Support at Home contribution estimator
Updated August 2026 · budgets indexed 1 July 2026, caps indexed 20 March 2026
There is no basic daily fee under Support at Home and no income-tested care fee. You pay a means-tested percentage of each service you actually use, and the percentage depends on which of three categories the service sits in. Put your situation and your weekly hours in below.
The whole system in three categories
Clinical care is free for everyone. Nursing, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, podiatry, speech pathology, dietitian input and care management cost you nothing, whatever your income or assets. Independence services - respite, transport, social support and, until 1 October, personal care - run from 5% for full pensioners to around 50% for self-funded retirees. Everyday living - cleaning, gardening, meals, home maintenance - runs from 17.5% to around 80%, because these are expenses everyone has throughout life.
Your exact percentage inside those bands comes from a Services Australia means assessment. Your provider applies it, but cannot change it, and no website can tell you what it will be. Full pensioners are the exception: their rates are simply 5% and 17.5% with no assessment of their finances needed.
What changes on 1 October 2026
Personal care - showering, bathing, dressing, grooming and continence support - moves out of the independence category and into clinical care, which makes it free for everyone regardless of income, assets or pension status. The estimator shows both figures side by side so you can see the difference on your own hours. The change is automatic: there is nothing to apply for and no need to change providers.
For someone self-funded receiving several hours of personal care a week, this is the single largest change in the system since Support at Home replaced Home Care Packages. For a full pensioner it is smaller in dollars but still real.
If you skip the means assessment you pay the maximum
Choosing not to disclose your finances to Services Australia does not leave you on a middle rate. It puts you straight on the top of both bands, around 50% on independence services and around 80% on everyday living. For most people the assessment produces a materially lower rate, so it is almost always worth completing. If your circumstances change later, you can ask for a reassessment.
Want these numbers checked for your situation?
Tell us where you are up to and we’ll match you with a provider who can talk you through what you would actually pay. Free, no obligation, and your details stay with us until you reply to their introduction.
Use this estimator on your own site
If you are a provider, financial counsellor, carer organisation or community health service, you are welcome to embed it free of charge. It collects nothing from your visitors unless they choose to request a call back, and the only condition is that you keep the attribution link.
Sources and currency
- Quarterly and annual classification budgets, indexed 1 July 2026
- National Summary of Support at Home Prices, mid-2026 national medians
- Lifetime caps indexed 20 March 2026; next indexation 20 September 2026
- Personal care reclassification announced 26 May 2026, effective 1 October 2026
General information only, not financial advice. Median prices are national and your provider’s prices will differ. Your contribution rate is determined by Services Australia, not by this page. Home Care Help may receive a fee from providers when we refer you.