Charleston Senior AdvisorWhat does senior care cost around Charleston?
The only sourced figures are statewide: CareScout's 2025 South Carolina medians are about $5,350 a month for assisted living, $9,034 for a semi-private nursing home room, $5,982 for 44 hours a week of home care and $1,560 for five days a week of adult day health care; no Charleston figure and no memory care figure exist.
Last verified: November 2026| Care type (South Carolina, 2025) | Yearly median | Per month (approx.) | One-year change | U.S. median |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assisted living (private one-bedroom) | $64,200 | $5,350 | +3% | $74,400 |
| Nursing home, semi-private room | $108,405 | $9,034 | +1% | $114,975 |
| Nursing home, private room | $115,340 | $9,612 | +1% | $129,575 |
| Home care, non-medical (44 hrs/week) | $71,786 | $5,982 | +5% | $80,080 |
| Adult day health care (5 days/week) | $18,720 | $1,560 | n/a | $24,700 |
CareScout 2025 Cost of Care Survey, South Carolina results (released March 2, 2026). Monthly figures are the annual medians divided by 12. Home care is priced at 44 hours a week for 52 weeks (about $31.37 an hour). CareScout's South Carolina release publishes statewide medians only: there is no Charleston-area figure and no memory care figure.
Which programs help Lowcountry families pay?
Medicare pays for short skilled nursing stays, home health and hospice; Healthy Connections Medicaid pays for long-term nursing home care; the Community Choices waiver pays for help at home and Residential Personal Care in participating CRCFs; Optional State Supplementation helps low-income CRCF residents; BoldAge PACE covers all three counties; and VA pension with Aid and Attendance helps eligible veterans and surviving spouses.
For assisted living, South Carolina relies on OSS rather than a Medicaid assisted living benefit: a state payment of up to $1,719 a month in 2026 to a participating CRCF, counted as payment in full.
Where can families get free help with benefits?
The Trident Area Agency on Aging (843-554-2275) for all three counties, SCDHHS Community Long Term Care for Community Choices referrals at (888) 971-1637, and each county's veterans affairs office for VA claims.
Medicaid and OSS applications go through apply.scdhhs.gov or the SCDHHS Member Contact Center at (888) 549-0820.
Costs & Paying: every guide
What senior care costs in the Charleston area
CareScout's 2025 South Carolina medians for assisted living, nursing homes, home care and adult day care, what they mean for Charleston, Berkeley and Dorchester families, and why no local or memory care median exists.
Read →Optional State Supplementation: South Carolina's help with assisted living costs
How South Carolina's Optional State Supplementation pays participating CRCFs for low-income residents: 2026 payment, income limit and personal needs allowance, which Lowcountry buildings take it, and how to apply.
Read →The Community Choices waiver: Medicaid help at home and in assisted living
Who qualifies for South Carolina's Community Choices waiver, what it pays for at home and in participating CRCFs (Residential Personal Care), 2026 income and asset limits, and how Charleston, Berkeley and Dorchester families get a referral.
Read →How Medicaid pays for nursing home care in the Lowcountry
South Carolina Healthy Connections Medicaid for nursing homes: 2026 income cap and qualified income trusts, $2,000 resource limit, home equity limit, 60-month look-back, spousal protections, and how Charleston families apply.
Read →What Medicare pays for in senior care, and what it leaves to families
Medicare and senior care in the Charleston area: no coverage for assisted living, the 100-day skilled nursing rule and observation status, home health, hospice in a CRCF or nursing home, and free SHIP counseling at the Trident AAA.
Read →VA Aid and Attendance for Lowcountry veterans and surviving spouses
How VA pension with Aid and Attendance helps veterans and surviving spouses pay for assisted living and home care around Charleston: 2025-26 rates, the net worth limit, care costs as deductions, state veterans homes and free help applying.
Read →PACE in the Lowcountry: how BoldAge PACE works
BoldAge PACE serves Berkeley, Charleston and Dorchester counties from a center on Ashley Phosphate Road in North Charleston. What PACE covers, who qualifies, how it differs from Community Choices and how to enroll.
Read →Paying privately for senior care in the Lowcountry
How Charleston-area families pay privately for assisted living and home care: income and savings, long-term care insurance, using the house, planning for money running out, and tax breaks.
Read →Side by side
| This section gives you | This section does not give you | |
|---|---|---|
| Prices | South Carolina's published 2025 medians | A Charleston or memory care figure that does not exist |
| Programs | How OSS, Community Choices, Medicaid, PACE, Medicare and VA work | An eligibility decision |
| Limits | 2026 income, resource and OSS figures | Legal or tax advice |
| Planning | Questions to ask and when to start | A substitute for an elder law attorney |
