Child care provider vs personal care worker

The differences between child care providers and personal care workers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a child care provider has an average salary of $33,145, which is higher than the $29,490 average annual salary of a personal care worker.

The top three skills for a child care provider include nutritional meals, child care and CPR. The most important skills for a personal care worker are patients, home health, and good communication.

Child care provider vs personal care worker overview

	Child Care Provider	Personal Care Worker
Yearly salary	$33,145	$29,490
Hourly rate	$15.94	$14.18
Growth rate	6%	36%
Number of jobs	119,940	129,522
Job satisfaction	5	5
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 34%	High School Diploma, 36%
Average age	37	48
Years of experience	2	-

What does a child care provider do?

A childcare provider is responsible for supervising a child's safety while developing fun activities and assisting the child's needs throughout the day. Childcare providers' duties include ensuring that facilities are safe for the child's use, monitoring the child's routines, serving healthy meals, assisting the child with homework, and reporting any concerns to their parents or guardians. Childcare providers must have excellent time-management skills and should be able to multi-task to attend with the child's needs.

What does a personal care worker do?

A personal care worker is responsible for providing quality health care services for elders and disabled persons. Personal care workers are usually employed in a private household setting or a special healthcare institution, assisting patients with their daily activities, and monitoring their conditions. They update the patients' medical charts, administer medication from the physician's prescriptions, and manage their food intake. A personal care worker must be highly-organized, especially when attending to patients' needs, inquiries, and concerns.

Child care provider vs personal care worker salary

Child care providers and personal care workers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Child Care Provider	Personal Care Worker
Average salary	$33,145	$29,490
Salary range	Between $23,000 And $47,000	Between $22,000 And $38,000
Highest paying City	Vancouver, WA	Lynn, MA
Highest paying state	Washington	Massachusetts
Best paying company	CARE	Tyson Foods
Best paying industry	Finance	Professional

Differences between child care provider and personal care worker education

There are a few differences between a child care provider and a personal care worker in terms of educational background:

	Child Care Provider	Personal Care Worker
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 34%	High School Diploma, 36%
Most common major	Business	Nursing
Most common college	University of Southern California	-

Child care provider vs personal care worker demographics

Here are the differences between child care providers' and personal care workers' demographics:

	Child Care Provider	Personal Care Worker
Average age	37	48
Gender ratio	Male, 9.5% Female, 90.5%	Male, 16.4% Female, 83.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 7.9% Unknown, 6.2% Hispanic or Latino, 20.3% Asian, 6.6% White, 58.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%	Black or African American, 8.4% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 12.5% Asian, 10.2% White, 63.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3%
LGBT Percentage	4%	7%

Differences between child care provider and personal care worker duties and responsibilities

Child care provider example responsibilities.

Provide first aid and CPR, prevention of the spread of blood borne pathogens and access of emergency services as needed.
Maintain necessary documentation for licensing as well as certifications including CPR.
Complete accurate and timely documentation on kids' behavior as outlined by policy.
Accumulate early childhood experience through daily interactions and continual training sessions.

Personal care worker example responsibilities.

Manage provider network to include verifying claims and benefits for healthcare providers/members and insurance companies.
Assist in transfers using a gate belt or a hoyer lift.
Use a Hoyer lift to transport patient out of bed to their wheel chair
Perform light maintance which include switching window screens and storm windows, installing and removing air conditioning units.
Care for mentally and physically disable individuals, bathing, feeding, house cleaning duties, tolieting, medicines, CPR certify
Travele to different client homes to assist with ADL's i.e., laundry, bathing, grooming, cleaning, etc.

Child care provider vs personal care worker skills

Common child care provider skills

Nutritional Meals, 25%
Child Care, 22%
CPR, 11%
Homework Assignments, 9%
Social Development, 4%
Applied Behavior Analysis, 3%

Common personal care worker skills

Patients, 24%
Home Health, 20%
Good Communication, 13%
In-Home Care, 12%
Companionship, 5%
Patient Care, 2%

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Personal Care and Attendants Industry
Child Care Provider
Child Care Provider vs Personal Care Worker

Updated January 8, 2025

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