Income Disparities Seen in Family Caregiving in the U.S.

By Mara Soloway, I Start Wondering Columnist

As the population of the U.S. continues to age, the need for caregiving for older adults has steadily increased. Many families are taking on the responsibility of caring for aging parents, spouses, or partners. A recent study conducted by the Pew Research Center on Family Caregiving in an Aging America highlights important patterns in who provides this care and how that giving that affects them. 

One of the most significant findings of the study is that caregiving responsibilities are not distributed evenly across society. Instead, lower-income adults are far more likely to serve as caregivers than those with middle or upper incomes.

The Pew Research Center survey was conducted from September 2–8, 2025, and included responses from 8,750 adults across the U.S. The study focused on the experiences of individuals caring for an aging parent as well as those caring for an aging spouse or partner. Researchers aimed to better understand who takes on caregiving roles and how these responsibilities impact their daily lives.

Pew found that approximately one in ten U.S. adults report being a caregiver for a parent aged 65 or older. An additional 3% say they provide care for a spouse or partner aged 65 or older. A very small portion—less than 1%—say they care for both an aging parent and an aging spouse or partner. 

When focusing only on adults who actually have an aging parent or spouse, the percentage of caregivers increases significantly. About 24% of adults with a parent aged 65 or older consider themselves caregivers, while 25% of those with an aging spouse or partner report the same role.

Income level plays a major role in determining who becomes a hands-on caregiver to an aging parent, spouse, or partner:

• 39% of lower-income individuals say they provide care

• 23% of middle-income adults and only 16% of upper-income adults say they provide care 

Age of the parent also affects the likelihood of caregiving:

• Adults whose parents are 75 or older are much more likely to provide care than those whose parents are between the ages of 65 and 74.

• 31% of those with a parent aged 75 or older are caregivers, compared with only 16% of those whose parent falls in the younger age group. 

• This pattern is similar among people caring for spouses or partners.

Caregivers typically help aging family members with a variety of daily tasks. Roughly two-thirds of caregivers say they regularly assist with at least one important responsibility that may include running errands, doing housework, making home repairs, managing medical appointments and medications, handling finances such as paying bills, or helping with personal care like bathing and dressing.

While caregiving can strengthen relationships between family members, it can also place significant strain on caregivers. Many people caring for aging parents report that the experience has had a positive effect on their relationship with their parent. However, they also report negative impacts on other aspects of their lives, including emotional well-being, physical health, finances, careers, and social life.

Clear differences were revealed between men’s and women’s caregiving experiences, with women more likely to say caregiving has harmed their emotional well-being and physical health:

• 47% of women report a negative impact on emotional health compared with 30% of men.

• 38% of women say caregiving negatively affects their physical health, compared with 26% of men.

  
  

Overall, this study shows that family caregiving is becoming increasingly common as the U.S. population ages, which we could safely assume to be the case. However, it certainly highlights important inequalities, especially those of income and gender. We at I Start Wondering hope those developing policies and support systems understand these patterns to help caregivers manage these responsibilities while maintaining their own well-being.