On 1 July 2026, maximum prices came into force for every service on the Support at Home service list. Every provider must publish a price list, and no provider may charge above the cap.

For families, this is the most useful change since the program started - but only if you actually use it. Here is how.

What the caps do and do not do

They set a ceiling. They do not set a price. Providers can and do charge below the cap, and the gap between one provider and another is real money over a year.

They also require the price to be all-inclusive for the service - the era of a headline hourly rate followed by separate administration, travel and exit fees is over. If a provider is quoting you a base rate and mentioning add-ons, ask them directly whether their published price is the total.

Compare like for like, or you are comparing nothing

The most common mistake is comparing one provider's weekday rate against another's, and stopping there. Three things to hold constant:

  • The same service. "Personal care" and "assistance with self-care and activities of daily living" are the same thing under different names. "Domestic assistance" and "general house cleaning" likewise.
  • The same day type. Weekday standard, weekday non-standard, Saturday, Sunday and public holiday are five different prices. A provider can be cheapest on weekdays and dearest on Sundays.
  • Your actual plan. Do not compare rates - compare the total cost of the specific mix of services you will use, over a quarter. That is the only number that matters.

Our pricing calculator is built to produce exactly that number for Amanah, using our published rates across clinical, personal and home services. Take the total it gives you and ask other providers to produce the same figure for the same plan.

Worth checking: ask whether the quoted price applies to travel between clients, and what happens if a visit is cancelled at short notice. These are legitimate provider policies, but they should be in writing before you start, not discovered later.

What price still will not tell you

Price is now comparable. Quality is not, and the cheapest provider is frequently cheapest for reasons that show up in month two.

The things that determine whether care actually works are not on any price list:

  • Whether you get the same carer week to week, or a rotating cast.
  • Whether the carer was briefed on your household before the first visit.
  • Whether language, gender preference and religious observance were treated as requirements or as notes in a file.
  • How quickly someone answers the phone when a carer does not turn up.
  • Whether the provider tells you when they cannot staff something, or takes the work and hopes.

Ask about these explicitly, and ask for specifics rather than reassurance. "We pride ourselves on consistency" is not an answer. "Here is how we handle it when your regular carer is on leave" is.

One more change to keep an eye on

Further changes to how services are categorised have been announced for later in 2026, which affects how contributions are worked out for some supports. Because the detail matters and the timing may shift, confirm your own position with My Aged Care on 1800 200 422 rather than relying on any provider's summary - including ours.

Current as at 1 July 2026. Program rules and funding amounts change; confirm at myagedcare.gov.au. General information only.