Fall 2026: IHSS by the numbers
The quarter in numbers, a reassessment checklist, free tools, and a Fresno spotlight.
IHSS by the numbers
Fall 2026 · California · all 58 counties
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Welcome to our first quarterly issue. Four times a year, we’ll send you California’s In-Home Supportive Services program in numbers — how many people it serves and where, how many hours of care they receive, who the providers are, and what they’re paid in every county. Whether you receive IHSS, provide care, or help a family through it, the aim is simple: to show you where your own county and your own case fit in the bigger picture, so you walk into your next assessment or phone call knowing more than you did. Thanks for reading — IHSSHours.com |
Every figure below comes from CDSS program data for July 2026 and the county wage sheet (IP Effective 8-1-2026) — the same data behind every county guide on the site.
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1 · Statewide
The whole program at a glance
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925,481
people receiving IHSS | 838,108
paid providers | 119.0
average hours a month |
110M
care hours a month | 1.3B
care hours a year | 102,695
on Protective Supervision (11%) |
That’s roughly 27.5 hours of paid care a week for the average recipient, and 0.9 providers for every recipient statewide — many providers work for a single family member, some for several people.
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2 · Where the caseload is
The ten biggest county programs
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| Los Angeles | 312,322 | |||
| Riverside | 64,171 | |||
| San Bernardino | 57,648 | |||
| Orange | 57,469 | |||
| San Diego | 51,084 | |||
| Sacramento | 45,673 | |||
| Santa Clara | 38,707 | |||
| Alameda | 34,949 | |||
| Fresno | 31,192 | |||
| San Francisco | 30,703 |
Los Angeles alone serves 34% of every IHSS recipient in California — more than Riverside, San Bernardino, Orange and San Diego combined (230,372). At the other end, Alpine County serves 22.
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By region
Recipients across the state
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| Los Angeles | 312,322 · 34% | |||
| Rest of Southern California | 252,405 · 27% | |||
| Bay Area | 153,670 · 17% | |||
| San Joaquin Valley | 95,305 · 10% | |||
| Sacramento region | 61,829 · 7% | |||
| North State | 25,387 · 3% | |||
| Central Coast | 21,862 · 2% | |||
| Sierra and Eastern | 2,701 · 0% |
Regions are our grouping of the 58 counties; CDSS reports by county.
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3 · Hours of care
Who gets the most hours — and the fewest
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Average authorized hours per recipient each month, among counties with 1,000 or more recipients:
| Placer | 144.2 | |||
| El Dorado | 140.9 | |||
| Lake | 139.3 | |||
| San Mateo | 135.8 | |||
| Santa Clara | 132.6 | |||
| Tehama | 108.9 | |||
| Imperial | 108.6 | |||
| Stanislaus | 103.8 | |||
| Sutter | 98.6 | |||
| San Joaquin | 98.0 |
Top five in plum, bottom five in gold. Statewide average: 119.0. Differences reflect who each county serves as much as how it assesses — but if your hours look low for your county, check how tasks are ranked.
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4 · Protective Supervision
102,695 Californians need someone watching over them
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Protective Supervision covers people who can’t recognize danger because of a mental impairment. The share of recipients who receive it varies more than almost any other figure:
| El Dorado | 23% | |||
| Placer | 22% | |||
| San Luis Obispo | 19% | |||
| Yolo | 19% | |||
| Nevada | 18% | |||
| Yuba | 16% |
Statewide: 11%. Counties with 1,000+ recipients. How Protective Supervision is decided →
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5 · Who provides the care
73% of IHSS providers are family
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IHSS is, overwhelmingly, families caring for their own. Of 838,108 paid providers in July 2026:
| 73% are relatives of the person they care for · 608,382 |
| 61% live in the same home · 507,339 |
| 22% are a parent of the recipient · 182,687 |
| 5% are the recipient’s spouse · 43,204 |
These overlap — a parent living with their adult child counts as a relative, a parent and live-in. A year earlier, relatives were 73% and live-in providers 60%.
Where family care is most and least common (share of providers who are relatives):
| Orange | 82% | |||
| San Joaquin | 79% | |||
| San Bernardino | 78% | |||
| Monterey | 78% | |||
| Marin | 57% | |||
| Santa Cruz | 56% | |||
| Mendocino | 54% | |||
| Lake | 44% |
Highest four in rust, lowest four in teal; counties with 1,000+ recipients. Relatives can be paid providers — spouses and parents of minors under narrower rules. Who can be a provider →
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6 · Provider pay
From $16.90 to $23.00 an hour
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$16.90
lowest · Siskiyou | $18.50
median county | $23.00
highest · San Francisco |
| Under $18 | 20 counties | |||
| $18 – $18.99 | 16 counties | |||
| $19 – $19.99 | 8 counties | |||
| $20 – $21.99 | 12 counties | |||
| $22 and up | 2 counties |
The same work pays $6.10 more an hour in San Francisco than in Siskiyou. Most counties raised pay on January 1 with the state minimum wage; these 14 moved on other dates this year:
Marin Feb 1 · San Diego Mar 1 · Sonoma Mar 1 · Santa Barbara Apr 1 · Riverside May 1 · Alameda Jul 1 · Alpine Jul 1 · Kern Jul 1 · Madera Jul 1 · Monterey Jul 1 · Stanislaus Jul 1 · Tehama Jul 1 · Ventura Jul 1 · Amador Aug 1
11 counties have more paid providers than recipients. Every county’s rate and effective date →
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Pay, a year on
How much wages rose since July 2025
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+$0.40
median county raise | +$2.10
biggest · Alameda | $19.69
average paid, up from $18.73 |
The largest raises in dollars an hour, with the new rate:
| Alameda | +$2.10 → $22.10 | |||
| San Joaquin | +$1.97 → $18.97 | |||
| Monterey | +$1.80 → $21.04 | |||
| Yolo | +$1.80 → $19.05 | |||
| Fresno | +$1.65 → $18.75 | |||
| Amador | +$1.40 → $19.40 | |||
| Riverside | +$1.40 → $19.90 | |||
| San Diego | +$1.40 → $20.40 |
Every county raised pay this year. 31 rose by exactly $0.40, the same amount the state minimum wage went up. The average is weighted by recipients, so large counties count for more. A year-ago rate is from CDSS program data for July 2025; today’s is from the current county wage sheet.
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7 · County spotlight
Fresno County
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| Recipients | 31,192 · #9 of 58 |
| Paid providers | 29,665 |
| Average hours a month | 120.5 (+1.5 vs. state) |
| On Protective Supervision | 4,021 · 13% |
| Provider wage | $18.75 · #27 of 58 |
| To apply, call | (559) 600-6666 |
Largest cities served: Fresno, Clovis, Sanger, Reedley, Selma, Coalinga. The full Fresno County guide →
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8 · Guide of the quarter
Getting ready for a reassessment
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Most recipients are reassessed about once a year, and hours can go down as well as up. A little preparation changes what the social worker sees:
1 |
Ask your county worker for your last SOC 293 before the visit. It lists the rank each task got last time, so you can speak to exactly what has changed. You have the right to see your case file. |
2 |
Update your medical paperwork for anything that has changed since the last assessment — new diagnoses, hospital stays, falls, new medications. |
3 |
Describe a typical day, not your best one. Minimizing is one of the most common reasons hours are under-authorized. |
4 |
Have a family member or advocate there to add detail and take notes. |
5 |
If your needs have grown, choose an in-person visit over phone or video. A social worker on a call can’t see how long it takes to cross a room — and you’re entitled to in person. |
6 |
If the notice cuts your hours, you have 90 days to request a State Hearing. |
IHSS Reassessments: What to Expect and How to Prepare →
What to Bring to Your IHSS Assessment Visit →
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9 · From the Resource Hub
Worth reading this quarter
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IHSS and Medi-Cal — How the Eligibility Connection Works
Why Medi-Cal eligibility is required for IHSS, what happens to your hours if your coverage changes, and how share of cost affects the two programs.
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How IHSS Providers Get Paid: Timesheets, Direct Deposit & First Check
How IHSS pay works end to end — timesheet submission, approval, direct deposit, pay periods, and why a first paycheck takes longer than expected.
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IHSS Protective Supervision: Who Qualifies & How to Document It
Protective Supervision is the most under-claimed IHSS service. Who qualifies, why it does not mean 24 paid hours a day, the SOC 825 coverage plan, and the evidence that actually supports a claim.
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How to Find and Hire an IHSS Provider in California
Finding an IHSS caregiver: which family members can be paid, how county registries work, and the enrollment steps a provider must finish before their first timesheet.
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All free guides in the Resource Hub →
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Free tools
No signup, no cost
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Am I Eligible for IHSS? Free Quiz
Answer 5 quick questions to see whether you're likely eligible for California IHSS — based on the real state eligibility criteria, free, no signup. |
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Free IHSS Timesheet Generator & Overtime Tools
Free IHSS timesheet generator and calculator for California providers. Plan your month, catch overtime and weekly-cap problems before you submit, plus pay period and violation tools. |
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IHSS by County — All 58 California Counties
IHSS guides for all 58 California counties — current provider wages, Public Authority contacts, recipients served, and local details for each county. |
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IHSS Glossary of Key Terms
Plain-English definitions of IHSS terms and acronyms — NOA, HTG, SOC, Functional Index, Protective Supervision, EVV, and more. |
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IHSS Video Library — Explainer Videos
Official California IHSS explainer videos on applying, assessments, hiring a provider, and pay rules — in English, Spanish, Chinese, and Armenian. |
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10 · Numbers to call
Statewide help lines
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IHSS Service Desk
timesheets, the online portal, payment questions · Mon–Fri 8–5 |
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Timesheet phone system
submit or approve timesheets by phone (833-DIAL-EVV) |
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Support for blind or low-vision providers
timesheet help in accessible formats |
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Medi-Cal Member Help Line
coverage and eligibility questions |
To apply for IHSS, call your county — every county’s intake and Public Authority numbers are in the county guides →
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Numbers worth keeping
The rules in figures
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| 283 hours a month, the cap for a severely impaired recipient; 195 for everyone else |
| 30 days for the county to decide on an application |
| 90 days from a notice to request a State Hearing |
| 4.33 weeks in a month — the multiplier CDSS uses to turn weekly minutes into monthly hours |
| $130,000 Medi-Cal asset limit for one person, back since January 1, plus $65,000 per additional household member |
MPP 30-765, MPP 30-759.2, WIC 10951, MPP 30-763.2, DHCS ACWDL 25-14. More statewide figures on the site →
This is the web version of the Fall 2026 quarterly issue, as it went out by email. Figures are as of the data month stated at the top and are not updated after publication — for current numbers, see IHSS by the Numbers. All issues →