Rex says
Money math without the spreadsheet headache. Plug in your numbers and I'll show you exactly where the dollars land.
Try a scenario
Click to load — tweak from there.Inputs
Result
Total projected long-term care cost
$738,699
Annual cost at start of care
$236,641
Funding gap after income/benefits
$648,699
Total income/benefits over care period
$90,000
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How to use this
- 1Enter current annual cost of care in your area ($).
- 2Enter years until care is likely needed.
- 3Enter long-term care cost inflation rate (%).
- 4Enter expected duration of care needed (years).
- 5Enter income/benefits available toward care per year ($).
- 6Read your total projected long-term care cost on the right — it updates as you type.
- 7Hit Share to keep the scenario or send it to someone.
About this calculator
Long-term care costs vary enormously by setting and region, and they inflate faster than general prices — historically around 3-5% annually according to industry cost-of-care surveys. This calculator takes today's local cost for a chosen care setting, projects it forward to the age you expect to need care using a compounding care-cost inflation rate, and multiplies by an expected duration of care to estimate the total lifetime cost. It also breaks out the annual cost at the start of care so you can compare it against expected income sources like Social Security, a pension, or long-term care insurance benefits to see the funding gap.
Worked example
Using the values the calculator loads with:
Inputs
- Current annual cost of care in your area: 108000 $
- Years until care is likely needed: 20
- Long-term care cost inflation rate: 4 %
- Expected duration of care needed: 3 years
- Income/benefits available toward care per year: 30000 $
Results
- Total projected long-term care cost: $738,699
- Annual cost at start of care: $236,641
- Funding gap after income/benefits: $648,699
- Total income/benefits over care period: $90,000
What each field means
Inputs
- Current annual cost of care in your area ($)
- The current annual cost of care in your area used in the calculation, measured in $. Starts at 108000 $ so you have a working example on load.
- Years until care is likely needed
- The years until care is likely needed used in the calculation. Starts at 20 so you have a working example on load. Accepted range: 0–50.
- Long-term care cost inflation rate (%)
- The long-term care cost inflation rate used in the calculation, measured in %. Starts at 4 % so you have a working example on load. Accepted range: 0–10 %.
- Expected duration of care needed (years)
- The expected duration of care needed used in the calculation, measured in years. Starts at 3 years so you have a working example on load. Accepted range: 0–15 years.
- Income/benefits available toward care per year ($)
- The income/benefits available toward care per year used in the calculation, measured in $. Starts at 30000 $ so you have a working example on load.
Results
- Total projected long-term care cost
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars and shown as the headline result. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Annual cost at start of care
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Funding gap after income/benefits
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Total income/benefits over care period
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
FAQ
Why does long-term care inflate faster than general inflation?
Care costs are driven mostly by labor — nursing aides, RNs, and facility staff — in an industry with chronic worker shortages, plus rising real estate and liability insurance costs for facilities. Annual cost-of-care surveys have shown long-term care inflation running 3-5% per year over the past two decades, consistently above the broader CPI, which is why using general inflation assumptions undersells the real future cost.
What's the difference between assisted living, nursing home, and home care costs?
Nationally, a private nursing home room typically costs the most (often $110k+/year), assisted living runs lower (commonly $60k-$70k/year), and home health aide costs depend heavily on hours needed per week — a few hours a day is far cheaper than full-time care but can exceed facility costs if round-the-clock supervision is required. Use your local current cost, since regional variation is large.
How does long-term care insurance affect this calculation?
A long-term care insurance policy's daily or monthly benefit amount should be added into the 'existing income' input as an offset, since it directly reduces the funding gap. Keep in mind most LTC policies have their own benefit inflation riders and lifetime maximums, so check whether the policy's payout keeps pace with the same inflation rate used here.
Should I plan for average care duration or a worse-case scenario?
Averages understate the tail risk — many people need no long-term care at all, while others need it for 5+ years, especially with dementia-related conditions. Government data suggests roughly 70% of people over 65 will need some long-term care, with average paid duration commonly cited around 2-4 years, but planning around a 3-5 year scenario is a reasonable middle ground for most households.
Accuracy and limitations
- Results are estimates before tax, fees, and inflation unless an input explicitly covers them.
- Rates are treated as fixed for the whole period — variable-rate products will drift from this projection.
- This is educational maths, not financial advice. Check anything contractual with the lender or your accountant.
Related tools
Cite this calculator
Writing about this topic? Grab a citation — every link helps keep these tools free.
RevenueLab. (2026). Long-Term Care Cost Projection Calculator. Retrieved from https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/long-term-care-cost-projection
<p>Source: <a href="https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/long-term-care-cost-projection" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Long-Term Care Cost Projection Calculator — RevenueLab</a> (2026).</p>
Source: [Long-Term Care Cost Projection Calculator — RevenueLab](https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/long-term-care-cost-projection) (2026).