Caregiver apps and websites

Caregiver app types: which one do you need?

A caregiver app can mean four very different things. Picking the right kind saves you from downloading a dozen you won't use.

A simple rule of thumb: if you're caring for a relative without pay, start with a coordination app. If you're paid through Medicaid, the EVV app comes with the job. If you're hiring help, you'll lean on scheduling tools and matching websites. Most families end up with one from each group they actually need, not one of everything.

Family caregiver app options for sharing the load

A family caregiver app helps several people keep track of one person's care: who's taking Mom to the doctor, which pills changed, what the nurse said. Two widely used examples, described from their own sites:

Caring Village app

The Caring Village app is built for family caregivers. Its site lists a wellness journal, care plans, a shared calendar, medication tracking, document storage, secure messaging and shared to-do lists, plus an AI assistant for caregiving questions. It has a free plan for a small group and paid tiers for larger families.

Lotsa Helping Hands

Lotsa Helping Hands is built around a care calendar: you post requests for help — meals, rides to appointments, visits — and friends and neighbors sign up. It's free, with no eligibility requirements, and has a mobile app.

Other tools families use: a shared phone calendar, a group text and a shared notes document. For many families, that's enough. If you're coordinating more than a few helpers, a dedicated app is worth it.

Apps for home health aides: electronic visit verification

If you're paid to give care through Medicaid — including as a paid family caregiver — the most important of all apps for home health aides is the one you don't choose: your state's EVV app.

Section 12006 of the 21st Century Cures Act requires states to use electronic visit verification for Medicaid personal care services (by January 1, 2020) and home health services (by January 1, 2023). EVV records six things about every visit:

1. The type of service performed
2. The person receiving the service
3. The date of the service
4. The location where it was delivered
5. The person providing the service
6. The time the service began and ended

In practice, these home health aide apps usually run on your phone, and you check in at the start and end of each visit. Nebraska, for example, verifies independent providers' visits by smartphone. Your state decides which methods it accepts.

Caregiver schedule app and home health care app tools for agencies

Agencies use a home health care app or scheduling platform to assign shifts, share care plans and collect notes. As an aide, your agency will tell you which caregiver schedule app it uses; many combine scheduling with EVV.

For families who hire several private caregivers, a shared calendar or a scheduling app built for shift work can replace the whiteboard on the fridge. What to look for:

• Shift swaps and open-shift alerts
• Clock-in and clock-out records you can export for payroll
• Care notes visible to the whole team
• Access controls, so each caregiver only sees what they need

If you're paying private caregivers directly, keep good time records — you may be a household employer. See private pay home care.

Best caregiver apps: how to choose

We don't publish a ranking of the best caregiver apps — features and prices change often, and the best one is the one your family will actually open. Ask these questions instead:

• Is it free? A free home care app or a free tier is enough for many families. Check what's limited.
• Can everyone use it? Older relatives and busy siblings need something simple, on the phones they already have.
• Where is the data stored? Medication lists and documents are sensitive. Read the privacy policy.
• Does it do the one thing you need? Shared calendar, medication tracking, or asking for help — not all three equally well.

Home care apps are a supplement, not a plan. If the hard part is paying for help, the answer is a program, not an app — see what in-home care costs and family caregiver support programs.

Caregiver websites and caregiver sites worth knowing

Beyond apps, a few kinds of caregiver website are genuinely useful:

• Government program sites. Your state Medicaid agency, Area Agency on Aging and the federal Eldercare Locator are where paid care actually starts.
• State caregiver registries and matching services. Some states run their own — see Oregon below.
• Job and matching sites, where families post jobs and caregivers post profiles. See caregiver jobs.
• Support communities for caregivers of people with dementia, cancer or disabilities.

When you're comparing caregiver sites, look for who runs it and how it makes money. A homecare website that sells leads to agencies will steer you toward agencies; a state site will show you the programs.

Oregon caregiver program website and Carina

People search for the Oregon caregiver program website because Oregon runs one of the more developed state systems. The Oregon Home Care Commission supports Carina, an online care-matching service that helps people who need in-home services find homecare workers, personal support workers and personal care attendants, and helps those workers find jobs.

To be paid through Oregon's programs, the person receiving care still needs an assessment through the local Area Agency on Aging or APD office. Oregon's programs — the Consumer-Employed Provider program, Independent Choices and Spousal Pay — are covered on the Oregon caregiver program page, with pay on Oregon caregiver pay. Local pages: Multnomah County, Lane County.

State caregiver portals in other states

Many states now run caregiver enrollment and pay through online portals or a single statewide payroll company:

• New York: since April 2025 every CDPAP consumer and caregiver registers with PPL, the single statewide fiscal intermediary. See CDPAP and PPL compared.
• Washington: individual providers are employed through CDWA, the Consumer Directed Employer, which handles contracting, background checks, training and payroll. See Washington caregiver program.
• California: IHSS providers and recipients use the state's IHSS payroll system; see IHSS and California caregiver pay.
• Wisconsin: IRIS participants work with a fiscal employer agent. See IRIS.

Your state's page lists its programs and how to apply — browse the states list.

Caregiver support apps for your own wellbeing

Caregivers look after everyone but themselves. Support apps and online groups can help with stress, sleep and isolation, and some disease-specific organizations run their own caregiver communities.

Apps help, but real breaks help more. Look into respite care — many states and the National Family Caregiver Support Program fund it through Area Agencies on Aging — and part-time home care.

If you're a paid family caregiver: the apps you'll actually use

Paid family caregivers usually end up with just three things on their phone:

1. The EVV app your state or payroll agency assigns, to clock in and out.
2. The payroll portal for pay stubs, tax forms and direct deposit.
3. A family coordination app or shared calendar, if siblings help too.

Not being paid yet? See how to get paid to care for a family member, family caregiver pay rates, or check eligibility in two minutes.

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