The cost of senior care in Virginia now runs above the national line in every facility setting. Assisted living costs about $6,944 a month ($83,328 a year), and a nursing home about $123,005 a year for a semi-private room, both above the national medians. Which setting a family chooses can swing the yearly bill by tens of thousands of dollars, and where in the state you live matters too.

This guide lays out what every senior-care setting in Virginia costs side by side, what pushes the price up or down, and how families actually pay, from private funds to Virginia Medicaid for those who qualify.

In This Guide

What Each Senior-Care Setting Costs in Virginia

The figures below come from the CareScout Cost of Care Survey, the 2025 release (CareScout is the Genworth-affiliated survey that has tracked these costs for years), published March 2, 2026, the most recent state-level data available. These are medians from an industry survey, not government rates and not maximums, so the cost at any one provider can land higher or lower depending on location, room type, and how much care a person needs. Northern Virginia runs higher than rural parts of the state.

Read across the settings and Virginia's pattern is clear: every facility option now sits above the national median. The biggest change from prior years is nursing-home care, which rose 18 to 19 percent in the 2025 survey and crossed from below the national line to above it. Assisted living also runs above national, as it has, so a family pricing care in Virginia should expect to pay a premium over the typical U.S. figure across the board.

Care setting Virginia (year) Virginia (month) National (year)
Assisted living about $83,328 about $6,944 about $74,400
Nursing home, semi-private room about $123,005 about $10,250 about $114,975
Nursing home, private room about $140,160 about $11,680 about $129,575
Non-medical caregiver, in-home (44 hrs/wk) about $80,080 about $6,673 about $35/hr
Adult day health care about $20,995 about $1,750 n/a

One change in the survey is worth flagging, because it can confuse a family comparing this year's number to last year's. Starting with the 2025 release, CareScout merged its two former in-home categories, homemaker services and home health aide, into a single "non-medical caregiver" line. So where older guides showed two separate home-care figures, there is now one: about $80,080 a year in Virginia at 44 hours a week, or about $35 an hour nationally. A non-medical caregiver helps with household tasks and day-to-day personal care, while round-the-clock home care costs far more, because the hours multiply quickly. That is why heavy daily needs often tip the math toward a facility even where the home is the preference. Adult day health care, which provides supervised daytime activities and care while a family caregiver works, remains the most affordable option at about $20,995 a year.

What Drives the Cost of Senior Care in Virginia

The single biggest driver of cost is the level of care a person needs. A nursing home provides 24-hour licensed nursing care, with a staff of nurses and aides on every shift plus the building, equipment, and oversight that skilled care requires. Assisted living is built for people who need help with daily tasks but not constant skilled nursing, so it carries a lighter staffing load. That difference shows up in the price: a semi-private nursing-home room in Virginia runs about $123,005 a year against about $83,328 for assisted living. The gap widened in the 2025 survey, when Virginia's nursing-home rates rose 18 to 19 percent and pulled clear above both assisted living and the national nursing-home median.

Location matters as much as setting in Virginia. The same kind of care costs more in Northern Virginia than in the rural parts of the state, so a statewide median can understate the bill near Washington and overstate it in the southwest. When you price care, price it where the person will actually live, not by the state average.

In-home care is the setting families often misjudge. A non-medical caregiver in Virginia runs about $80,080 a year at 44 hours a week, less than a nursing home and only modestly below assisted living, which makes a few hours of daily help an affordable middle path for many people. But because in-home help is billed by the hour, the bill climbs fast as the hours grow. Daily help for part of the day is affordable; continuous home care rarely is, and it can pass the cost of a facility.

Within any single setting, the advertised rate is rarely the whole bill. A facility usually quotes a base rate for room and routine services, then adds charges as care needs grow: help with more activities of daily living, medication management, memory care, or a higher staffing tier. A resident who enters needing little help and later needs much more can see the monthly cost climb well past the opening figure. When you compare quotes, ask what the base rate includes and what triggers an add-on, because two facilities with similar headline prices can bill very differently once care needs rise.

How Families Pay

Almost no one pays for years of senior care out of a single source. Most families start with private funds and shift to other payers as the bills mount. Here's how the main options work in Virginia.

Private pay is savings, income, the proceeds of a home sale, and long-term care insurance if a person bought it. It's the most flexible option, since it covers any setting, but it's also the one that runs out, and at about $123,005 a year for a nursing home, it can run out faster than families expect. Long-term care insurance, where it exists, can offset a share of the cost, though policies vary widely in what they pay and for how long.

Virginia Medicaid pays for long-term care, including nursing-facility care and home- and community-based services, for people who meet both a level-of-care test and the financial rules. Run by the Virginia Department of Medical Assistance Services (DMAS), Virginia Medicaid covers nursing-facility care as an entitlement for those who qualify, so there's no waiting list for it the way there can be for waiver services. The medical side comes first: anyone seeking Medicaid long-term care in a nursing facility, the CCC Plus waiver under Cardinal Care, or the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) must complete a long-term services and supports (LTSS) screening that confirms they meet the nursing-facility level of care.

On the money side, the 2026 long-term-care income limit is 300% of the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) federal benefit rate, about $2,982 a month for an individual (the 2026 federal benefit rate is $994 a month), and the resource limit is $2,000 for a single person. Virginia is also a medically-needy state, so someone whose income runs over the limit can still qualify by spending excess income down on the cost of their care, a path for people who would otherwise be just over the line. When one spouse needs care and the other stays in the community, federal spousal-impoverishment rules let that community spouse keep a share of the couple's resources and income, so the household isn't held to the single-person figures. Because these rules depend on your household and can change, confirm the current figures with DMAS before you apply.

If a nursing home isn't the right fit, Virginia delivers community long-term care mainly through the CCC Plus waiver under Cardinal Care, a Home and Community-Based Services waiver that can provide personal care and respite in a person's own home, in either an agency-directed or consumer-directed model, instead of a facility. Two more rules shape long-term-care planning: Virginia applies a five-year look-back to asset transfers made for less than fair market value, which can trigger a penalty period, and after death it pursues Medicaid estate recovery for long-term-care costs paid for people 55 or older. Estate recovery has exemptions, including a surviving spouse and an unmarried child who is under 21, blind, or permanently disabled, plus an undue-hardship waiver, so it is not automatic in every case.

A note on Medicare, because the assumption is common: Medicare covers only short-term skilled rehab after a hospital stay, not the long-term custodial care, the ongoing help with daily living, that most families are budgeting for. That long-term care is what private pay and Medicaid cover.

How to Plan and Budget for Senior Care in Virginia

Start by matching the setting to the actual need, not the other way around. Because every facility option in Virginia now runs above the national line, and because the nursing-home premium over assisted living widened in the 2025 survey, the difference between settings is larger here than a family might expect from older figures. A candid assessment of how much help a person truly needs is worth more than a default assumption. Many people who need help with daily tasks but not skilled nursing are well served by assisted living or a few hours a day of in-home care, while someone needing continuous skilled care may have no affordable alternative to a nursing home.

Then build a realistic timeline. Estimate the monthly cost of the right setting, list the resources available to pay for it, and work out how long private funds will last before Medicaid would come into play. If Medicaid is likely to be part of the plan, the look-back and estate-recovery rules reward starting early and getting advice, because last-minute moves to qualify often trigger penalties. Two Brevy guides go deeper here: Medicaid Planning Strategies walks through how to position assets and income within the rules, and Medicaid Personal Needs Allowance, Explained covers the small monthly amount a resident keeps.

Finally, budget for the add-ons, not just the base rate. Care needs tend to rise over time, so the figure you start with is rarely the figure you finish with. A plan that assumes some increase is more likely to hold up than one built on today's lowest quote.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does senior care cost in Virginia?

It depends heavily on the setting. Per the 2025 CareScout Cost of Care Survey (released March 2026), assisted living runs about $83,328 a year (roughly $6,944 a month), a semi-private nursing-home room about $123,005 a year, a private room about $140,160, a non-medical caregiver about $80,080 a year (at 44 hours a week), and adult day health care about $20,995. These are statewide medians from an industry survey, not maximums, and Northern Virginia runs higher than rural areas.

Is assisted living or in-home care cheaper in Virginia?

In-home care is generally cheaper for part-time help. A non-medical caregiver runs about $80,080 a year at 44 hours a week, while assisted living runs about $83,328 a year. But in-home care is billed by the hour, so the cost climbs quickly as the hours grow; continuous home care can pass the cost of a facility. A few hours of daily help stays affordable, while around-the-clock supervision rarely does.

Why did Virginia's nursing-home cost jump so much?

Virginia's nursing-home rates rose sharply in the 2025 CareScout Cost of Care Survey, about 18 percent for a semi-private room and 19 percent for a private room, which pushed them above the national median for the first time in recent years. A semi-private room now runs about $123,005 a year and a private room about $140,160. If you are comparing to a figure you saw a year or two ago, expect today's number to be meaningfully higher.

Does Medicaid pay for senior care in Virginia?

For nursing-facility care and home- and community-based services, yes, if a person meets a level-of-care test and the financial rules. Virginia Medicaid, run by DMAS, covers nursing-facility care as an entitlement, and eligibility starts with an LTSS screening for the nursing-facility level of care. The 2026 income limit is 300% of the SSI benefit rate, about $2,982 a month for an individual, with a $2,000 asset limit for a single person; because Virginia is a medically-needy state, people over the income limit can still qualify by spending excess income down on their cost of care.

How do families pay for senior care in Virginia?

Most start with private pay, savings, income, home-sale proceeds, and long-term care insurance if they have it, then turn to Virginia Medicaid once a person meets the level-of-care and financial rules. Because Virginia applies a five-year look-back to asset transfers made for less than fair market value and pursues estate recovery for long-term-care costs paid for people 55 or older, planning early and getting professional advice usually pays off.

Learn More

Care TypesCost of Senior Care by State: Assisted Living, Nursing Home, and Home CareThe 2026 national median cost of assisted living, memory care, nursing homes, and in-home care, why your state differs, and your state's own cost guide. Care TypesAssisted Living in VirginiaAssisted living in Virginia runs about $6,944/month in 2026. What an ALF costs, why standard Medicaid won't pay the rent, and how the Auxiliary Grant helps. Care TypesNursing Homes in VirginiaNursing homes in Virginia in 2026: what a skilled nursing facility costs, how to check a facility's quality, and how Virginia Medicaid pays for long-term care. Care TypesMemory Care in VirginiaMemory care in Virginia is an assisted living 'safe, secure environment.' See the admission rules, staffing protections, cost, and how to vet a place. Care TypesHome Care vs. Home Health in VirginiaHome care vs. home health in Virginia: home health is skilled care Medicare covers, home care is non-medical help it won't, and one HCO license can do both. Care TypesAssisted Living vs. Nursing Home in VirginiaAssisted living vs. nursing home in Virginia turns on care level and who pays: about $6,944/month for assisted living versus $123,005/year for nursing care.
MedicaidMedicaid Planning StrategiesSee which assets you keep, how the 5-year look-back works, and the legal moves that qualify you for Medicaid long-term care without losing the house. MedicaidMedicaid Personal Needs Allowance, ExplainedHow the Medicaid Personal Needs Allowance works in 2026: the $30 federal floor, state figures from $30 to $200, and how patient liability is calculated.

Find personalized help building a realistic senior-care budget for Virginia at brevy.com.

The information on Brevy.com is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional legal, financial, or medical advice. Rules vary by state and program and change frequently. Always verify with the relevant agency or a qualified professional. Brevy is not a law firm, financial advisor, or healthcare provider.

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Brevy Care Team

Expert eldercare guidance from Brevy's team of healthcare professionals and researchers.