Affordable Care Act (ACA) Subsidy Calculator for 2027

How ACA Subsidies Are Calculated

The federal premium tax credit equals the non-tobacco benchmark Silver premium minus an income-based contribution, and it can never be larger than the premium of the eligible plan you enroll in. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) describes the credit this way. Revenue Procedure 2026-26 sets the 2027 percentages used for the contribution.

The calculator runs five steps:

1. Divide expected 2027 household MAGI by the 2026 federal poverty level (FPL) for your household size.
2. Find that percentage of FPL in the 2027 table below, and interpolate in a straight line inside its band.
3. Multiply MAGI by the applicable percentage, then divide by 12 for the monthly contribution.
4. Subtract the monthly contribution from the monthly benchmark premium. A negative result counts as zero.
5. Cap the result at the monthly premium of the plan you choose.

Written as one line, the credit is the smaller of two numbers: your plan premium, or the benchmark minus your contribution (never below zero).

Interpolation turns a band into an exact rate. At 231.05% of FPL, income sits 31.05 points into the 50-point band from 200% to 250%.

The rate climbs the same share of the way from 6.78% to 8.66%, which lands at about 7.95%.

The calculator keeps the dollar result hidden until you confirm the nonfinancial conditions listed under When the ACA Subsidy Calculator Does Not Apply. Below 100% or above 400% of FPL, it shows an explanation in place of a credit.

It estimates the federal credit only, with no state subsidy and no estimate of discounts on your share of costs for covered services.

Income for the 2027 ACA Subsidy Calculator

Enter your household's expected MAGI for 2027, the full year you want coverage. HealthCare.gov states that Marketplace savings are based on expected household income for the coverage year. Last year's income is only a starting point: the HealthCare.gov glossary says to begin with your most recent adjusted gross income (AGI) and adjust it for expected changes.

MAGI does not appear as a line on your tax return. Build it in two steps:

• Start with AGI, which is line 11 of IRS Form 1040.
• Add untaxed foreign income, non-taxable Social Security benefits, and tax-exempt interest. Leave out Supplemental Security Income (SSI).

For many people, MAGI equals AGI or comes close. Take-home pay alone is the wrong input for this calculator.

If your pay stub lists federal taxable wages, use that number. If it does not, HealthCare.gov says to start from gross income and subtract what your employer takes out for child care, health coverage, and retirement plans.

Self-employment income goes in after business expenses.

Some money stays out of the estimate entirely:

• child support
• gifts
• loan proceeds, such as student loans or home equity loans
• SSI
• veterans' disability payments
• workers' compensation

Household size and household income follow tax rules. Your family for the credit is you, your spouse if you file jointly, and everyone you claim as a dependent, including dependents who do not need coverage.

Household income adds the MAGI of each family member who is required to file a federal return, so a teenager's summer-job pay counts only if that teen must file.

The coverage family is a smaller group. The IRS defines it as the family members enrolled through the Marketplace who cannot get Medicaid, Medicare, or affordable employer coverage.

Enter the full tax household size and income, and use a benchmark premium that applies to the coverage family.

ACA Subsidy Income Limits for 2027

For 2027 coverage, the ordinary federal premium tax credit range is household income from 100% to 400% of the 2026 federal poverty level for your household size. The IRS bases each year's credit on the poverty guidelines most recently published when open enrollment begins, so the 2025 credit used 2024 figures and the 2027 credit uses 2026 figures.

The rule that allowed credits above 400% applied to tax years 2021 through 2025 only.

The top boundary is inclusive. The 2027 table runs to "not more than 400%," so a two-person household at exactly $86,560 stays inside the range.

In our calculation, that household's contribution is 10.22% of income, or $737.20 a month, and an illustrative $1,000 benchmark with a $1,000 plan premium leaves a $262.80 monthly credit.

Add $1 of income and the same household reaches 400.0046% of FPL, which removes the credit in the ordinary federal model. If your income sits near the line, run the calculator at both your low and high estimates before you count on the credit.

The table shows an income window. It does not establish eligibility by itself.

HealthCare.gov says income below 100% of FPL probably will not qualify for Marketplace savings but may qualify for Medicaid, and income below 138% may qualify for Medicaid in states that expanded it.

The calculator covers households of 1 to 8 people in the 48 contiguous states and the District of Columbia (DC). Poverty guidelines are higher in Alaska and Hawaii, and the 2026 table adds $5,680 for each person past eight.

Households in either group should rely on the Marketplace application for their figure.

The Benchmark and Your Chosen Plan

The benchmark is the monthly premium for the second-lowest-cost Silver plan that applies to your coverage family, and it sets the size of the credit. Your chosen plan's premium, which the IRS calls the enrollment premium, acts only as a ceiling.

The calculator asks for both numbers because they do different jobs in the formula.

The IRS settles two edge cases for the benchmark. If only one Silver plan is available where you live, that plan counts as the second-lowest-cost Silver plan.

If the two cheapest Silver plans cost the same, that shared premium is the benchmark.

Tobacco use changes only one of the two inputs. The benchmark leaves out tobacco surcharges, so enter the non-tobacco price.

The enrollment premium is the amount you are charged, so a tobacco user enters the higher plan price.

The IRS gives an example of both rules. A $900 non-smoker benchmark is used even though smokers are quoted $1,200 for that plan.

A tobacco user charged $650 for the chosen plan uses $650 as the enrollment premium, even though the non-tobacco price is $500.

The ceiling comes into play when you pick a cheaper plan. If the benchmark minus your contribution is more than your plan's premium, the credit stops at that premium.

The calculator has no ZIP code database and no built-in prices. Its $600 benchmark and $550 plan defaults are hypothetical numbers for the arithmetic.

When you apply, the Marketplace estimates your credit from your family size, projected income, and other coverage, and the plan prices it shows are the figures to enter here.

A Worked Federal Premium-Credit Calculation

In our calculation, a two-person household with $50,000 of expected 2027 MAGI, a $600 benchmark, and a $550 chosen plan gets a $268.85 monthly federal credit and pays $281.15 a month. Both premiums are illustrative and come from no ZIP code quote.

The arithmetic assumes every other eligibility condition is met.

A second case shows the premium cap. Use two people with $30,000 of MAGI, a $900 benchmark, and a $100 monthly plan premium.

Assume every other eligibility condition is met, including that no one is eligible for Medicaid. Income is 138.63% of FPL, the applicable percentage is about 3.58%, and the monthly contribution is $89.61.

The benchmark minus that contribution is far more than the $100 plan premium. The credit cannot exceed the $100 plan premium, so the credit is $100 and the net premium is $0.

Read together, the two cases show how each input works. Income sets the contribution.

When the ACA Subsidy Calculator Does Not Apply

The calculator's figure does not apply to anyone eligible for government coverage that counts as qualifying health coverage, anyone with affordable employer coverage, or a household that fails the IRS filing rules. The calculator asks you to confirm these conditions before it shows a credit.

• Government coverage: a person eligible for Medicaid, the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), Medicare, or another government program that counts as qualifying health coverage cannot get the credit for that person's Marketplace coverage. Limited-benefit Medicaid that does not count is an exception.
• Employer offers: an offer for 2027 plan years is generally affordable if the employee's self-only premium share is no more than 10.22% of household income. The test uses the lowest-cost plan that covers at least 60% of expected costs, and family members' offers apply the same percentage to the family premium.
• Employer enrollment: enrolling in an employer plan, including retiree coverage, blocks the credit even if that plan is unaffordable. Coverage from a former employer, including retiree coverage, can be declined, and the credit may still be available.
• Filing rules: married couples who file separately generally cannot claim the credit, with an exception for certain victims of domestic abuse or spousal abandonment. A person who can be claimed as a dependent by someone else cannot claim it.

A new Medicaid rule starts January 1, 2027. HealthCare.gov says states that cover adults based on income alone may require a monthly work requirement for Medicaid.

A person who lost or was denied Medicaid for not meeting that requirement may get Marketplace coverage but will not qualify for savings. Leave eligibility unconfirmed in the calculator to show an explanation instead of a credit.

Limited Medicaid works differently. Some programs pay only for family planning, emergency treatment, or tuberculosis services.

If your state's program does not count as qualifying health coverage, you may still get the premium tax credit when you meet the income and other rules.

The calculator does not evaluate immigration status or state programs. Three facts can reverse an estimate: an affordable employer offer, eligibility for Medicaid or another government program that counts as qualifying coverage, and changes in law or plan prices.

The official next step is a Marketplace application. HealthCare.gov says the application sends your information to your state if anyone in the household may qualify for Medicaid or CHIP.

It also tells you whether you qualify for savings on a Marketplace plan.

Updating Income Before Tax Reconciliation

Advance payments of the premium tax credit are an estimate, and your final 2027 credit is figured on your tax return from actual household income and family size. If the advance payments were larger than the final credit, the IRS sets no repayment cap for tax years after 2025.

The full difference reduces your refund or raises your balance due, and if the final credit is larger, the difference goes to you.

Reporting changes to the Marketplace as soon as they happen lets it adjust your advance payments. The IRS lists these events among those that can change the credit:

• a lump-sum Social Security or Social Security Disability Insurance payment
• a taxable lump-sum distribution from an individual retirement account or other retirement arrangement
• capital gains from selling stocks, bonds, or cryptocurrency
• canceled debt, such as forgiven credit card debt
• marriage, divorce, a birth or adoption, or a move
• gaining or losing eligibility for employer or government coverage

Filing a return is required. Anyone with advance payments must file a federal return with Form 8962, and skipping that return ends advance payments in future years.

Plan the premium around a range of incomes. Run the calculator at a low and a high 2027 income estimate, compare the two net premiums, and set aside the difference if your income can swing.

Our guide on how to budget with irregular income covers health insurance costs without an employer plan, and you can put the premium in a household budget.

The estimate requires a correct benchmark premium and annual MAGI. Take-home pay alone cannot establish annual MAGI.

An affordable employer offer, qualifying government coverage, or changed law or plan prices can reverse it. Compare income scenarios in the ACA subsidy calculator, then update your Marketplace application whenever your income changes.