Long-Term Care Cost Calculator

Long-term care (LTC) - nursing home, assisted living, or in-home care - costs 40k-100k+ annually. Probability of needing LTC rises with age. This calculator projects total cost with inflation.

5k/month for 5 years at 4% care inflation: 325,150 total (vs 300k without inflation). Starting from 100k savings: 225k shortfall to plan.

Options to fund: savings, care insurance (limited the market), equity release, family contribution, or state-funded care (means-tested). Plan early - once needing care, options narrow significantly.

Run it with sensible defaults

Using monthly care cost of 5,000, expected years of care of 5, care cost inflation of 4%, current savings for care of 100,000, the calculation works out to 324,979.35. The defaults are meant as a starting point, not a recommendation.

The levers in this calculation

The inputs — Monthly Care Cost, Expected Years of Care, Care Cost Inflation, and Current Savings for Care — do not pull with equal force.

How the math works

Sum of annual care cost with compound inflation over expected years.

Worked Example

Consider someone aged 60 expecting care to begin at 80. Current monthly care cost is estimated at 6,500. Expected care period is 4 years. Care cost inflation is projected at 3.5% annually. Current savings earmarked for care total 150,000.

Year 1 costs 78,000 (6,500 × 12). Year 2 rises to 80,730 with inflation applied. Year 3 reaches 83,556. Year 4 totals 86,485. The cumulative obligation over four years is approximately 328,771.

Subtracting existing savings of 150,000 leaves a projected gap of 178,771 to address through other funding mechanisms or planning adjustments.

When This Calculation Matters

This model illustrates several planning contexts:

• Mid-career professionals building a long-term care fund alongside retirement savings
• Individuals comparing the total financial impact of care at home versus facility-based options
• Families estimating collective obligations before care needs become acute
• Estate planners examining whether current assets align with anticipated care costs
• People assessing how inflation erodes the purchasing power of static care budgets

What This Estimates — and What It Omits

The calculation models the cumulative, inflation-adjusted cost of care over a defined period. It accounts for annual price increases applied to care expenses year on year.

The result does not include:

• Investment returns or income generated by savings during the care period
• Tax treatment of care withdrawals or insurance payouts
• Changes in care intensity or type (higher acuity may raise costs mid-way through)
• One-off setup costs or equipment purchases
• Variations in care availability or quality across regions or time
• Caregiver burnout or unpaid family care arrangements

Educational Illustration

This calculation is provided for educational and planning illustration purposes. Actual care costs, inflation rates, and personal circumstances vary widely. The output estimates a financial range based on your inputs; it does not forecast actual expense or guarantee accuracy of projections.