Home Health and Personal Care Aides Salary
In California, home health and personal care aides earn $34,320 at the median, or about $16.5 an hour. The range runs from $34K at the entry level to $39K for experienced workers. Prices run high here (RPP 106.14), so that salary is closer to $32,335 in real purchasing power. A 2-bedroom apartment runs $2,471/month, about 104.3% of take-home, which is tight.
Statewide average. Salary and cost of living vary significantly across California. Jump to a metro for precise data:
So what does $34K get you in California?
About home health and personal care aides
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What this looks like in California
Home health and personal care aides pay in California tracks closely to the national median, $34K locally vs. $36K nationwide, a 4% difference. The catch: housing math doesn't keep up. A 2-bedroom at the HUD median rents for $2,471/month, which is 102% of the median worker's take-home, past the 30% guideline most planners use. Cost-of-living overall is 6% above the national average (BEA RPP 106.14), so groceries and services cost more too. Use the affordability calculator above to model your specific situation.
Compensation breakdown
Annual earnings by percentile, California
Entry-level home health and personal care aides (10th percentile) start around $34K. Mid-career wages sit at $34K. Top earners bring in $39K or more, a $5K spread from bottom to top.
Home Health and Personal Care Aides salary by metro in California
25 metro areas with BLS data, ranked by median pay
| Metro area | Median salary | vs. state | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara | $38K | +10% | 49,610 |
| Santa Rosa-Petaluma | $37K | +7% | 10,150 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont | $36K | +5% | 119,120 |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad | $35K | +3% | 57,080 |
| Hanford-Corcoran | $34K | +0% | 3,250 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim | $34K | +0% | 385,530 |
| Merced | $34K | +0% | 4,990 |
| Modesto | $34K | +0% | 9,160 |
| Napa | $34K | +0% | 2,900 |
| Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura | $34K | +0% | 15,250 |
| Redding | $34K | +0% | 5,500 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario | $34K | +0% | 102,760 |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom | $34K | +0% | 60,350 |
| Salinas | $34K | +0% | 6,740 |
| San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles | $34K | +0% | 4,160 |
| Santa Cruz-Watsonville | $34K | +0% | 4,470 |
| Santa Maria-Santa Barbara | $34K | +0% | 6,470 |
| Stockton-Lodi | $34K | +0% | 12,580 |
| Vallejo | $34K | +0% | 7,850 |
| Visalia | $34K | +0% | 8,220 |
| Bakersfield-Delano | $34K | +0% | 17,270 |
| Yuba City | $34K | +0% | 3,120 |
| Chico | $34K | +0% | 5,940 |
| El Centro | $34K | +0% | 8,020 |
| Fresno | $34K | +0% | 33,580 |
Showing 1–10 of 25 metros
Compare to other states
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BLS updates this data quarterly. We'll email you when California numbers change.
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Frequently asked questions
Can a home health and personal care aide afford a 2BR apartment alone in California?
It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $34K, rent takes 102% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $2,471/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $700/month in rent — so roommates or a 1-bedroom would ease the math significantly.
What’s the entry-level salary for home health and personal care aides in California?
The 10th-percentile wage — what new home health and personal care aides typically earn — is $34K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $2,059/month. At HUD’s $2,471/month FMR, rent would take 120% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.
Is home health and personal care aide a high-paying job in California?
Pay here is roughly in line with the national average — $34K locally vs. $36K nationally, a 4% difference.
How does California compare to the national average for home health and personal care aides?
California pays $34K median vs. the U.S. average of $36K — that’s -4%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 106.14), the purchasing-power equivalent is $32K — below the national median.
How much do home health and personal care aides make in California?
The median is $34,320 a year, that works out to about $17 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $34,320, and experienced home health and personal care aides can clear $39,260. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.
Is $34K enough to live in California?
On that salary, you'd take home roughly $2,422/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $2,471/month, which eats 102% of your paycheck. That's above the 30% rule of thumb, housing will be a stretch at the median salary, though you can manage with roommates or a smaller place.
How far does a home health and personal care aides salary go in California?
California has a Regional Price Parity of 106.14 (100 is the national average). Prices are above average here, so your dollar buys less than the same salary would in a cheaper metro. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median home health and personal care aides salary is worth about $32,335 in national-average purchasing power.
Where do home health and personal care aides get paid the most?
The table above ranks every state by median pay for this role. Keep in mind that the highest-paying states tend to have the highest costs of living, so the top salary doesn't always mean the most money in your pocket.