Caregiving in the US 2025: Understanding the Experiences of Family Caregivers for Older Adults

More than 51 million Americans—nearly one in five adults—are providing care to someone age 50 and older, continuing an upward trend observed since 2015. These caregivers contribute substantially to the nation’s long‑term care system, often with limited formal support.

This companion report to Caregiving in the US 2025 focuses specifically on the experiences of family caregivers who provide care to adults age 50 and older living with disabilities or complex medical conditions. It examines who these caregivers are, whom they care for, the nature and intensity of care provided, and the impacts of caregiving on the caregiver’s employment, finances, health, and well‑being. Read the full report.

Key Takeaways:

• In 2025, nearly one in five American adults were providing care to adults age 50 and older, a significant increase in prevalence over the last decade. In total, 51 million caregivers care for an older adult.
• Close physical proximity between family caregivers and care recipients 50-plus is common, with 74 percent of caregivers living with, or within 20 minutes of, their care recipient.
• The average duration of caregiving for older adults has increased since 2020 in terms of years of care provided at the time of the survey and hours per week of care. On average, caregivers of adults 50-plus have been caregiving for five years and spend 26 hours per week providing care (compared to an average of 3.9 years and 22 hours per week of care in 2020).
• A growing share of  caregivers of older adults are providing high-intensity care, defined as higher hours of care weekly and help with complex care tasks (44 percent in 2025 compared to 39 percent in 2020). 
• Nearly one in four caregivers care for someone 50-plus with a memory issue or a form of dementia. These caregivers are often providing higher intensity care and more often experiencing negative financial, health, and well-being impacts.