What aged care costs

Why we do not publish live fee figures

Aged care fee thresholds and daily rates are indexed at least twice a year, on 20 March and 20 September. Any dollar figure published on a page like this is wrong within six months.

So this guide explains which fees exist and how each one works, and points you to the official estimator for the amounts. That is deliberate. A stale number in a decision this expensive is worse than no number.

If you are getting help at home

Entry level services

The Commonwealth Home Support Programme carries a small contribution set by each provider, often a few dollars for a delivered meal or a modest hourly rate for domestic help. Providers must have a fees policy and cannot refuse a service purely because you genuinely cannot afford the contribution. Ask about hardship arrangements.

Support at Home contributions

Your contribution depends on the service category:

• Clinical supports (nursing, allied health): no contribution from anyone.
• Independence services (personal care, transport, social support): a means tested share.
• Everyday living services (cleaning, gardening, meals): the highest share.

Provider fees worth checking

Care management is charged as a percentage of your budget. Compare hourly rates between providers, and ask specifically about weekend, public holiday and after hours loadings, travel charges, and exit fees.

If you are moving into an aged care home

Residential costs split into distinct buckets. Confusing them is the single most common source of bill shock.

1. Accommodation

What you pay for the room. Every home publishes a room price, and you choose how to pay it: a refundable lump sum (a Refundable Accommodation Deposit, or RAD), a daily payment (a Daily Accommodation Payment, or DAP), or a combination.

Lump sums are refunded to you or your estate when you leave, less any agreed deductions, and they are government guaranteed. You have 28 days after entering to decide, and you cannot be required to pay a lump sum.

2. The basic daily fee

Everyone pays this. It covers meals, laundry, cleaning, power and other day to day living costs, and it is set as a percentage of the single basic Age Pension, so it moves each March and September.

3. Means tested contributions

Depending on income and assets you may contribute towards your own care. Under the arrangements that began on 1 November 2025 this includes a non-clinical care contribution and, for people with means above a threshold, a hotelling contribution towards everyday living costs. Clinical care is funded by the Government.

4. Extra or additional service fees

Optional charges for things above the standard: a better room, wine with dinner, pay television, outings. These are not subsidised and are negotiable before you sign. Read this part of the agreement carefully, because it is where costs quietly accumulate.

The safety nets

• Caps. Means tested care contributions are capped annually and over a lifetime, and stop after a set period in care.
• Government funded accommodation. If your means are low, the Government pays your accommodation in full or in part.
• Financial hardship assistance. Available if you genuinely cannot meet fees because of circumstances beyond your control. Apply through Services Australia.
• "No worse off" protections. People already in care or holding a package before 1 November 2025 are generally not moved onto less favourable arrangements.

The family home

The home is treated differently from other assets. For residential aged care means testing only a capped value of the former home counts, and it is exempt entirely if a protected person such as a spouse or a long term resident carer still lives there.

Whether to sell, rent or keep it affects your aged care fees, your Age Pension and your estate, and those three do not always point the same way. This is the point at which specialist advice pays for itself. Look for an adviser accredited in aged care and ask them to model at least two scenarios in writing.

Frequently asked