Aims: The aim of this study is to profile the family caregivers of people living with heart failure, to determine the perceived and real time devoted to daily care and to identify the factors associated with caregivers’ overestimation of time dedicated to care. Background: The time spent by family caregivers on daily care is related to overload, but there are differences between real and perceived time spent. The reason for this difference is unknown, as is its impact on the caregiver. Design: Multicentre, cross‐sectional study.