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Meal preparation & homemaking caregiver needed in California, CA
$20.00/hr offeredPosted Oct 2, 2026
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San Jose, California · Santa Clara County
Caregiver Jobs in San Jose, CA
San Jose has had its own minimum wage, $18.45 an hour, since January 1, 2026, and Santa Clara County IHSS pays providers $20.44. Setting up a profile costs nothing, and you can reply to any San Jose posting listed above.
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Finding in-home caregiver jobs in San Jose
The Department of Finance counted 980,434 people in San Jose on January 1, 2026, about 2,800 fewer than a year earlier but still half of Santa Clara County. Private care requests here come from a few directions: grown children who work long hours and want a parent covered on weekdays, spouses who need a regular break, and discharge planners sending someone home from one of the city's five hospitals. Postings with a San Jose ZIP code appear above once the family publishes them In a city this size, the ZIP code on a posting matters almost as much as the job itself, because a cross-town drive can eat an hour of your day.
Language is often the deciding factor. According to the 2020–2024 ACS, English is not the household language for 58.9% of San Jose residents over the age of four. Spanish is spoken by 205,290 of them (21.8%) and Vietnamese by 96,813 (10.3%), and 62% of the Vietnamese speakers rate their English below very well. The city holds about four out of five of the county's Vietnamese speakers. Chinese languages (78,125 speakers) and Tagalog (29,533) follow. If you can talk with a client in any of these, put it in your headline, not at the bottom of your profile.
Live postings
Families looking for private caregivers near San Jose, CA
Real postings from families on CaregiverConnect, matched to San Jose by distance. 2 caregivers within 50 miles already have profiles here.
Showing 1 of 1 open posting within 50 miles of San Jose, newest first. Family names and care-recipient details are shown after you sign in. Postings are removed from this page as soon as a family hires or closes them.
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Types of caregiver jobs
Types of caregiver jobs in San Jose
Typical requests are morning personal care, rides to appointments and the pharmacy, meal preparation for someone who lives alone, overnight stays for a father or mother with dementia, and two or three weeks of daily visits after surgery. A newcomer usually starts with companionship, errands and housekeeping; Evergreen Valley College's nurse assistant course and the free IHSS provider classes are the local routes to hands-on work.
Senior caregiving · Personal care · Companion care · Dementia care · Respite care · Live-in · Overnight · Part-time and full-time
Pay
Caregiver pay in San Jose: how much caregivers make
Public figures first, then what they mean for private work. Statistics describe employed aides across the San Jose–Sunnyvale–Santa Clara, CA metro (Santa Clara and San Benito counties); private rates on CaregiverConnect are agreed between each caregiver and family and are not tracked by any agency.
| Measure | Hourly | Source and coverage |
|---|---|---|
| Home health and personal care aides, San Jose–Sunnyvale–Santa Clara, CA metro (Santa Clara and San Benito counties) | $18.09 median ($18.92 mean) | BLS OEWS, May 2025; 49,610 jobs; concentration 1.58× national |
| IHSS provider wage, Santa Clara County | $20.44 | CDSS; effective January 1, 2026 |
| California minimum wage | $16.90 | effective January 1, 2026 |
| Nursing assistants, San Jose–Sunnyvale–Santa Clara, CA metro (Santa Clara and San Benito counties) | $27.33 median | BLS OEWS, May 2025 (certified roles, for comparison) |
Who is the employer. A family that hires you directly is your employer under California's Domestic Worker Bill of Rights. The state minimum wage ($16.90 an hour from 1 January 2026; some cities set more, for example $17.75 in the City of San Diego) is the legal floor, and a personal attendant earns overtime at 1.5× after 9 hours in a day or 45 in a week. The main exceptions are IHSS recipients and an employer's own parent, spouse or child. Source: California DIR, Domestic Worker Bill of Rights FAQ.
San Jose's minimum wage is $18.45 an hour for 2026, effective January 1 according to the UC Berkeley Labor Center's table and CalChamber's list of local rates, which puts it $1.55 above the state floor. It binds agencies and other businesses for work done inside city limits; if a household hires you directly, check with the city whether its ordinance applies before relying on it. For comparison, the metro aide median was $18.09 and the mean $18.92 in May 2025, nursing assistants earned a $27.33 median, and IHSS pays $20.44. Note that the neighboring cities of Santa Clara ($18.70), Sunnyvale ($19.50) and Milpitas ($18.50) each set a higher floor, so the same shift a few miles away can carry a different minimum.
How to enroll as a provider in Santa Clara County, with the office phone lines and orientation steps, is in the IHSS Santa Clara County guide. IHSS wages for every county we cover, with effective dates, are in the IHSS pay by county guide.
How the public numbers relate to private rates, and what affects them, is covered in the caregiver pay guide.
Rules
Caregiver requirements in California, applied to San Jose
Privately paid, non-medical work in San Jose needs no license from the state; the Home Care Aide Registry is a condition of agency employment but optional for independents. To be paid by IHSS you enroll through Public Authority Services by Sourcewise: complete the online forms and state videos, go to one group orientation at the SEIU office, 97 E. Brokaw Road, 2nd floor (no appointment needed, but arrive on time), and bring your actual Social Security card, not a copy, to your in-person appointment. An ITIN is not accepted. Fingerprints for the DOJ check cost $12 to $30 on the Public Authority's Live Scan form. Finally, the recipient you work for must designate you, online or on a SOC 426a, or no timesheets will reach you. Report suspected abuse to county Adult Protective Services, (408) 975-4900. See the Santa Clara County IHSS guide and state requirements.
Local resources
Training and career resources near San Jose
San Jose options, checked on each provider's own website in October 2026.
- Evergreen Valley College, Nurse Assistant/Home Health Aide (NURS109)CDPH-approved; the nurse assistant part takes the first 14 weeks of the semester, with hands-on clinical work at a skilled nursing home in the city, and a 70% grade qualifies you for the state exam. Requirements include a high school diploma or GED, an SSN or taxpayer ID, a background check and health clearance. A Zoom orientation runs three weeks before the start. 408-270-6448.
- IHSS group orientation and Public Authority enrollmentOrientations at SEIU, 97 E. Brokaw Rd., Suite 230, run about two hours; latecomers of ten minutes or more are asked to come back another day. Enrollment questions: (408) 350-3252.
- Free IHSS provider classesCPR and first aid with two-year ASHI certificates, plus personal care, nutrition, mental health and safe transfers, in three-hour sessions. A $35 incentive is paid per completed class while funds last; register through the Public Authority's portal or call (408) 350-3220.
- work2future San José job centers1608 Las Plumas Ave. (408.794.1101) and the EDD office at 1901 Zanker Road (408.216.6200); career coaching by appointment, weekdays 8 to 5.
- IHSS provider benefitsProviders paid for at least 35 IHSS hours in each of the last two months may request for Valley Health Plan medical cover and no-premium dental and vision through (408) 350-3290; working providers can also request a free VTA SmartPass.
The area
San Jose in numbers
ACS 2020–2024 counts 143,836 San Jose residents aged 65 or older (14.5%) plus 18,094 who have reached 85, and half the city is older than 38.2. Some 42.0% of residents were born abroad. Median household income is $146,427, median gross rent $2,669 and the median owner-occupied home $1,233,200, with 44.2% of homes rented. Commutes average 27.3 minutes, and only 2.4% of workers use public transit, so most caregivers drive; if you do not, the IHSS SmartPass and VTA's $1 senior fare make bus and light rail trips with a client cheaper.
HCAI lists five hospitals in the city: Santa Clara Valley Medical Center on South Bascom Avenue (628 licensed beds), Good Samaritan Hospital on Samaritan Drive (404), O'Connor Hospital on Forest Avenue (358), Regional Medical Center on North Jackson Avenue (265) and Kaiser San Jose on Hospital Parkway (247). Nearby pages: Santa Clara, Milpitas, Sunnyvale and the county page.
How it works
How to find private caregiver jobs in San Jose (no agency)
CaregiverConnect is a marketplace, not an agency. Families post what they need, caregivers apply, and the two of you work out the arrangement directly.
- Tell us about your experience
- Set your availability and rate
- Create your account
- Browse, apply or respond
- Agree on the details
Applying to open postings and starting a new conversation are part of Caregiver Premium ($7.99/month, cancel anytime). Replying to a family who contacts you is always free. CaregiverConnect takes no cut of what you earn.
¿Hablas español? El sitio está disponible en español, ruso, tagalo y vietnamita: cambia el idioma en el menú después de crear tu cuenta.
Widen your search
Caregiver jobs near San Jose
Families often post from neighbouring towns. Set your travel radius in your profile and you will appear in their searches too.
San Jose is part of Santa Clara County; the hub pages list every town and area they cover.
Guides
Useful reading
How to become a caregiver in California: requirements, HCA registry, IHSS and CNA explained · How much do caregivers make in California and Arizona? BLS, IHSS and minimum wage (2026) · Private caregiver jobs near you: how to find them without an agency · Caregiver interview preparation: questions families ask and how to answer them
Sources (checked 2026-10-15):
- UC Berkeley Labor Center, inventory of local minimum wage ordinances (July 1, 2026 table)
- CalChamber HR California, local minimum wage increases January 1, 2026
- California DIR, minimum wage FAQ
- BLS OEWS May 2025, San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA (31-1120, 31-1131) via BLS public API
- CDSS, IHSS wages by county
- Public Authority Services by Sourcewise, enrollment process
- Public Authority Services by Sourcewise, provider training
- Public Authority Services by Sourcewise, provider benefits
- Public Authority Services by Sourcewise, contact numbers (APS)
- Evergreen Valley College, CNA/Home Health Aide training
- work2future, job center locations
- VTA, fares (senior fare)
- California Department of Finance, E-1 population estimates 2026
- U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2020–2024 5-year (S0101, DP02, DP03, DP04, C16001), San Jose city
- HCAI facility profiles (Santa Clara Valley Medical Center, Good Samaritan, O'Connor, Regional Medical Center, Kaiser San Jose)
Questions
Caregiver jobs in San Jose: frequently asked questions
How much is the 2026 minimum wage in San Jose?
$18.45 an hour from January 1, 2026, for work performed in the city. The state minimum of $16.90 still applies in unincorporated county areas and in nearby towns without their own ordinance.
Can I manage caregiving work in San Jose without driving?
Not always, but it widens your options a lot. Without one, set a smaller radius around a light rail line or bus corridor and say so on your profile; working IHSS providers can get a free VTA SmartPass.
Which San Jose college trains nursing assistants?
Evergreen Valley College offers a CDPH-approved nurse assistant and home health aide course with open registration; the nurse assistant portion fills the first 14 weeks of a semester.
Can I enroll as an IHSS provider with an ITIN?
No. The Public Authority must see your original Social Security card at the in-person appointment; a tax ID number is not a substitute. Replacement cards from Social Security typically take 7 to 14 days.
Will speaking Vietnamese or Spanish help me find work?
Very likely. One in ten San Jose residents speaks Vietnamese at home and more than one in five speaks Spanish, and the ACS finds that 41% of those Spanish speakers report limited English.
Where do San Jose families post?
On the San Jose family page; posts with San Jose ZIP codes appear above.
Ready to find caregiver work in San Jose?
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