Long-term care insurance costs by age: What to know now

Young caring african nurse helping senior old elderly man grandfather walk . Disable old man trying to walk with the assistance aid of female doctor. — Long-term care insurance can be a vital part of your retirement plan, but it's important to understand how your age impacts the costs. Getty Images

There's a lot to worry about as we age. For starters, it's important to have the right type of healthcare coverage in place, as it's more likely that we'll experience serious illnesses or injuries in our later years. And while Medicare can help cover many health-related expenses, it won't cover everything. That's why many seniors purchase Medicare supplemental policies to help fill in the gaps.

But Medicare supplemental insurance isn't the only healthcare-related coverage you should consider. For many seniors, it also makes sense to consider purchasing a long-term care insurance policy. This type of policy helps cover the costs related to extended daily care, which can include the services you receive in nursing home, assisted living or in-home care.

Medicare doesn't necessarily cover these types of costs, and without coverage, you could end up in serious financial trouble. As with any added expense, though, it's important to understand the price — and how your age can impact what you pay for coverage.

Start exploring your long-term care insurance options here.

Long-term care insurance costs by age

The older you are when you purchase a long-term care insurance policy, the more expensive it tends to be. And, your gender and health also play a role in the equation.

And so can other factors, like purchasing a policy with benefits that grow each year. This can be a smart move to ensure that your benefits grow along with the rising healthcare costs, but it can also cause the cost of your policy to increase.

To give you an idea of how much you could pay for a policy, let's look at the average annual costs of long-term care insurance at ages 55, 60 and 65, along with the impact that different benefit growth rates can have. The average rates listed below are based on 2022 data from the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance (AALTCI).

Find out your top choices for long-term care insurance here.

Average costs for single males and females at ages 55, 60 and 65

The costs below indicate that, as individuals age, the cost of long-term care insurance typically increases. The benefit growth rate also significantly impacts the annual premium, with higher growth rates leading to higher costs.

Single male, age 55

$165,000 level benefits: $950
Benefits grow at 1% yearly: $1,375
Benefits grow at 2% yearly: $1,750
Benefits grow at 3% yearly: $2,220
Benefits grow at 5% yearly: $3,685

Single female, age 55

$165,000 level benefits: $1,500
Benefits grow at 1% yearly: $2,150
Benefits grow at 2% yearly: $2,815
Benefits grow at 3% yearly: $3,700
Benefits grow at 5% yearly: $6,400

Single male, age 60

$165,000 level benefits: $1,175
Benefits grow at 1% yearly: $1,600
Benefits grow at 2% yearly: $2,000
Benefits grow at 3% yearly: $2,525
Benefits grow at 5% yearly: $3,800

Single female, age 60

$165,000 level benefits: $1,900
Benefits grow at 1% yearly: $2,550
Benefits grow at 2% yearly: $3,300
Benefits grow at 3% yearly: $4,300
Benefits grow at 5% yearly: $6,600

Single male, age 65

$165,000 level benefits: $1,700
Benefits grow at 1% yearly: $2,165
Benefits grow at 2% yearly: $2,600
Benefits grow at 3% yearly: $3,135
Benefits grow at 5% yearly: $4,200

Single female, age 65

$165,000 level benefits: $2,700
Benefits grow at 1% yearly: $3,400
Benefits grow at 2% yearly: $4,230
Benefits grow at 3% yearly: $5,265
Benefits grow at 5% yearly: $7,225

Average costs for couples at ages 55, 60 and 65

Couples who purchase long-term care insurance together can often secure more affordable rates compared to individuals. Here are the annual costs for couples at ages 55, 60 and 65, with various benefit growth rates:

Couple, both age 55

$165,000 level benefits: $2,080 combined
Benefits grow at 1% yearly: $3,000 combined
Benefits grow at 2% yearly: $3,870 combined
Benefits grow at 3% yearly: $5,025 combined
Benefits grow at 5% yearly: $8,575 combined

Couple, both age 60

$165,000 level benefits: $2,600 combined
Benefits grow at 1% yearly: $3,525 combined
Benefits grow at 2% yearly: $4,525 combined
Benefits grow at 3% yearly: $5,800 combined
Benefits grow at 5% yearly: $8,750 combined

Couple, both age 65

$165,000 level benefits: $3,750 combined
Benefits grow at 1% yearly: $4,735 combined
Benefits grow at 2% yearly: $5,815 combined
Benefits grow at 3% yearly: $7,150 combined
Benefits grow at 5% yearly: $9,675 combined

The bottom line

Long-term care insurance is an essential component of financial planning for aging individuals and couples, but it's still an extra cost that needs to be factored into your budget. And the age you are when applying for coverage can play a big role in how expensive, or how affordable, your policy is. Early planning can result in lower premiums, so it's advisable to consider long-term care insurance well before retirement age. It's also smart to compare quotes from different insurance providers to better find the best coverage at a competitive price. You can get started with that process here.

Angelica Leicht

Angelica Leicht is senior editor for CBS' Moneywatch: Managing Your Money, where she writes and edits articles on a range of personal finance topics. Angelica previously held editing roles at The Simple Dollar, Interest, HousingWire and other financial publications.