The 5 Best Assisted Living Facilities in Hilton Head Island, SC for 2024

Assisted living can be a good choice for seniors struggling to manage at home without help. Licensed facilities have staff who can assist with daily functions, such as dressing, and others who prepare meals and ensure rooms are clean and comfortable. There’s also a social calendar, which allows residents to participate together in a range of managed activities. According to the 2021 Genworth Cost of Care Survey, the typical senior in Hilton Head Island pays $4,500 for assisted living, which is about 19.7% more than the state average.

This guide considers the benefits and drawbacks of living on Hilton Head Island. It also compares the region’s assisted living costs with nearby cities and reviews costs for other types of senior care. Additionally, it lists some free resources for Hilton Head Island’s older residents.

The Bureau of Health Facility Licensing regulates the assisted living sector in South Carolina. In addition to issuing licenses to facilities that satisfy all the required criteria, it also upholds standards by conducting unannounced inspections and reviewing reports from other sources, such as complaints made to the Long-Term Care Ombudsman.

• With July’s temperatures averaging 91 degrees and annual rainfall of approximately 14 inches, summer on Hilton Head Island typically includes hot and humid days. However, January’s average temperature of 39 degrees is cool but comfortable, so seniors shouldn’t experience extremely cold days on Hilton Head Island.
• Sperling’s BestPlaces gives Hilton Head Island an excellent health cost index of 94.2/100. This is partly due to the water quality, which scores six points higher than the national average of 55. As expected from a region on the Atlantic Coast, the air quality is excellent, too — scoring 74, which is much better than the U.S. average of 58.
• The chances of being a victim of property crime on Hilton Head Island are 1 in 47, which is better than the state average of 1 in 36. Violent crime statistics are better still, with the chances falling to 1 in 489, while South Carolina’s is 1 in 185. An additional benefit of assisted living is that facilities typically have security systems as standard and staff on-site 24/7, which may comfort seniors concerned about crime.
• With seven regional hospitals, seniors on Hilton Head Island don’t have far to travel for medical assistance. They include Hilton Head Hospital, rated as high-performing in knee replacement surgery, and the nonprofit Beaufort Hospital, a 200+-bed facility that’s the largest between Charleston and Savannah, Georgia.
• The Breeze is a free bus service for all (referred to locally as a trolley service) that operates seven days per week between early April and Labor Day. Easy Breeze Paratransit is a door-to-door shared ride service for persons with temporary or permanent disabilities. It operates Monday to Friday and allows one pre-approved companion to journey with the disabled senior for free. 

At $4,500 per month, an assisted living placement in Hilton Head Island costs roughly the same as the national average. However, the region’s seniors pay more than normal for the state, which has a median fee of $3,612. 

Cost comparisons involving Hilton Head island should take into account assisted living fees in Savannah, Georgia. The two locations are less than an hour apart, but the difference in their assisted living costs is wide, as the Georgian city averages a fee of $3,513. However, this isn’t as low as South Carolina’s most affordable city, Sumter, where seniors typically pay $2,663. Costs in Charleston and Myrtle Beach are higher, at $3,945 and $4,070, respectively — although neither city is as costly as Hilton Head Island.

Adult day health care is the most affordable type of senior care on Hilton Head Island. Its median fee of $1,896 is significantly below assisted living, although the latter does offer 24/7 care and accommodation. In-home and home health care agencies deliver non-medical and medical services, respectively, with each averaging the same fee of $5,577. Nursing homes are the costliest option, typically charging $6,266 per month for a semiprivate room.

While many families use their own funds or personal assets to pay for assisted living, there are plenty of additional options to cover these costs. Some additional ways to finance assisted living costs include:

• Veterans Benefits
• Life Insurance Policy
• Long-Term Care Insurance
• Reverse Mortgage

For more information about different ways to finance assisted living, visit our Assisted Living in South Carolina page.