Health & Medicare
ACA Premium Tax Credit Estimator
Based on IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-25 and the 2025 HHS poverty guidelines used for 2026 coverage, updated August 2026.
See how much of a 2026 marketplace premium tax credit you likely qualify for, using the real federal formula tied to the benchmark Silver plan and your income as a percent of the poverty level.
Data sourced from IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-25, HHS/ASPE Poverty Guidelines, KFF
Estimated monthly premium tax credit
$0
How this is calculated
Source: IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-25 (formula and percentages), HHS/ASPE (poverty guidelines), KFF and MoneyGeek (benchmark premium) · Last updated 2026-08-21 · See how we calculate this →
Near the 400% FPL line, or want to know if your state softens the cliff? See the ACA Subsidy Cliff Calculator.
How the ACA premium tax credit actually works in 2026
The premium tax credit (PTC) is the subsidy that lowers what you pay for a marketplace health plan. It is not a flat percentage discount. Instead, the government calculates the cost of the second-lowest-cost Silver plan available where you live, the "benchmark plan," and compares that to how much of your household income you are expected to contribute toward it.
The difference between those two numbers is your credit. If the benchmark plan would cost more than your expected contribution, you get a credit for the gap; if your expected contribution already covers or exceeds the benchmark cost, your credit is $0.
2026 is a meaningfully different year for this calculation than 2021 through 2025 were. The enhanced premium tax credits created by the American Rescue Plan Act and extended by the Inflation Reduction Act removed the traditional income cliff and lowered required contribution percentages across the board.
Those enhancements expired December 31, 2025. Despite active debate in Congress through the end of 2025, no extension passed before the enhanced credits lapsed, so 2026 marketplace coverage reverts to the original ACA formula: a hard cutoff at 400% of the federal poverty level (FPL), where the credit drops to exactly $0 the moment your income crosses that line, and required contribution percentages that run noticeably higher than what enrollees saw in 2025.
Your expected contribution is set on a sliding scale tied to your income as a percentage of the federal poverty level, from 2.10% of income at the low end up to a flat 9.96% for anyone between 300% and 400% of FPL.
Under 100% FPL, marketplace credits generally do not apply at all; most people in that range qualify for Medicaid instead in states that expanded it. Above 400% FPL, no federal credit is available, regardless of how modest the overage.
A household earning $1 over the line receives the same $0 federal credit as a household earning $50,000 over it.
Your age also matters, just not in the way income does. ACA plans are priced using a federally standardized age curve: a 64-year-old's benchmark premium can be up to three times a 21-year-old's for otherwise identical coverage.
Since your expected contribution is based purely on income, a higher benchmark premium at an older age generally means a larger credit at the same income level, not a smaller one.
This estimator uses statewide average benchmark premiums rather than your exact county and insurer, since actual Silver plan pricing varies block by block within a state. Treat the dollar figure here as a solid planning estimate, then confirm your exact benchmark premium and final credit through HealthCare.gov or your state's own marketplace during enrollment.
Frequently asked questions
Did the enhanced ACA subsidies get extended for 2026?
No. The enhanced premium tax credits created by the American Rescue Plan and extended through 2025 by the Inflation Reduction Act expired December 31, 2025. Congress did not pass an extension before recessing, so 2026 marketplace coverage uses the pre-2021 formula: a hard cliff at 400% of the federal poverty level and a steeper required contribution percentage than the last five years.
What is the "benchmark plan" this calculator uses?
It is the second-lowest-cost Silver plan available in your area, the specific reference plan the premium tax credit formula is legally pegged to. Your actual credit amount is fixed once calculated; you can then put it toward any metal-tier plan, a cheaper one lowers your net cost further, a pricier one raises it.
What happens if my income is just over 400% of the poverty level?
For 2026, crossing 400% FPL means your federal premium tax credit drops to exactly $0, with no phase-out or partial credit near the line. This is often called the "subsidy cliff." A few states run their own supplemental programs, see the ACA Subsidy Cliff Calculator for whether yours is one of them.
Why does my age affect the credit amount?
ACA plans are priced using a federally standardized age curve: older enrollees are charged more (up to 3 times the base rate at age 64 versus 21), so the benchmark plan itself costs more.
Since your required contribution is based only on income, not age, a higher benchmark premium for an older applicant generally produces a larger credit at the same income.