Home Health and Personal Care Aides Salary
In Salinas, CA, 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 109.04), so that salary is closer to $31,475 in real purchasing power. A 2-bedroom apartment runs $2,684/month, about 113.3% of take-home, which is tight.
So what does $34K get you in Salinas?
Groceries, utilities, transportation, and healthcare scaled from national averages by Salinas’s Regional Price Parity (109.04). Rent from HUD Fair Market Rents. Taxes estimated for single filer, standard deduction. * Healthcare is the employee-paid share only (premiums + out-of-pocket). Actual costs vary by coverage type: employer-sponsored, ACA marketplace, or uninsured.
About home health and personal care aides
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What this looks like in Salinas
Home health and personal care aides pay in Salinas 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 $2,684/month, which is 110.8% of the median worker's take-home, past the 30% guideline most planners use. Cost-of-living overall is 9% above the national average (BEA RPP 109.04), so groceries and services cost more too. Use the affordability calculator above to model your specific situation.
Compared to nearby metros
Median pay for home health and personal care aides in metros near Salinas, adjusted for local cost of living.
| Metro | Median pay | COL-adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim | $34K | $30K |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont | $36K | $31K |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario | $34K | $32K |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom | $34K | $32K |
COL-adjusted = median salary ÷ (BEA Regional Price Parity ÷ 100). Expresses purchasing power in national-average dollars.
Compensation breakdown
Annual earnings by percentile, Salinas, CA
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 $4K spread from bottom to top.
Home Health and Personal Care Aides pay across states
Median income ranked highest to lowest, compared to the national figure
View Home Health and Personal Care Aides salary in all states
| State | Median salary | vs. national | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Washington | $48K | +33% | 103,260 |
| Oregon | $44K | +24% | 42,330 |
| Rhode Island | $44K | +22% | 7,490 |
| District of Columbia | $43K | +19% | 12,810 |
| Vermont | $42K | +16% | 7,700 |
| Massachusetts | $41K | +14% | 117,940 |
| Alaska | $40K | +11% | 6,530 |
| New York | $40K | +11% | 663,140 |
| North Dakota | $39K | +10% | 7,730 |
| Connecticut | $39K | +9% | 49,510 |
| New Hampshire | $39K | +8% | 9,440 |
| Maine | $39K | +8% | 18,630 |
| Colorado | $39K | +8% | 44,650 |
| Minnesota | $38K | +7% | 128,680 |
| Hawaii | $38K | +6% | 6,150 |
| Illinois | $38K | +6% | 134,100 |
| Maryland | $38K | +6% | 46,560 |
| South Dakota | $38K | +5% | 4,210 |
| New Jersey | $37K | +4% | 117,080 |
| Montana | $37K | +2% | 10,400 |
| Kentucky | $36K | +2% | 31,260 |
| Arizona | $36K | +2% | 74,540 |
| Wisconsin | $36K | +2% | 82,430 |
| Nebraska | $36K | +1% | 13,660 |
| Iowa | $36K | +1% | 25,800 |
| Utah | $36K | +0% | 17,130 |
| Indiana | $35K | -2% | 57,050 |
| Michigan | $35K | -2% | 95,020 |
| Idaho | $35K | -3% | 20,770 |
| Ohio | $34K | -4% | 106,940 |
| Delaware | $34K | -4% | 11,820 |
| California | $34K | -4% | 970,150 |
| Florida | $34K | -6% | 90,170 |
| Nevada | $34K | -6% | 17,940 |
| Wyoming | $33K | -7% | 3,410 |
| Missouri | $33K | -8% | 94,810 |
| Tennessee | $32K | -10% | 35,950 |
| Kansas | $31K | -13% | 25,350 |
| North Carolina | $31K | -13% | 58,880 |
| Virginia | $30K | -15% | 70,070 |
| South Carolina | $30K | -16% | 40,750 |
| Pennsylvania | $29K | -18% | 257,370 |
| Georgia | $29K | -18% | 50,870 |
| New Mexico | $29K | -20% | 38,910 |
| West Virginia | $28K | -22% | 18,890 |
| Alabama | $28K | -22% | 20,930 |
| Oklahoma | $28K | -23% | 20,310 |
| Arkansas | $28K | -23% | 19,840 |
| Texas | $24K | -32% | 329,590 |
| Mississippi | $24K | -33% | 21,800 |
| Louisiana | $23K | -37% | 45,060 |
Showing 1–10 of 51 (all 50 states + DC)
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Frequently asked questions
Can a home health and personal care aide afford a 2BR apartment alone in Salinas?
It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $34K, rent takes 110.8% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $2,684/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 Salinas?
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 $2,684/month FMR, rent would take 130% 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 Salinas?
Pay here is roughly in line with the national average — $34K locally vs. $36K nationally, a 4% difference.
How does Salinas compare to the national average for home health and personal care aides?
Salinas pays $34K median vs. the U.S. average of $36K — that’s -4%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 109.04), the purchasing-power equivalent is $31K — below the national median.
How much do home health and personal care aides make in Salinas, CA?
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 $38,660. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.
Is $34K enough to live in Salinas?
On that salary, you'd take home roughly $2,422/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $2,684/month, which eats 110.8% 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 Salinas?
Salinas has a Regional Price Parity of 109.04 (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 $31,475 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.