Caring.com Review

What is Caring.com?

Caring.com is a respected online site that helps seniors and caregivers find the help they need. I found it best for those who want a user-centric approach. The site enables people visiting control over the process with helpful tools for research. A big competitor of theirs, A Place for Mom, has a more hands-on approach and directly engages with clients through every step of the decision process​.

Types of Care Offered

Seniors and their families are looking for all sorts of help. I noted that Caring.com had a robust caregivers resource center including resources ranging from aging in place to caregivers coping with stress and burnout.

The site is set up to assist older adults in finding the right senior living residence. That could mean an assisted living facility, memory care facility, nursing home, or continuing care retirement community. Caring.com is a great self-service platform for researching these senior communities. For comparison, I found that A Place for Mom offers a more advisory-type service, including assisting in identifying suitable communities, scheduling tours, and even planning the move.

Caring.com Costs

Most care search websites operate similarly, where there are no charges for browsing, gathering information, or using basic referral functions. However, both Caring.com and A Place for Mom may have specialized service advisors who charge for services related to Medicaid planning, long-term care, and estate management. While initial consultations are typically free, certain professionals may charge for further assistance.

For comparison, on Care.com, older adults can browse caregiver profiles and post job listings for free. Here, too, they will be charged to access premium features, like detailed background checks, advanced caregiver search filters, and scheduling tools​.

Caring.com's home page makes it easy and clear to start your search

Our Experience Using Caring.com

Using Caring.com was easy; I just began on the home page. In this day and age, when it can be difficult to reach real customer service people by phone, I love that the phone number is listed right on the home page. I also appreciated that I could talk to a Caring Family Advisor, if I wanted to, by calling that 1-800 number. I wanted to find information about assisted living facilities near me in Venice, Florida, so I typed in my ZIP code. I quickly received the results.

Browsing local assisted living results on Caring.com

The site was easy to navigate. I then used the drop-down menu under Senior Living to find assisted living and instantly received my options. What stood out to me is I received 120 options that I could then sort by distance, room types, languages, prices, and many other filters.

To compare my results, I tried entering my ZIP code on the A Place for Mom website, and I was met with a variety of questions with multiple-choice answers. While comprehensive and probably more helpful in tailoring facilities to my situation, I found it to be too much when I just wanted to browse local options.

Reviews and Testimonials

Reading Caring.com testimonials

Although Caring.com has an A+ rating on the Better Business Bureau website, the site only received 1.78 stars. A consistent complaint was about the non-stop communications from Caring.com and the facilities these families were matched with.

For example, one reviewer said, “Despite advising Caring.com representatives and numerous independent living communities that they represent through multiple email and telephone conversations indicating clearly that we are not interested, the phone calls and emails keep coming.”

Remembering that people usually turn to the BBB when they have complaints, I looked at the positive reviews. Many other reviewers are happy with the service. One customer and her sister were seeking an assisted living facility for their mother. She said, “We are on a very limited budget, and Caring.com helped us narrow down our search for a facility and was able to provide approximate pricing, number of beds, star rating, etc. Yes, I did get inundated with emails, phone calls and text messages from the facilities Caring.com referred me to, but they definitely made the task of finding a place a lot easier.” 1

Caring.com vs. The Competition

Caring.com is often compared to A Place for Mom. Caring.com excels with its empathetic support and friendly platform. It, however, lacks the extensive network of senior care providers, highly personalized service, and trustworthy reputation of its competitor, A Place for Mom. 2

The two organizations definitely differ in size and scale. Caring.com has 312 employees and earns $57.5 million annually. 3 A Place for Mom has a workforce that’s over 5 times larger, with 1,777 staff, and has over 10 times the revenue, with earnings of 622.8 million dollars annually. 4 You can rest assured, though, that both companies remain trusted leaders when it comes to finding resources for the senior community.

Our Final Thoughts on Caring.com

As a free resource, Caring.com is a good one. Caring.com helps older adults and their families find information and support for senior care and caregiving. The biggest highlights of Caring.com for us were the many types of communities you could search for, from 55+ communities to adult day care sites.

For those needing home care, home health care, or hospice, you’ll find out more about those services here, too. The treasure trove of information offered about caregiving and the financial aspects of senior living was valuable indeed.

Pricing information was up front so I could assess before I contacted anyone—a definite plus. I also liked that I could quickly speak to Family Advisors and locate geriatric care managers near me if so desired.

As with any care finder like Caring.com, it’s important to follow up. Take a tour of the senior facility for yourself and speak directly with a new caregiver or advisor to ensure you find the right fit for you.