Personal care aides

Detailed Occupation

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2024 Workforce

1.47M

Average Age

45.4

Average Salary

$30,127

Average Male Salary

$34,830

Average Female Salary

$29,035

About

Personal care aides are most often employed by the Individual & family services industry. The average yearly wage for Personal care aides was $30,127 in 2024.

The locations that employ the most Personal care aides are Imperial County--El Centro City PUMA, CA, Hampden County (Central)--Springfield PUMA, MA, and Fresno County (Central)--Fresno City (Southwest) PUMA, CA. The locations with a relatively high concentration of Personal care aides are Imperial County--El Centro City PUMA, CA, Milwaukee County--City of Milwaukee Northwest PUMA, WI, and Hampden County (Central)--Springfield PUMA, MA.

Healthcare Support Occupations Service Occupations

Employment

Employment and salary information for the Personal care aides workforce. Personal care aides workforce in 2024 was 1,466,643 people, of which 81.2% were women and 18.8% were men.

Personal care aides are paid most in Mohave County South--Lake Havasu City PUMA, AZ but are relatively concentrated in Imperial County--El Centro City PUMA, CA.

Employment Over Time

Metric

Grouping

276,416

Male Workforce

± 12.9k

1,190,227

Female Workforce

± 26.7k

The Personal care aides workforce in 2024 was 1,466,643 people (81.2% women and 18.8% men). This implies an average annual growth of 12.8% between 2018 (1,300,058) and 2024 (1,466,643).

Employment by Location

Level

Metric

This map shows the states in the United States shaded by average wage for Personal care aides.

During 2024, the states that concentrated the best average annual wage were Delaware ($44,149), District of Columbia ($43,171), and Maryland ($38,782).

Yearly Wage Ranking

$30,127

AVERAGE WAGE

#508 in the ranking (2018)

$69,878

NATIONAL AVERAGE WAGE

For all occupations across the US

In 2024, Personal care aides earned an average of $30,127, $39,751 less than the average national salary of $69,878

The graph shows the ranking of Personal care aides in relation to all Detailed Occupation in 2018.

In 2024, Personal care aides had a wage GINI coefficient of 0.405, which is lower than the national average of 0.474. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly for Personal care aides (shown in red) than for the overall labor force (shown in gray).

The graphic shows the distribution of average salaries by buckets for Personal care aides compared to the entire workforce in the country.

Industry

Information on the industries that employ Personal care aides and on wages for those in the field. Individual & family services is the industry that employs the most Personal care aides, both by share and by number, though the highest paid industry for Personal care aides, by average wage, is Other professional, scientific & technical services ($91,240).

Occupations by Industries

Metric

Value

1.47M

2024 Workforce

± 29,592

1 YEAR GROWTH

± 2.79%

This graphic shows the share of Personal care aides employed by various industries. Individual & family services employs the largest share of Personal care aides at 43.5%, followed by Home health care services with 29.1% and Residential care facilities, except skilled nursing facilities with 16.7%.

Diversity

Demographic information on Personal care aides in the US. The workforce of Personal care aides in 2024 was 1,466,643 people, with 81.2% woman, and 18.8% men. The average age of male Personal care aides in the workforce is 43.1 and of female Personal care aides is 45.9, and the most common race/ethnicity for Personal care aides is White.

Gender and Age

Metric

The workforce of Personal care aides in 2024 was 1,466,643 people, with 81.2% woman, and 18.8% men.

The age ranges that concentrated the largest workforce were 55 to 59 years (163,550 people), 50 to 54 years (150,024 people), and 60 to 64 years (149,174 people). Among them they concentrated 31.6% of the total workforce.

Ethnicity

Gender

In 2024, 22.8% of Personal care aides workers were Hispanic and 77.2% non-Hispanic.

The treemap shows the distribution of Hispanic workers according to their origin, highlighting Mexican (62.6%), Puerto Rican (9.95)%, and Dominican (5.35)%

You can review this information by gender using the selectors above.

Races

In 2024, 42% of the Personal care aides workforce were White, of which 82.1% were women and 17.9% men. Other races that concentrated a significant number of workers were Black (24.9%) and Two or More Races (13.1%).

Education & Skills

Data on higher education choices for Personal care aides from The Department of Education and Census Bureau. The most common major for Personal care aides is Business but the most specialized major according to RCA in 2024 were Library Science.

Majors

ACS PUMS data only shows the major for bachelor's degrees. However, we can filter the data based on highest degree obtained.

Type of Majors

Degree

The most common majors achieved by Personal care aides in 2024 (counting all academic degrees) were Business (36,951 people), Health (30,239 people), and Education (23,013 people).

You can review this information for different academic grades by modifying the option selected in the selector above.

Education Levels

Metric

The main educational levels achieved by the Personal care aides workers were High School or Equivalent (526,048 people), Some college (379,966 people), and Bachelors Degree (160,965 people).

The graphic shows the Personal care aides workforce by gender and educational level.