Washington Nursing Home Costs in 2026: Average Monthly Price

How much does a Washington nursing home cost per month?

The survey reports six care settings. The two nursing home rows are the ones families budget against, but the comparison only makes sense next to the alternatives, because the choice is usually between a nursing home, assisted living and hours of help at home.

Source: CareScout Cost of Care Survey, 2025 edition, median cost data tables, Washington and national rows. Monthly figures are the annual median divided by twelve, as published. Adult day health care is billed per day of attendance; Washington's daily median is $249 against a $95 national median.

How does Washington compare with the national median?

Washington is above the national line on every care setting in the survey. The gap is largest in percentage terms on a private nursing home room, about 48% above the $10,798 national median, and on a semi-private room, about 37% above the $9,581 national median. In dollar terms that is about $5,171 and $3,574 a month more. Assisted living runs about 23% above national at $7,600 a month, in-home care about 29% above at $45 an hour, and adult day health care well above national at $249 a day against $95.

A median is the middle of a distribution, not a typical bill. CareScout collects rates at the metropolitan statistical area level and the state figure is the median across those markets, which is why the same room can be quoted well above the state number in the Seattle–Tacoma–Bellevue area and well below it in a rural county. Treat the state median as a planning baseline and get two local quotes before committing to a budget.

Semi-private or private room

The private room premium in Washington is about $2,814 a month, or $33,766 a year, on the medians. Whether a private room is available at all matters more than the price: a facility with a waiting list for private rooms may only be able to offer a shared room at admission, and a shared room is the only type that Medicaid payment typically covers in full.

Ask how the room assignment works after admission. A resident who enters on Medicaid in a shared room generally cannot be required to move to a private room, but the reverse request, moving from shared to private, is a new rate and sometimes a new room.

What moves the number

Four things explain most of the gap between one Washington quote and another.

• Location. Labor cost and real estate set the floor. Facilities in and around Seattle compete with hospital and home-care wages in the same labor market, and the survey collects those markets separately.
• Level of care. The base rate usually covers room, board, nursing oversight and help with activities of daily living. Physical therapy, occupational therapy, wound care and specialised memory care are priced separately at many facilities.
• Room type and occupancy. A private room carries a premium; a shared room may be the only option at admission.
• Contract terms. Annual increases, a community fee, a bed-hold charge when a resident is in hospital, and whether the quoted rate is all-inclusive or a base plus levels of care.

Who pays: Medicare, Medicaid (Apple Health) and everything else

Medicare covers skilled nursing facility care for up to 100 days per benefit period, after a qualifying hospital stay. In 2026 you pay a $1,736 deductible, nothing for days 1 through 20, and a $217 daily coinsurance for days 21 through 100. It does not cover custodial care, which is the help with bathing, dressing, meals and supervision that makes up most of a long nursing home stay. Families who assume Medicare will pick up the bill usually discover this in week three.

Washington Medicaid, called Apple Health and run by the Health Care Authority, pays for long-term services and supports — including nursing facility care — for residents who meet both the financial criteria and a comprehensive functional assessment that finds they need nursing-facility-level care. Applications go through Washington Connection or the HCA 18-005 form. The same program can approve care outside a nursing home, in settings such as assisted living, an adult family home or the person's own home, so a facility-level decision is not the only option. Income and resource standards apply; the specific limits change by year, so check the current figures with the agency before planning around them.

Everything else is private pay: savings, the sale of a house, long-term care insurance, or a veteran benefit such as Aid and Attendance for those who qualify. Washington's long-term care ombudsman and the local Area Agency on Aging can review a specific situation at no cost.

What to ask before signing

1. Is the quoted rate all-inclusive, or does it rise with each level of care?
2. What is the private room premium, and is a private room available now?
3. How many beds are Medicaid-certified, and does the facility accept Apple Health at admission or only after private pay?
4. What happens to the rate if the resident is hospitalised for a week? Is there a bed-hold fee?
5. Which services are billed separately: therapy, pharmacy, incontinence supplies, transport, laundry?
6. What is the annual increase policy, and when was the last increase?
7. What is the current staffing ratio on the evening and night shifts?
8. Can I see the most recent state inspection report, and what were the deficiencies?

Where these numbers come from

Washington and national cost figures are medians from the CareScout Cost of Care Survey, 2025 edition, fieldwork July through November 2025, median cost data tables for Washington and the United States. The 100-day Medicare limit, the $1,736 deductible and the $217 daily coinsurance from day 21 come from Medicare.gov's skilled nursing facility care page (2026 figures). Washington Medicaid facts — the Apple Health name, the Health Care Authority, the financial-plus-functional-assessment test, the settings covered and the Washington Connection and HCA 18-005 application routes — come from the Washington State Health Care Authority's long-term care pages. This is general information about program rules, not financial, legal or tax advice for a particular situation.