tends to suit
- Someone who needs some help day to day but wants their own front door rather than a single room
- Worth knowing
- Regulated by the CQC for the personal care it provides, in the same way a home care agency is
Both are usually rented or bought like ordinary housing, with a service charge on top, so costs vary hugely by scheme, area and whether you rent or buy. There is no single figure worth quoting; ask each scheme directly and, if your relative may be eligible for council help, ask the council what it would contribute before you sign anything.
Waiting lists for popular schemes can run to months, so it is worth looking early even if a move is not needed yet. Community retirement living and choosing the best house for an older person go further into what to look for in a scheme or a more accessible home. If your relative would rather not move at all, home care or live-in care can often deliver the same level of daily support inside their existing home instead.
Care homes
Residential care homes and nursing homes
A care home is the right choice when needs have grown beyond what visits, a live-in carer, or a housing scheme with some staff on site can safely cover. It splits into two levels, and the difference matters for both the fee and the kind of staff on hand.
| Staffing | Tends to suit | Typical weekly fee | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Residential care home | Trained care staff around the clock; a nurse is not required to be on site | Help with washing, dressing, meals, medication and mobility, without a nursing-level medical need | around £1,160, range £1,100–£1,600 |
| Nursing home | A registered nurse on site at all times, alongside care staff | An ongoing medical or nursing need, such as complex wound care or a condition needing regular clinical monitoring | around £1,410 |
Residential care home
- Staffing
- Trained care staff around the clock; a nurse is not required to be on site
- Tends to suit
- Help with washing, dressing, meals, medication and mobility, without a nursing-level medical need
- Typical weekly fee
- around £1,160, range £1,100–£1,600
Nursing home
- Staffing
- A registered nurse on site at all times, alongside care staff
- Tends to suit
- An ongoing medical or nursing need, such as complex wound care or a condition needing regular clinical monitoring
- Typical weekly fee
- around £1,410
Every care home in England, of both kinds, must be registered with and inspected by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), and its most recent rating and inspection report are public.
If a nursing need is assessed by the NHS, part of the nursing fee is paid automatically as NHS-funded nursing care, whatever your relative's savings. Differences between a nursing home and a care home covers that funding in full, and Care Homes explains how a placement is arranged and what a first visit should cover. To check ratings and inspection reports for a specific home, search the CQC's directory of care services.
Respite care
Respite care: a short break, not a permanent move
Respite is a short-term version of one of the options above, rather than a separate housing type of its own. It exists to give a family carer a break, or to cover a gap, without anyone committing to anything long-term.
Extra hourly or live-in cover at home
A short stay in a care home
A day centre
Planned around a known gap
A council carer's assessment can lead to funded respite for a family carer, separately from any means test on your relative's own savings. Respite care and when to consider respite care go into how it is arranged, and what is a carer's assessment? explains how to ask the council for one.
How to decide
How to work out which option fits, and how to start
Most families do not choose once and stop. They pick what fits now, and revisit it as things change. These four steps work whichever option looks most likely.
- 1
Get a clear picture of what is needed
This weekList what your relative can and cannot manage alone: washing, meals, medication, getting about, and whether nights are a worry. A GP, an occupational therapist, or a council care needs assessment can all help build this picture, and the assessment is free to ask for. - 2
Work out who pays
This weekIn England, anyone with more than £23,250 in savings and assets is a self-funder for care home and care at home costs alike; below that, the council may contribute. Asking for a care needs assessment is free either way. - 3
Look at what is available near you
This week to two weeksSearch hourly or live-in carers by postcode, or shortlist two or three local care homes or housing schemes using their CQC ratings. Availability, not just preference, often narrows the choice quickly. - 4
Try before committing, where you can
Week 2 onwardsA trial week of hourly visits, a respite stay in a care home, or a short-term live-in booking all let you and your relative see how an option feels before anyone signs anything permanent. Visits on PrimeCarers can be increased, decreased or stopped with 48 hours' notice, without a new contract.
Questions
Questions families ask about care and housing options
Six, roughly in order of how much support comes with them: hourly care at home, live-in care at home, independent or retirement living, assisted living (also called extra care housing), a residential care home, and a nursing home. Respite care is a short-term version of any of these rather than a separate option. Elderly care is a good next stop for the wider decisions families face alongside this one.
Assisted living, or extra care housing, gives a resident their own self-contained flat with staff and care available on site as needed. A care home gives a resident a single room, with staff providing all meals, personal care and activities. Assisted living suits someone who still wants their own front door; a care home suits someone who needs more continuous support than that allows.
Hourly care on PrimeCarers runs £18 to £25 an hour, and live-in care from about £1,050 a week. A residential care home is typically around £1,160 a week and a nursing home nearer £1,410. Care at home or a care home compares the two properly, including for a couple.
It can, depending on your relative's savings and assets. In England the upper capital limit is £23,250: above that figure your relative pays in full, whichever option is chosen; below it the council may contribute after a means test and a care needs assessment, both of which are free to ask for. How to get local authority funding for care covers the process in full.
A short-term break from caring, for the family carer as much as for the person being cared for. It can mean extra paid cover at home, a short stay in a care home, or a day centre. Ask the council for a carer's assessment to see what funded respite might be available, or arrange it privately through a carer or a care home's short-stay places. Respite care covers the options in more depth.
Yes, and it is worth doing. Live-in care can be booked for a trial period rather than an open-ended arrangement, and most care homes offer a short-stay or respite place on the same terms as a permanent one, which is a good way to judge a specific home before deciding on anything longer.
Common signs are needs spreading across more of the day than the visits cover, a fall or a near miss between visits, or a family carer covering the gaps and becoming exhausted themselves. How many visits a week does my parent need? helps work out the hours from the tasks involved, and once that reaches roughly 35 hours a week, live-in care usually costs about the same and covers the nights too.