The 2020 Census found that 2.5% of adults aged 65 and older lived in nursing facilities, rising to 10.2% among those 85 and older. Separately, CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics counted 1.2 million nursing home residents in 2022. These nursing home statistics measure current residence, not someone’s lifetime chance of needing care.
What percent of older adults live in nursing homes?
The Census Bureau found that a small share of older adults lived in nursing facilities, with residence becoming more common at older ages.
The Census Bureau’s older population report counted 1.4 million adults aged 65 and older living in nursing facilities or skilled nursing facilities in 2020.
The age breakdown makes the national percentage more useful:
| Age group | Share living in nursing facilities | Source and data year |
|---|---|---|
| 65 to 74 | 0.9% | U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 |
| 75 to 84 | 2.7% | U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 |
| 85 and older | 10.2% | U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 |
The Census Bureau also found that 3.0% of women and 1.8% of men aged 65 and older lived in nursing facilities in 2020.
These percentages answer a specific question: Who lived there when the census counted them? They don’t measure everyone who might enter a nursing home later, or everyone receiving care elsewhere.
That distinction matters for planning. A snapshot of nursing home residence isn’t a lifetime care forecast. Our guide to how many people need long-term care covers that broader question.
Also, the Census count and the NCHS resident count use different populations and collection methods. They shouldn’t be treated as interchangeable measurements or used together to calculate a change in nursing home use.
Who lives in nursing homes?
NCHS data show that nursing home residents are mostly older adults, but younger adults also make up a meaningful share of the population.
According to NCHS’s 2022 survey, 82.6% of nursing home residents were 65 or older, while 17.4% were under 65.
| Resident age | Share of nursing home residents | Source and data year |
|---|---|---|
| Under 65 | 17.4% | NCHS, 2022 |
| 65 to 74 | 23% | NCHS, 2022 |
| 75 to 84 | 28.8% | NCHS, 2022 |
| 85 and older | 30.7% | NCHS, 2022 |
These figures use a different denominator from the Census percentages above. They describe the makeup of nursing homes, not the percentage of each age group living in them.
Sex and race
Women accounted for 60.6% of nursing home residents and men accounted for 39.4%, according to NCHS’s 2022 data.
The same NCHS 2022 survey reported that 70.8% of residents were non-Hispanic White, 15.7% were non-Hispanic Black, and 5.4% were Hispanic. Those selected categories don’t describe the entire resident population.
Dementia and help with daily activities
In 2022, NCHS reported that 41.1% of nursing home residents had Alzheimer disease or another dementia. It also found that 86.2% needed help bathing.
These measures describe residents’ diagnoses and assistance needs. They don’t establish an average resident age, predict how long someone will stay, or show whether a particular facility can meet your relative’s needs.
How many nursing homes are there, and what about state statistics?
National sources count nursing homes, beds, and residents differently, so a useful comparison needs matching definitions and dates rather than whichever figure appears newest.
NCHS counted 14,700 nursing homes in 2022, with 1.6 million licensed beds. Its 2022 data put the average licensed capacity at 107 beds per nursing home.
Separately, KFF reported nearly 15,000 federally certified nursing facilities as of 2025. That count shouldn’t be treated as a direct update to the NCHS total without checking differences in scope.
KFF’s resident trend provides a consistent source for examining population changes:
| Data year | Nursing facility residents | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 1.37 million | KFF |
| 2020 | 1.32 million | KFF |
| 2021 | 1.10 million | KFF |
| 2025 | 1.24 million | KFF |
Who owns nursing facilities?
According to KFF’s July 2025 data, 73% of nursing facilities were for-profit, 20% were nonprofit, and 7% were government-owned. Ownership describes how a facility is organized; it isn’t, by itself, a resident satisfaction score.
Can these figures rank states?
The sources used here don’t provide verified state-by-state resident totals, facility counts, or satisfaction rankings. A national total can’t fill that gap.
For a state comparison, the measures would need matching dates, facility definitions, and population denominators. A raw resident count alone wouldn’t tell you what share of older adults lives in nursing homes.
What is the average length of stay in a nursing home?
The available sources don’t establish an average nursing home stay per admission; their lifetime care estimates answer a different question about care use.
The Administration for Community Living, or ACL, reports an average of 1 year of nursing facility care over a person’s lifetime. Its table also says 35% of people use nursing facility care.
ACL does not date the underlying estimates. Its page was last modified in 2020, but that isn’t a data year.
Neither figure gives you an average stay after admission. Lifetime use and an individual admission are different measurements.
Nursing facility care versus all long-term care
ACL says someone turning 65 has almost a 70% chance of needing some type of long-term care services and supports. Its undated estimates say one-third may never need that support, while 20% will need it for longer than 5 years.
ACL also says women need long-term care for 3.7 years on average, compared with 2.2 years for men. Those undated estimates cover long-term care of any kind, not just nursing homes.
Our broader long-term care statistics help keep those categories separate.
What remains unknown?
The available sources don’t establish an average:
- Nursing home stay by age or dementia diagnosis.
- Nursing home stay before death.
- Stay in memory care or assisted living.
- Stay per skilled nursing facility admission.
They also don’t supply a nursing home life expectancy calculator. Using a lifetime care estimate as a countdown for an individual resident would misrepresent what the data measure.
What do nursing home statistics say about staffing and deaths?
Staffing and mortality statistics describe different aspects of nursing home care, and neither can predict the experience or prognosis of an individual resident.
Staffing and quality findings
KFF’s July 2025 data show an average of 3.85 hours of nursing care per resident per day:
| Staff category | Daily hours per resident | Source and data date |
|---|---|---|
| Licensed practical nurse | 0.87 | KFF, July 2025 |
| Registered nurse | 0.68 | KFF, July 2025 |
| Nurse aide | 2.3 | KFF, July 2025 |
These are averages, not a promise of individual attention.
In its 2025 analysis, KFF reported that 27% of facilities received serious deficiencies involving actual harm or jeopardy over a survey cycle. That measures facilities with findings, not the percentage of residents harmed.
Historical pandemic deaths
According to NCHS’s 2020 mortality data, 24.3% of COVID-19 deaths among adults aged 65 and older occurred in a nursing home or long-term care facility.
For adults 85 and older, NCHS reported that 38.9% of COVID-19 deaths in 2020 occurred in those settings.
These figures describe where deaths occurred. They are not the percentage of residents who died, and they don’t cover COVID-19 deaths at all ages.
The available sources don’t establish current annual nursing home deaths, rank the leading causes of death among residents, or support a claim about an individual resident’s life expectancy.
How much does nursing home care cost, and who pays?
KFF reports a substantial median annual private-room cost, while its payer data show Medicaid’s major role in financing nursing facility care for residents.
KFF reports that the median annual cost of a private nursing home room was $127,750 in 2024. That’s a median, not an average, and it applies specifically to private rooms.
It also isn’t the average total bill for a stay. Without a compatible length-of-stay estimate, an annual price can’t establish that total.
Medicaid’s role
According to KFF’s July 2024 resident data, Medicaid was the primary payer for over 6 in 10 nursing facility residents.
Separately, NCHS reported Medicaid as a payer source for 62.3% of nursing home residents in 2022. “A payer source” doesn’t necessarily mean the primary payer.
For institutional long-term care spending, KFF reported the following breakdown for 2023:
| Payer category | Share of spending | Source and data year |
|---|---|---|
| Medicaid | 44% | KFF, 2023 |
| Out of pocket | 37% | KFF, 2023 |
| Other public and private payers | 18% | KFF, 2023 |
Those are spending shares, not resident shares. They also cover institutional long-term care rather than every form of long-term care.
Putting costs in context
Facility charges and insurance premiums are different expenses. Our long-term care insurance cost guide addresses premiums, while the alternatives to long-term care insurance guide discusses other funding approaches.
The long-term care quote page concerns insurance pricing, not a facility’s room rate.
Frequently asked questions
Does dementia get worse in a nursing home?
The sources used here don’t establish whether moving into a nursing home makes dementia worse. A diagnosis count cannot show that placement caused a change in symptoms. For an individual resident, questions about changes in cognition or behavior belong with the clinical team, rather than being answered through a national population statistic.
What is the average nursing home stay before death?
The available sources don’t provide a verified average stay before death. ACL’s lifetime nursing facility care estimate doesn’t measure survival after admission. It shouldn’t be used as a prognosis. For a loved one, a discussion with their care team is more relevant than applying a population estimate to their situation.
What is the average length of stay in memory care?
The sources used for this page don’t establish an average memory care stay. They also don’t provide a dementia-specific nursing home stay estimate. The share of nursing home residents with dementia measures how common the diagnosis is among residents, not how long those residents remain in care.
Can I estimate a total stay cost from the annual room price?
Not reliably from these sources alone. The private-room figure is an annual median, and the sources don’t supply a compatible average stay per admission. Multiplying it by ACL’s lifetime care estimate would combine different measures. A personal budget needs the facility’s actual charges and assumptions about the care being considered.