Assisted Living vs. Home Care in DuPage County: The Real Cost Comparison (2026)

At some point most DuPage County families sit at the kitchen table and ask the same question: is it cheaper to move Mom into assisted living, or to bring help into her house? The brochures make it hard to answer because assisted living quotes a base rent and home care quotes an hourly rate, and neither number is the one you will actually pay. This post puts both on the same page.

What assisted living really costs in DuPage County

The base rent you see advertised at communities in Wheaton, Naperville, Glen Ellyn, and Carol Stream is typically $4,000 to $6,000 a month for a studio or one-bedroom. That number covers the apartment, meals, housekeeping, and activities. It does not cover care. Every community assesses your parent and assigns a care level, and each level adds a fee: commonly $800 to $2,500 a month for help with bathing, dressing, medication management, and mobility. Memory care units start higher, usually $6,500 to $9,000 all-in. Add a community fee at move-in (often one month's rent), annual rent increases of 4 to 8 percent, and incidentals like incontinence supplies and transportation, and a realistic all-in figure for assisted living with moderate care needs in DuPage County is $5,500 to $8,000 a month, or $66,000 to $96,000 a year.

What home care costs for the same person

Bruma Home Care publishes its rates: companion care $30 an hour, personal care $32, dementia care $31, overnight $250 a shift, live-in $550 a day, with a 4-hour minimum per visit. The person who would be assigned a moderate care level in assisted living usually needs help in the morning and evening, not all day. That is 4 hours a day, seven days a week: 28 hours at $32, about $900 a week or $3,900 a month. If she needs someone there most of the day, 8 hours daily is about $7,800 a month. Around the clock with a live-in caregiver is about $16,700 a month, which is where home care becomes the more expensive option.

The break-even point

Put simply: at DuPage County prices, home care is cheaper than assisted living up to roughly 40 to 45 hours of care a week. Below that, staying home wins on cost and your parent keeps her house, her neighbors, and her routine. Above that, assisted living usually wins on cost, because you are paying for a building that is staffed 24 hours whether or not your parent needs all of it. Most families we meet are well under 40 hours. The ones who are over it often have a parent with advanced dementia or who cannot be alone at night, and for them the honest advice is sometimes that a good memory care community is the right call.

The costs that don't show up on either quote

If your parent stays home, she still pays her mortgage or property taxes, utilities, groceries, and home maintenance, so add those to the home care number when you compare. If she moves, those costs mostly disappear but the house often gets sold to fund the move, which is a one-way decision. Home care also flexes: you can drop from 28 hours to 12 after a recovery, or stop for a month while a daughter visits. Assisted living is a lease. And there is the number nobody puts on paper: the value of Dad waking up in his own bed, in a house he has lived in for 40 years, with the same coffee mug. Some families price that at zero. Most don't.

A middle path many families miss

Home care is often the bridge, not the alternative. Families use it for six months to two years while a parent is still safe at home with help, and move to assisted living later when needs climb past that 40-hour line. That delays a $70,000-a-year expense, keeps the house in the family longer, and gives everyone time to choose a community without a hospital discharge forcing the decision in 48 hours. It also works the other direction: families on an assisted living waitlist use home care to get through the gap.

Frequently asked questions

Does Medicare pay for either? No. Medicare covers short-term skilled home health after a hospital stay, not assisted living rent or ongoing home care. Long-term care insurance usually covers both; Medicaid covers some assisted living and some home care through Illinois programs, with income limits.

Can I get an honest hours estimate before committing? Yes. Bruma does a free in-home assessment and gives you a written plan with the hours and the monthly cost. If the number says assisted living is the better fit, we will tell you that.

Is there a minimum commitment for home care? A 4-hour minimum per visit and no long-term contract. You can change or stop with a few days' notice.

See our full rate card or call (630) 589-2973 for a free in-home assessment anywhere in DuPage, Kane, or Kendall County. The owner answers.