How much do home health and personal care aides make?

What the national Home Health and Personal Care Aides median says

The May 2025 BLS OEWS estimate puts the U.S. median for Home Health and Personal Care Aides at $35,800 per year. Median means the middle. Half of the wage values used for this estimate fall below that point. Half fall above it. The median is not one worker's pay. It is not a job offer. It is one clear mark for the middle of a broad national pay range.

BLS also lists 4,305,810 wage and salary jobs for Home Health and Personal Care Aides. That count covers jobs in the survey's scope. It does not count open job ads. It also leaves out people who work for themselves. The wage and job counts share the same May 2025 reference point, so they can be read together without mixing time periods.

The Home Health and Personal Care Aides mean of $36,120 per year is 0.9% above the $35,800 median on the same published median. Mean means BLS adds the wage values and divides the total by the number of jobs behind the estimate. A gap between mean and median shows that the shape is not even. It does not explain the cause of the gap.

The fields that make SOC 31-1120 its own page

BLS names this record Home Health and Personal Care Aides and gives it SOC 31-1120. The two-part code is the stable key for this page. A role with a close name keeps a different code, wage row, job count, and area pattern. WageScope never joins two SOC records because their words sound alike.

For SOC 31-1120, the U.S. row reports 4,305,810 wage and salary jobs. Its annual median is $35,800 per year. Its matching mean is $36,120 per year. These facts come from one national row and one May 2025 release.

SOC 31-1120 appears in 54 state or territory rows. It also has 392 metro rows and 137 nonmetro rows. A missing local row stays missing. We do not fill it with U.S. data or data for a similar job code.

• SOC 31-1120 10th percentile: $27,040 per year.
• SOC 31-1120 25th percentile: $31,920 per year.
• SOC 31-1120 median: $35,800 per year.
• SOC 31-1120 75th percentile: $39,470 per year.
• SOC 31-1120 90th percentile: $45,040 per year.
• SOC 31-1120 employment RSE: 0.3%. Mean-wage RSE: 0.3%.
• SOC 31-1120 has no national suppression mark in the fields shown on this page.

Read the Home Health and Personal Care Aides wage ladder from low to high

The 10th percentile is $27,040 per year. The 25th percentile is $31,920 per year. The median is $35,800 per year. The 75th percentile is $39,470 per year. The 90th percentile is $45,040 per year. Each point marks a place in the same national wage spread.

A percentile is a rank point. It is not a career step. For example, the 10th percentile means 10% of wage values are at or below that mark. It does not mean a new worker starts there. The 90th percentile means 90% are at or below that mark. It does not mean a worker can reach it after a set number of years.

The middle half runs from $31,920 to $39,470 per year. That span is $7,550. The full 10th-to-90th span is $18,000. These spans show why one median cannot stand in for every Home Health and Personal Care Aides job.

What the gaps around the Home Health and Personal Care Aides median show

The median is 32.4% above the 10th percentile. The 90th percentile is 25.8% above the median. The two sides do not have to match. A wider upper side can pull the mean up. A wider lower side can pull it down. The data shows the shape, but not the reason for that shape.

The 25th-to-median step is $3,880 per year. The median-to-75th step is $3,670 per year. These two steps give a closer look at the middle half. They are often more useful than a single top-to-bottom gap because they keep the center in view.

Use this ladder as a fact check when you read a job post. A posted range can sit below, near, or above these BLS marks. That does not make the post wrong. A job may differ by place, hours, level, field, employer, or work rules. Keep the posted range tied to that listing. Keep the BLS range tied to the whole occupation.

Metro areas with the highest published Home Health and Personal Care Aides medians

WageScope found 392 metro rows with the same published annual median for Home Health and Personal Care Aides. It sorts only those rows. It does not fill a blank row. It does not turn a blank into zero. The first six rows below have the highest published medians in this release. The list is a wage rank, not a rank of places to live or work.

The first row is Grants Pass, OR, at $53,120 per year. The middle metro row by published pay is El Centro, CA, at $34,320 per year. That middle metro mark gives one more check on how far the top rows sit from a common place in the set.

These are nominal wages. Nominal means the dollar amount shown in the source. This list does not adjust for local price levels. It also does not tell us how many openings an area has now. Use a local page to see price-level context when an exact BEA row exists. Use the separate job block to inspect current employer-title matches.

• 1. Grants Pass, OR has a Home Health and Personal Care Aides median of $53,120 per year, or $17,320 above the U.S. Home Health and Personal Care Aides median. BLS lists 4,640 jobs there, against 4,305,810 across the U.S. The local location quotient is 5.48.
• 2. Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA has a Home Health and Personal Care Aides median of $48,210 per year, or $12,410 above the U.S. Home Health and Personal Care Aides median. BLS lists 54,670 jobs there, against 4,305,810 across the U.S. The local location quotient is 0.95.
• 3. Longview-Kelso, WA has a Home Health and Personal Care Aides median of $47,840 per year, or $12,040 above the U.S. Home Health and Personal Care Aides median. BLS lists 1,780 jobs there, against 4,305,810 across the U.S. The local location quotient is 1.57.
• 4. Kennewick-Richland, WA has a Home Health and Personal Care Aides median of $47,810 per year, or $12,010 above the U.S. Home Health and Personal Care Aides median. BLS lists 4,800 jobs there, against 4,305,810 across the U.S. The local location quotient is 1.34.
• 5. Wenatchee-East Wenatchee, WA has a Home Health and Personal Care Aides median of $47,730 per year, or $11,930 above the U.S. Home Health and Personal Care Aides median. BLS lists 1,120 jobs there, against 4,305,810 across the U.S. The local location quotient is 0.79.
• 6. Walla Walla, WA has a Home Health and Personal Care Aides median of $47,700 per year, or $11,900 above the U.S. Home Health and Personal Care Aides median. BLS lists 1,160 jobs there, against 4,305,810 across the U.S. The local location quotient is 1.61.

Metro areas with the largest Home Health and Personal Care Aides job estimates

A large wage can appear in a small job market. A large job market can have a lower wage. That is why WageScope keeps pay and job count in separate views. The six rows below have the largest published employment estimates for Home Health and Personal Care Aides among metro rows in this release. Employment means the number of wage and salary jobs in scope. It does not mean open roles.

New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ has the largest listed metro estimate in this set, at 644,700 jobs. Its median is $39,680 per year. Compare that with Grants Pass, OR, which leads the published median list. The leaders may match, or they may not. Each list answers a different question.

Job count can help you see the scale of a local labor market. It cannot show churn, new hiring, job quality, remote work, or the chance that one person will get hired. Current listings add a second view, but they are a dated sample of posts. WageScope never turns the listing count into a demand score.

• 1. New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ has 644,700 estimated Home Health and Personal Care Aides jobs. That is 15.0% of the U.S. estimate of 4,305,810 jobs. Its median is $39,680 per year, or $3,880 above the U.S. Home Health and Personal Care Aides median. Its location quotient is 2.45.
• 2. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA has 385,530 estimated Home Health and Personal Care Aides jobs. That is 9.0% of the U.S. estimate of 4,305,810 jobs. Its median is $34,320 per year, or $1,480 below the U.S. Home Health and Personal Care Aides median. Its location quotient is 2.22.
• 3. Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD has 158,280 estimated Home Health and Personal Care Aides jobs. That is 3.7% of the U.S. estimate of 4,305,810 jobs. Its median is $29,800 per year, or $6,000 below the U.S. Home Health and Personal Care Aides median. Its location quotient is 1.97.
• 4. San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA has 119,120 estimated Home Health and Personal Care Aides jobs. That is 2.8% of the U.S. estimate of 4,305,810 jobs. Its median is $35,950 per year, or $150 above the U.S. Home Health and Personal Care Aides median. Its location quotient is 1.81.
• 5. Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN has 108,520 estimated Home Health and Personal Care Aides jobs. That is 2.5% of the U.S. estimate of 4,305,810 jobs. Its median is $38,180 per year, or $2,380 above the U.S. Home Health and Personal Care Aides median. Its location quotient is 0.87.
• 6. Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA has 102,760 estimated Home Health and Personal Care Aides jobs. That is 2.4% of the U.S. estimate of 4,305,810 jobs. Its median is $34,320 per year, or $1,480 below the U.S. Home Health and Personal Care Aides median. Its location quotient is 2.16.

Where Home Health and Personal Care Aides has a larger share of local jobs

Location quotient is a share check. A value of 1 means the role has the same share of local jobs as it has across the nation. A value above 1 means the local share is larger. A value below 1 means the local share is smaller. It is not a count. It is not a wage. It does not say that a place is growing.

McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX has the highest published location quotient in this bounded metro set, at 5.65. The same row lists 46,380 jobs and a median of $23,960 per year. Reading all three values keeps a high share from being mistaken for a large market or high pay.

A small area can have a high location quotient because the role makes up a large part of a small local job base. A large area can have many workers and a lower quotient. Use the quotient to ask where the role is common in the mix. Use employment to ask how many jobs BLS estimated. Use the wage fields to ask what the published pay range looks like.

• 1. McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX has a Home Health and Personal Care Aides location quotient of 5.65. BLS lists 46,380 jobs and a median of $23,960 per year, or $11,840 below the U.S. Home Health and Personal Care Aides median. The U.S. job estimate is 4,305,810.
• 2. Grants Pass, OR has a Home Health and Personal Care Aides location quotient of 5.48. BLS lists 4,640 jobs and a median of $53,120 per year, or $17,320 above the U.S. Home Health and Personal Care Aides median. The U.S. job estimate is 4,305,810.
• 3. Brownsville-Harlingen, TX has a Home Health and Personal Care Aides location quotient of 5.04. BLS lists 21,990 jobs and a median of $23,500 per year, or $12,300 below the U.S. Home Health and Personal Care Aides median. The U.S. job estimate is 4,305,810.
• 4. El Centro, CA has a Home Health and Personal Care Aides location quotient of 4.42. BLS lists 8,020 jobs and a median of $34,320 per year, or $1,480 below the U.S. Home Health and Personal Care Aides median. The U.S. job estimate is 4,305,810.
• 5. Las Cruces, NM has a Home Health and Personal Care Aides location quotient of 2.9. BLS lists 6,430 jobs and a median of $27,840 per year, or $7,960 below the U.S. Home Health and Personal Care Aides median. The U.S. job estimate is 4,305,810.
• 6. Springfield, MA has a Home Health and Personal Care Aides location quotient of 2.84. BLS lists 15,840 jobs and a median of $40,860 per year, or $5,060 above the U.S. Home Health and Personal Care Aides median. The U.S. job estimate is 4,305,810.

How Home Health and Personal Care Aides sits in Healthcare Support

Home Health and Personal Care Aides is SOC 31-1120. BLS places it in the Healthcare Support major group. Among 17 detailed roles in that group with a published annual median, Home Health and Personal Care Aides ranks 16 of 17 by median. This is a pay rank inside one source family. It is not a rank of skill, value, status, or career fit.

The closest same-family medians help set a fair peer frame. They do not claim that the work is the same. Official SOC titles can cover different tasks and settings. WageScope uses the family only because BLS publishes that link. It does not infer a career move, a skill match, or a hiring path from the wage gap.

Use these peer rows to spot whether the $35,800 median sits near many family roles or far from them. Then open a role's own page before using its number. Each role has a different code, job count, wage spread, and place pattern. One family label does not erase those facts.

• 1. Physical Therapist Aides, SOC 31-2022, has a U.S. median of $35,240 per year. Its gap from Home Health and Personal Care Aides is $560 per year.
• 2. Pharmacy Aides, SOC 31-9095, has a U.S. median of $37,680 per year. Its gap from Home Health and Personal Care Aides is $1,880 per year.
• 3. Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers, SOC 31-9096, has a U.S. median of $38,150 per year. Its gap from Home Health and Personal Care Aides is $2,350 per year.
• 4. Orderlies, SOC 31-1132, has a U.S. median of $38,290 per year. Its gap from Home Health and Personal Care Aides is $2,490 per year.
• 5. Occupational Therapy Aides, SOC 31-2012, has a U.S. median of $39,160 per year. Its gap from Home Health and Personal Care Aides is $3,360 per year.
• 6. Medical Transcriptionists, SOC 31-9094, has a U.S. median of $40,410 per year. Its gap from Home Health and Personal Care Aides is $4,610 per year.

How much care to use with the Home Health and Personal Care Aides estimate

The relative standard error for the job count is 0.3%. For the mean wage it is 0.3%. This measure, called RSE, shows survey precision. A smaller RSE often means less uncertainty from the sample. It does not tell you whether one person's pay is right or wrong.

The employment RSE applies to the 4,305,810 job estimate. The mean-wage RSE applies to the published mean of $36,120 per year. These fields do not give a matching RSE for the median or each percentile. WageScope shows the fields BLS published and does not move one RSE to another measure.

Survey values can change when BLS changes its methods, sample, models, or source year. That is why we show May 2025 on this page. Before we use a new release, we check its files, rows, and pages. A changed number is only a correction if the source calls it one.

A simple way to compare Home Health and Personal Care Aides across places

First, compare the same wage metric. Use annual with annual or hourly with hourly. Next, check the source date. Keep May 2025 BLS rows together. Then read employment and location quotient beside pay. This stops a high median from standing in for market size or local share. Last, add BEA price-level context only when the exact place has an approved row.

A state, metro, and nonmetro area are not the same kind of map. Do not rank them in one list without saying so. WageScope groups like with like. It also keeps a national row as a broad bench mark. A local page can show the local row, its state row when that link is exact, and the U.S. row without blending them.

If a value is blank, keep it blank. If BLS marks a top code, read it as a lower bound. Do not fill a blank from a nearby place. Do not turn a wage gap into a claim about taxes, hours, benefits, work rules, or a household budget. Those facts are not in the OEWS row.

Move from Home Health and Personal Care Aides wage data to one real listing

The job block on this page uses a strict employer-title match for Home Health and Personal Care Aides. It may show fewer rows than the full MeritLog job search. That is on purpose. A false negative is safer here than a job card for a different role. Each card keeps its employer, place, source, and seen date. The cards do not change the BLS wage data.

Open one listing and read its own pay, work place, level, and needs. Compare its posted range with the BLS spread only as context. A posted range is set by an employer for one role. The BLS range is a survey view across many jobs. Neither source proves that a person is fit for the work.

When you tailor a résumé, use work facts you can back up. Do not turn $35,800 into a skill or result. Do not copy a BLS job count into your work history. MeritLog can help shape confirmed experience for a chosen listing. The wage page stays public and read only. It does not save a job or create a résumé on page load.

What this Home Health and Personal Care Aides page does not claim

This page does not say what one Home Health and Personal Care Aides worker earns. It does not promise that a job pays the median. It does not state a starting wage. It does not explain why the mean and median differ. It does not add benefits, tips, stock, bonus pay, taxes, or work hours unless BLS includes them in the published wage measure.

The page does not count people who work for themselves. It does not turn 4,305,810 into current openings. It does not read private MeritLog jobs or Career Memory. MeritLog does not use the page to build a private career profile. While public analytics are on, GA4, Ahrefs, and Meta may get this page's URL. Use Your Privacy Choices or Global Privacy Control to turn that off. The page does not send its text to a model.

The best use is narrow and clear. Read the May 2025 BLS wage range. Check how the role changes by place. Add the separate 2024 BEA price level when an exact row exists. Inspect a dated employer-title match. Then make a résumé choice from facts you have confirmed. Keep each source tied to the question it can answer.