Home health and personal care aides in Washington state earn the highest annual and hourly mean wage before adjusting for the state’s cost of living index, according to data published April 2 by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Adjusted for cost of living, home health and personal care aides in Oregon earn the highest hourly mean wage in the U.S.
The national annual mean wage for home health and personal care aides is $34,990, and the national hourly mean wage is $16.82, without adjusting for cost of living.
Below are the mean annual and hourly wages for home health and personal care aides in 49 states and Washington, D.C., adjusted for cost of living. Becker’s calculated these figures using World Population Review cost of living data.
| State | Annual mean wage | Hourly mean wage | Cost of living index | Hourly mean wage, adjusted for cost of living |
| Alabama | $26,800 | $13 | 88 | $14.65 |
| Alaska | $39,320 | $19 | 123.8 | $15.27 |
| Arizona | $35,630 | $17.13 | 111.5 | $15.36 |
| Arkansas | $27,520 | $13 | 88.7 | $14.92 |
| California | $36,160 | $17 | 144.8 | $12.01 |
| Connecticut | $39,160 | $18.83 | 112.3 | $16.77 |
| Delaware | $33,480 | $16.10 | 100.8 | $15.97 |
| District of Columbia | $40,400 | $19 | 141.9 | $17.29 |
| Florida | $33,650 | $16 | 102.8 | $16.05 |
| Georgia | $29,800 | $14 | 91.3 | $10.10 |
| Hawaii | $36,630 | $18 | 186.9 | $17.13 |
| Idaho | $33,720 | $16.21 | 102 | $17.75 |
| Illinois | $36,540 | $18 | 94.4 | $9.40 |
| Indiana | $32,690 | $16 | 90.5 | $15.41 |
| Iowa | $36,070 | $17 | 89.7 | $18.37 |
| Kansas | $30,260 | $15 | 87 | $16.08 |
| Kentucky | $35,990 | $17.30 | 93 | $19.29 |
| Louisiana | $22,770 | $11 | 92.2 | $12.59 |
| Maine | $38,820 | $19 | 112.1 | $20.06 |
| Maryland | $38,670 | $19 | 115.3 | $20.16 |
| Massachusetts | $40,540 | $19 | 145.9 | $17.39 |
| Michigan | $33,520 | $16 | 90.4 | $13.98 |
| Minnesota | $37,000 | $18 | 95.1 | $12.19 |
| Mississippi | $25,190 | $12 | 87.9 | $13.40 |
| Missouri | $32,940 | $16 | 88.7 | $16.66 |
| Montana | $33,270 | $16 | 94.9 | $18.20 |
| Nebraska | $34,790 | $16.73 | 93.1 | $18.86 |
| Nevada | $31,530 | $15.16 | 101.3 | $15.97 |
| New Hampshire | $37,290 | $18 | 112.6 | $19.26 |
| New Jersey | $38,070 | $18.30 | 114.6 | $18.07 |
| New Mexico | $29,020 | $13.95 | 93.3 | $12.39 |
| New York | $39,660 | $19.07 | 123.3 | $16.64 |
| North Carolina | $30,810 | $14.81 | 97.8 | $15.87 |
| North Dakota | $40,290 | $19.37 | 91.9 | $15.71 |
| Ohio | $32,090 | $15.43 | 94.2 | $15.78 |
| Oklahoma | $27,190 | $13.07 | 85.7 | $14.22 |
| Oregon | $42,950 | $20.65 | 112 | $21.92 |
| Pennsylvania | $31,420 | $15.11 | 95.1 | $17.63 |
| Rhode Island | $40,310 | $19.38 | 112.2 | $17.27 |
| South Carolina | $29,390 | $14.13 | 95.9 | $14.86 |
| South Dakota | $37,620 | $18.09 | 92.2 | $16.12 |
| Tennessee | $32,210 | $15.49 | 90.5 | $16.15 |
| Texas | $25,350 | $12.19 | 92.7 | $13.22 |
| Utah | $37,120 | $17.85 | 104.9 | $19.72 |
| Vermont | $36,870 | $17.73 | 114.4 | $19.13 |
| Virginia | $31,430 | $15.11 | 100.7 | $15.00 |
| Washington | $46,950 | $22.57 | 114.2 | $19.73 |
| West Virginia | $26,730 | $12.85 | 84.1 | $12.76 |
| Wisconsin | $33,160 | $15.94 | 97 | $13.96 |
| Wyoming | $35,330 | $16.99 | 95.5 | $17.52 |
Editor’s note: This list excludes wage data from Colorado due to data quality concerns.
