Family Caregiver Statistics: How Many Unpaid Carers in the US, UK, Australia & Canada (2026)
An estimated 63 million Americans were family caregivers in 2025 — about 1 in 4 adults — and the care they provide is valued at roughly $600 billion a year (AARP/NAC). Across the US, UK, Australia and Canada, national agencies confirm the same thing independently: unpaid family caregiving is one of the largest, least-visible forms of work in every country.
Last updated: June 2026
Overview: how many family caregivers are there?
An estimated 63 million Americans were family caregivers in 2025 — about 1 in 4 adults — up roughly 50% from 2015, and the unpaid care they provide is valued at around $600 billion a year (AARP and the National Alliance for Caregiving, 2025; AARP, 2021). Family caregiving is not a niche activity; it is a mainstream, mostly invisible role that an enormous share of adults will take on at some point. The same scale appears in every country with comparable data: 5.0 million people provided unpaid care in England and Wales in 2021 (ONS Census 2021), 3.0 million Australians were carers in 2022 (ABS SDAC 2022), and 42% of Canadians aged 15 and over — about 13.4 million people — provided unpaid care in the prior year (Statistics Canada, 2022). These four numbers measure slightly different things, but together they confirm one consistent finding: tens of millions of ordinary people quietly hold up the care system for free, and most of that work happens at home and out of sight.
Key statistics
These verified figures come from four national-level sources: AARP and the National Alliance for Caregiving in the US, the Office for National Statistics in the UK, the Australian Bureau of Statistics, and Statistics Canada. The headline finding is consistent across all four: family and unpaid caregiving is vast, growing, and economically enormous, even though almost none of it is paid.
Family caregiver counts by country
This flagship table shows the verified national count of family or unpaid caregivers in each of the four countries. Crucially, the four figures are not the same metric measured the same way: the US counts "family caregivers", the UK counts people providing "unpaid care" in England and Wales, Australia counts "carers", and Canada counts people who "provided unpaid care" among those aged 15 and over. Because the definitions, age cuts and geographies differ, these should be read as four independent confirmations that caregiving operates at a population scale, not as one identical, directly comparable number. Every value is a verified primary-source figure.
Family / unpaid caregivers by country
| Country | Caregivers | Share of population | Year | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | 63 million | ~1 in 4 adults | 2025 | AARP / NAC |
| UK (England & Wales) | 5.0 million | — | 2021 | ONS Census 2021 |
| Australia | 3.0 million | ~12% of people | 2022 | ABS SDAC |
| Canada (15+) | ~13.4 million | 42% of adults 15+ | 2022 | Statistics Canada |
Definitions differ by country and are not directly comparable: US = "family caregivers" (AARP/NAC); UK = people providing "unpaid care", England & Wales only (Carers UK estimates ~5.8M UK-wide); Australia = "carers" (ABS SDAC); Canada = people who "provided unpaid care" in the prior 12 months, aged 15+ (StatCan). Treat these as four independent confirmations of scale, not one identical metric.
The US: 63 million caregivers and $600 billion in unpaid work
The United States has the largest and best-quantified caregiver population of the four countries. AARP and the National Alliance for Caregiving estimate 63 million Americans were family caregivers in 2025 — about 1 in 4 adults — a rise of roughly 50% from the 2015 estimate (AARP/NAC, 2025). The economic scale is just as striking: AARP valued unpaid family caregiving at approximately $600 billion (AARP, 2021), a figure that reflects the sheer volume of hours family members give without pay. Put together, these numbers describe a hidden workforce larger than any single paid industry, doing work that would otherwise fall to paid health and social-care systems. The 50% growth since 2015 also signals the direction of travel: as the population ages and more people live into their 80s and 90s, the demand for family care keeps climbing faster than the formal care sector can absorb.
The UK: 5 million unpaid carers
In England and Wales, 5.0 million people reported providing unpaid care in the 2021 Census (ONS Census 2021), and Carers UK estimates the figure is around 5.8 million across the whole of the UK once Scotland and Northern Ireland are included. "Unpaid care" in the Census covers looking after, or giving help or support to, anyone with long-term physical or mental ill health, disability, or problems related to old age. Because Census self-reporting tends to undercount lighter or episodic caregiving, the true number of people doing some unpaid care is widely believed to be higher still. Even on the conservative Census count, unpaid carers in England and Wales number in the millions — a scale that mirrors the US and Australian findings despite a completely different measurement method.
Australia and Canada: the same pattern, independently confirmed
Australia and Canada confirm the pattern using their own national surveys. In Australia, 3.0 million people were carers in 2022 — about 12% of the population — up from 2.6 million in 2018, and 1.2 million of those were primary carers, meaning they provided the most informal help to a person needing it (ABS SDAC, 2022). In Canada, 42% of people aged 15 and over — roughly 13.4 million — provided unpaid care in the prior 12 months, about 1 in 7 (14.4%) cared specifically for an adult or older youth, and 1.8 million were "sandwiched" between caring for adults and raising children at the same time (Statistics Canada, 2022). The Australian rise from 2.6 million to 3.0 million in just four years, and Canada's large sandwiched cohort, both point to the same underlying reality: caregiving is expanding and increasingly stretches people across two generations at once.
Caregiver detail: Australia and Canada
| Country | Measure | Value | Year | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | All carers | 3.0 million (~12%) | 2022 | ABS SDAC |
| Australia | All carers (prior wave) | 2.6 million | 2018 | ABS SDAC |
| Australia | Primary carers | 1.2 million | 2022 | ABS SDAC |
| Canada | Provided unpaid care (15+) | 42% (~13.4M) | 2022 | Statistics Canada |
| Canada | Cared for an adult / older youth | 14.4% (~1 in 7) | 2022 | Statistics Canada |
| Canada | "Sandwiched" carers (adults + children) | 1.8 million | 2022 | Statistics Canada |
Australian carer counts rose from 2.6M (2018) to 3.0M (2022), a four-year increase of about 0.4 million (ABS SDAC). Canadian figures are for adults aged 15 and over (StatCan).
What family caregivers actually do
Behind these headline counts is a wide range of day-to-day work. Family caregivers help with personal care, medications, transport, finances, appointments, and household tasks — but a large and often unspoken part of the role is simply keeping watch: knowing whether the person they care for is safe right now. For many caregivers this is not a discrete task but a continuous background state of attention. The distinction matters because counts like 63 million (AARP/NAC, 2025) or 13.4 million (StatCan, 2022) capture the number of people doing the work, but not the mental load of being permanently on call. That low-grade, around-the-clock vigilance is one of the defining and least-measured features of family caregiving, and it is felt most acutely by those who care from a distance and cannot just look in on the person.
The toll of caregiving
The scale of caregiving comes with a measurable personal cost, which is the focus of our companion page on caregiver burnout. In brief: 50% of US caregivers said caregiving increased their emotional stress and 37% reported physical stress (AARP, 2023). Those figures show that caregiving is demanding even before any crisis occurs — the steady weight of responsibility, not only acute emergencies, is what wears people down over months and years. The constant uncertainty about whether a loved one is okay is a core driver of that emotional stress, especially for caregivers who live in a different city or country and cannot physically check in. For a fuller breakdown of burnout rates, stress, and financial strain, see our caregiver burnout statistics page.
Country comparison: US, UK, Australia and Canada
Across all four countries, family and unpaid caregiving operates at a population scale, but the comparison must be read carefully because each country measures something slightly different. The US figure (63 million family caregivers, AARP/NAC 2025) and the Canadian figure (42% of adults 15+, ~13.4 million, StatCan 2022) both describe a very broad definition of caregiving covering roughly a quarter to two-fifths of adults. The UK Census figure (5.0 million in England and Wales, ONS 2021) and the Australian figure (3.0 million, ~12%, ABS SDAC 2022) use narrower, self-reported "carer" definitions that produce lower shares. The right conclusion is not that Americans or Canadians care more than Britons or Australians, but that the four agencies, using four different methods, all independently confirm that family caregiving is enormous and growing.
Caregiver scale by country (definitions differ)
| Country | Definition used | Caregivers | Share | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | "Family caregivers" | 63 million | ~1 in 4 adults | AARP / NAC 2025 |
| UK (E&W) | Provided "unpaid care" | 5.0 million | — | ONS Census 2021 |
| Australia | "Carers" | 3.0 million | ~12% | ABS SDAC 2022 |
| Canada | "Provided unpaid care", 15+ | ~13.4 million | 42% of adults 15+ | StatCan 2022 |
Shares are not directly comparable because the underlying definitions, age cuts and geographies differ. Read each row as one country's independent confirmation of scale. UK-wide carers are estimated at ~5.8M by Carers UK.
The trend is upward
Every country with two comparable data points shows caregiving growing. The US estimate rose roughly 50% from 2015 to 63 million in 2025 (AARP/NAC), and Australia's carer count rose from 2.6 million in 2018 to 3.0 million in 2022 (ABS SDAC). The drivers are demographic: ageing populations mean more older adults needing support, more of them living into their 80s and 90s, and more middle-aged adults caught between caring for parents and raising children — Canada alone counted 1.8 million such "sandwiched" carers (StatCan, 2022). As this cohort grows, so does the share of caregivers managing care from a distance, for a parent who lives independently in their own home. That long-distance group carries all the responsibility of caregiving with none of the ability to simply look in and see that everything is fine.
Why a daily check-in helps
Caring for an ageing parent who lives independently is a normal and valuable thing — independence is worth protecting, and most parents neither need nor want to be watched. But for the millions of family caregivers counted here, especially the long-distance ones, the hardest part is the constant low-grade worry: is mum okay right now? A simple daily check-in answers that question without surveilling anyone. The parent taps once a day to confirm they are OK; if a check-in is ever missed, a chosen family member is quietly alerted. There is no GPS, no tracking, and no medical monitoring — just the reassurance that someone will notice if something is wrong. For a caregiver, that quietly offloads the around-the-clock vigilance that 63 million Americans and tens of millions of carers worldwide carry every day, and it gives the parent full privacy and independence in return.
Sources
- AARP & National Alliance for Caregiving — Caregiving in the US 2025
- AARP — Unpaid Caregivers Provide Billions in Care (valued at $600 billion, 2021)
- AARP — Caregiver Mental Health Report (2023)
- Office for National Statistics — Unpaid Care, England and Wales: Census 2021
- Australian Bureau of Statistics — Disability, Ageing and Carers, Australia: Summary of Findings (SDAC 2022)
- Statistics Canada — More Than Half of Women in Canada Provide Unpaid Care (Canadian Social Survey, Wave 6, 2022)
Frequently Asked Questions
How many family caregivers are there in the United States?
An estimated 63 million Americans were family caregivers in 2025 — about 1 in 4 adults — up roughly 50% from the 2015 estimate (AARP and the National Alliance for Caregiving, 2025).
What is the economic value of unpaid family caregiving in the US?
AARP valued unpaid family caregiving in the United States at approximately $600 billion (AARP, 2021), reflecting the enormous volume of care hours family members provide without pay.
How many unpaid carers are there in the UK?
5.0 million people reported providing unpaid care in England and Wales in the 2021 Census (ONS Census 2021). Carers UK estimates the figure is around 5.8 million across the whole of the UK once Scotland and Northern Ireland are included.
How many carers are there in Australia?
3.0 million Australians were carers in 2022, about 12% of the population, up from 2.6 million in 2018, of whom 1.2 million were primary carers (ABS Survey of Disability, Ageing and Carers, 2022).
How many Canadians provide unpaid care?
42% of Canadians aged 15 and over — roughly 13.4 million people — provided unpaid care in the prior 12 months, with about 1 in 7 (14.4%) caring for an adult or older youth (Statistics Canada, 2022).
What share of adults are family caregivers?
It depends on the country and definition: about 1 in 4 US adults are family caregivers (AARP/NAC, 2025), 42% of Canadians aged 15+ provided unpaid care (StatCan, 2022), and about 12% of Australians are carers (ABS SDAC, 2022). In England and Wales, 5.0 million people reported providing unpaid care in the 2021 Census (ONS Census 2021).
Is the number of family caregivers growing?
Yes. The US estimate rose roughly 50% from 2015 to 63 million in 2025 (AARP/NAC), and Australia's carer count rose from 2.6 million in 2018 to 3.0 million in 2022 (ABS SDAC). Ageing populations are the main driver.
Why are caregiver counts different across countries?
Because each country defines and measures caregiving differently: the US counts "family caregivers", the UK counts people providing "unpaid care" in England and Wales, Australia counts "carers", and Canada counts those who "provided unpaid care" among adults 15+. They are four independent confirmations of scale, not one identical, directly comparable metric.
What is a 'sandwiched' caregiver?
A sandwiched caregiver is someone caring for adults (such as an ageing parent) while also raising children at the same time. Statistics Canada counted 1.8 million such sandwiched carers in 2022 (Statistics Canada, 2022).
How many primary carers are there in Australia?
1.2 million Australians were primary carers in 2022 — the people who provide the most informal help to a person who needs it — out of 3.0 million carers in total (ABS Survey of Disability, Ageing and Carers, 2022).
Does caregiving affect the caregiver's health?
Yes. 50% of US caregivers said caregiving increased their emotional stress and 37% reported physical stress (AARP, 2023). For a fuller breakdown of the toll, see our caregiver burnout statistics page.
What is the hardest part of caring for an elderly parent from a distance?
Long-distance caregivers carry all the responsibility of caregiving but cannot simply look in to see that everything is fine, so they live with constant low-grade worry about whether their parent is okay right now. That continuous, around-the-clock vigilance is a core driver of the emotional stress AARP measured (AARP, 2023).
How many people in England and Wales are unpaid carers?
5.0 million people reported providing unpaid care in England and Wales in 2021 (ONS Census 2021). Because self-reporting tends to undercount lighter or episodic care, the true number is widely believed to be higher.
Is being a family caregiver a normal experience?
Very much so. With about 1 in 4 US adults (AARP/NAC, 2025) and 42% of Canadian adults 15+ (StatCan, 2022) providing care, family caregiving is a mainstream, mostly invisible role that an enormous share of adults take on at some point in their lives.
How can a family caregiver reduce the worry of a parent living alone?
A simple daily check-in lets the parent confirm they are OK with one tap, and quietly alerts a chosen family member only if a check-in is missed. There is no GPS, tracking or medical monitoring — just the reassurance that someone will notice if something is wrong, which offloads the constant vigilance caregivers carry while leaving the parent fully independent and private.
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