--- url: https://thresholds.pages.dev/health-insurance/federal-poverty-level/ title: "Federal Poverty Level Tables: 2025 and 2026" updated: 2026-09-07 site: Thresholds sources: - https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2025-01-17/html/2025-01377.htm - https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2026-01-15/html/2026-00755.htm - https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-26/chapter-I/subchapter-A/part-1/subject-group-ECFRcb39f040b41b74b/section-1.36B-1 - https://www.irs.gov/instructions/i8962 - https://www.healthcare.gov/glossary/federal-poverty-level-fpl/ --- # Federal Poverty Level Tables: 2025 and 2026 The 2025 and 2026 HHS poverty guidelines for all three regions, plus the rule that decides which year's table applies to which Marketplace coverage year. Marketplace eligibility uses the poverty guidelines in effect when open enrollment for that coverage year opened, not the current year's. So 2026 coverage uses the 2025 table, and 2027 coverage uses the 2026 table. The [COBRA vs Marketplace calculator](/health-insurance/cobra-vs-marketplace/#cb-s3) picks the table from the coverage year and the state you enter. This page prints both tables. ## Which table applies 26 CFR §1.36B-1(h) fixes the choice to the guidelines in effect on the first day of the annual open enrollment period preceding the coverage year. Open enrollment for 2026 coverage opened on November 1, 2025, when the 2025 guidelines were in force. Open enrollment for 2027 coverage opens on November 1, 2026, when the 2026 guidelines are in force. The Form 8962 instructions state the same pattern in plain words: "For 2025, the 2024 federal poverty lines are used for this purpose." The table always trails the coverage year by one. | Coverage year | Guidelines used | Published | |---|---|---| | 2026 | 2025 | 90 FR 5917, January 17, 2025 | | 2027 | 2026 | 91 FR 1797, January 15, 2026 | The change happens on a fixed date, not gradually. From November 1, 2026 an application for 2027 coverage is measured against the 2026 guidelines, while a 2026 plan already in force stays on the 2025 guidelines for the rest of that year. Two households applying on the same day are therefore measured against different tables if they are buying different coverage years. ## The 48 contiguous states and the District of Columbia The 2025 guideline for one person is $15,650 base, +$5,500 per additional person. The 2026 guideline for one person is $15,960 base, +$5,680 per additional person. The 2026 update reflects the 2.63 percent price increase between calendar years 2024 and 2025. | Household size | 2025 guidelines (2026 coverage) | 2026 guidelines (2027 coverage) | |---|---:|---:| | 1 | $15,650 | $15,960 | | 2 | $21,150 | $21,640 | | 3 | $26,650 | $27,320 | | 4 | $32,150 | $33,000 | | 5 | $37,650 | $38,680 | | 6 | $43,150 | $44,360 | | 7 | $48,650 | $50,040 | | 8 | $54,150 | $55,720 | Each row is the one-person figure plus the per-person amount for every additional member. Households larger than eight continue with the same addition. ## Alaska and Hawaii HHS publishes two further tables. Alaska's 2025 guideline is $19,550 base, +$6,880 per additional person, and its 2026 guideline is $19,950 base, +$7,100 per additional person. Hawaii's 2025 guideline is $17,990 base, +$6,330 per additional person, and its 2026 guideline is $18,360 base, +$6,530 per additional person. The region follows the state you live in during the coverage year, not the state where the plan was bought. ## Which year's federal poverty level applies to my 2027 coverage? The 2026 guidelines. 26 CFR §1.36B-1(h) uses the table in effect when the open enrollment period preceding the coverage year opens, and open enrollment for 2027 coverage opens on November 1, 2026. ## What is 400% of the federal poverty level? Four times the guideline for your household size and region. For 2026 coverage in the contiguous states that is $62,600 for one person and $128,600 for a household of four; for 2027 coverage the same figures are $63,840 and $132,000. ## Who counts in my household? The Form 8962 instructions call it the tax family: you, your spouse if you file a joint return, and "your dependents whom you claim on your 2025 tax return". Family size is the number of people in that group, counting yourself. ## What is household income for this test? Modified adjusted gross income for you and your spouse on a joint return, plus the modified AGI of any dependent who is required to file a return. Modified AGI adds foreign earned income, tax-exempt interest and the non-taxable portion of Social Security benefits. ## Why do Alaska and Hawaii have different figures? HHS has issued separate guidelines for those two states since the guidelines began, reflecting higher costs. The Federal Register notice prints three tables each January, and Marketplace eligibility uses the one for your state. ## Does the January update change my credit in the middle of a year? No. The coverage year's table is fixed by the selection rule before the year starts. A new set of guidelines published in January 2027 governs 2028 coverage, not the plan you are already enrolled in. ## Which programs read off these guidelines? HealthCare.gov states that income between 100% and 400% of the federal poverty level qualifies for the premium tax credit in all states, and that income below 138% may qualify for Medicaid where the state has expanded it. Both tests use the same published tables. ## Figures on this page - $15,650 base, +$5,500 per additional person — HHS 2025 poverty guidelines for the 48 contiguous states and DC — used for 2026 Marketplace eligibility. (Annual Update of the HHS Poverty Guidelines, 90 FR 5917 (2025-01-17), doc 2025-01377; verified 2026-09-06; applies 2025-01-15 to 2026-01-12) - $15,960 base, +$5,680 per additional person — HHS 2026 poverty guidelines for the 48 contiguous states and DC — used for 2027 Marketplace eligibility. (Annual Update of the HHS Poverty Guidelines, 91 FR 1797–1798 (2026-01-15), doc 2026-00755; verified 2026-09-06) - $19,550 base, +$6,880 per additional person — HHS 2025 poverty guidelines for Alaska. (Annual Update of the HHS Poverty Guidelines, 90 FR 5917; verified 2026-09-06; applies 2025-01-15 to 2026-01-12) - $19,950 base, +$7,100 per additional person — HHS 2026 poverty guidelines for Alaska. (Annual Update of the HHS Poverty Guidelines, 91 FR 1797–1798; verified 2026-09-06) - $17,990 base, +$6,330 per additional person — HHS 2025 poverty guidelines for Hawaii. (Annual Update of the HHS Poverty Guidelines, 90 FR 5917; verified 2026-09-06; applies 2025-01-15 to 2026-01-12) - $18,360 base, +$6,530 per additional person — HHS 2026 poverty guidelines for Hawaii. (Annual Update of the HHS Poverty Guidelines, 91 FR 1797–1798; verified 2026-09-06) - Use the guidelines in effect when open enrollment for that coverage year opened — 26 CFR §1.36B-1(h) fixes which year’s poverty guidelines a coverage year uses. (26 CFR §1.36B-1(h); verified 2026-09-06) ## Sources - [HHS — Annual Update of the Poverty Guidelines, 90 FR 5917 (January 17, 2025)](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2025-01-17/html/2025-01377.htm) - [HHS — Annual Update of the Poverty Guidelines, 91 FR 1797 (January 15, 2026)](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2026-01-15/html/2026-00755.htm) - [26 CFR §1.36B-1(h) — federal poverty line](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-26/chapter-I/subchapter-A/part-1/subject-group-ECFRcb39f040b41b74b/section-1.36B-1) - [IRS — Instructions for Form 8962 (Premium Tax Credit)](https://www.irs.gov/instructions/i8962) - [HealthCare.gov — federal poverty level (FPL)](https://www.healthcare.gov/glossary/federal-poverty-level-fpl/) --- Information, not advice. Figures verified 2026-09-07. https://thresholds.pages.dev/health-insurance/federal-poverty-level/