Compare 2026 ACA plans by state
Side-by-side cheapest 2026 Bronze pricing across all 51 ACA jurisdictions, with the state subsidy programs, tobacco surcharge rules, and enrollment destinations that change the answer in your state. For an exact answer in your ZIP code and household, use the search form.
Plan year coverage: PY2026. Prices last refreshed 2026-04-19T08:08:55.462Z.
National context for 2026
- Open Enrollment for PY2026 ran 11/1/2025 to 1/15/2026 in most states. Today requires a Special Enrollment Period qualifying event (job loss, marriage, move, baby) to sign up for a non-Catastrophic plan.
- The ARPA / IRA enhanced premium tax credits expired 12/31/2025. PY2026 uses the original ACA contribution curve with a hard 400% Federal Poverty Level cliff. Above 400% FPL there is no federal APTC.
- Seven states stack extra premium subsidies on federal APTC: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Maryland, New Jersey, Vermont, Washington. The other 44 jurisdictions offer federal APTC only.
All 51 jurisdictions, sorted by cheapest Bronze
Each price is the lowest-cost on-exchange Bronze plan in any county of the state, for a 40-year-old, before any subsidy. Click a state to see its full breakdown, per-county cheapest, and enrollment guide.
| State | Cheapest Bronze | Net at $50k single | Net at $90k family-of-4 | Exchange | State subsidy? | Tobacco |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maryland | $283 | $211 | $125 | Maryland Health Connection | Yes | Prohibited |
| Pennsylvania | $297 | $243 | $154 | Pennie | - | Federal 1.5x |
| New Hampshire | $317 | $317 | $472 | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Illinois | $329 | $232 | $119 | Get Covered Illinois | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Idaho | $331 | $257 | $196 | Your Health Idaho | - | Federal 1.5x |
| North Dakota | $332 | $290 | $302 | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Washington | $335 | $151 | N/A | Washington Healthplanfinder | Yes | Federal 1.5x |
| South Carolina | $336 | $254 | $185 | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Iowa | $338 | $300 | $333 | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Virginia | $339 | $314 | $380 | Virginia's Insurance Marketplace | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Minnesota | $340 | $340 | $617 | MNsure | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Michigan | $345 | $255 | $190 | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| California | $347 | $346 | $482 | Covered California | Yes | Prohibited |
| Texas | $352 | $203 | $25 | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Wisconsin | $353 | $220 | $77 | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Montana | $354 | $207 | $37 | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Ohio | $356 | $287 | $294 | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Alabama | $366 | $184 | N/A | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Rhode Island | $367 | $275 | $254 | HealthSource RI | - | Prohibited |
| Georgia | $371 | $268 | $232 | Georgia Access | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Arizona | $375 | $341 | $464 | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Indiana | $376 | $350 | $494 | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Nevada | $377 | $322 | $403 | Nevada Health Link | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Colorado | $390 | $183 | $52 | Connect for Health Colorado | Yes | Capped (<1.5x) |
| New Mexico | $390 | $280 | $273 | beWellnm | - | Prohibited |
| Louisiana | $402 | $274 | $254 | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Oklahoma | $403 | $248 | $169 | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Missouri | $405 | $296 | $322 | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| South Dakota | $406 | $306 | $355 | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Massachusetts | $412 | $384 | $518 | Massachusetts Health Connector | - | Prohibited |
| Hawaii | $414 | $259 | $207 | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| North Carolina | $420 | $294 | $317 | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Utah | $420 | $324 | $413 | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Oregon | $426 | $332 | $351 | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Florida | $427 | $270 | $237 | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| New York | $434/mo (any age) | $121 | N/A | NY State of Health | - | Prohibited |
| Kentucky | $435 | $317 | $391 | kynect | - | Capped (<1.5x) |
| Kansas | $442 | $277 | $261 | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Arkansas | $447 | $88 | N/A | Healthcare.gov | - | Capped (<1.5x) |
| New Jersey | $451 | $219 | N/A | Get Covered New Jersey | Yes | Prohibited |
| Tennessee | $466 | $234 | $124 | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Nebraska | $494 | $267 | $228 | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Maine | $499 | $238 | $137 | CoverME.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Delaware | $542 | $266 | $226 | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Connecticut | $557 | $36 | N/A | Access Health CT | Yes | Federal 1.5x |
| Mississippi | $563 | $320 | $285 | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| District of Columbia | $583 | $443 | $752 | DC Health Link | - | Prohibited |
| Alaska | $648 | N/A | N/A | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| West Virginia | $682 | $153 | N/A | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Wyoming | $740 | $127 | N/A | Healthcare.gov | - | Federal 1.5x |
| Vermont | $824/mo (any age) | N/A | N/A | Vermont Health Connect | Yes | Prohibited |
Community-rated states (NY, VT) charge the same monthly premium regardless of age. Per-age pricing in the other 49 jurisdictions follows the federally mandated HHS standardized age-rating curve (45 CFR 147.102). The two net-price columns apply federal APTC (and any state subsidy) against the benchmark Silver in the same county as the cheapest Bronze: "Net at $50k single" assumes a 40-year-old at $50k income (~319% FPL, fully eligible); "Net at $90k family-of-4" assumes two 40-year-olds + two children at $90k household income (~280% FPL).
Built for above-the-cliff buyers
Most ACA price-comparison tools optimize for subsidy-eligible households. With the ARPA / IRA enhanced subsidies expired, anyone over 400% FPL pays full price for marketplace coverage in PY2026. That includes most self-employed, FIRE / early-retiree, between-jobs, and dual-income-no-subsidy households.
We built this site to make pre-subsidy price discovery fast for those buyers. No account, no email, no carrier lead generation. Enter ZIP + age and we surface the cheapest plans in your ZIP code and route you to the right enrollment destination, whether that is HealthCare.gov, your state-based exchange, or a carrier-direct page for off-exchange plans.
For households that do qualify for federal APTC or one of the seven state subsidy programs, adding household income to the search produces the net-of-subsidy price for the same cheapest plan, computed exactly using the PY2026 contribution curve and the relevant state-program formula.
Frequently asked questions
Which state has the cheapest ACA plan in 2026?
Lowest-cost Bronze across the 51 jurisdictions in our PY2026 dataset is in Maryland at $283 per month for a 40-year-old before subsidies. The cheapest plan for any specific household depends on county, age, family makeup, tobacco use, and income. Use the search form on the homepage to get an exact answer for your ZIP.
Are there extra state subsidies on top of the federal Premium Tax Credit?
Seven states stack additional premium subsidies on top of federal APTC for PY2026: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Maryland, New Jersey, Vermont, and Washington. Each program has its own eligibility band and formula. The 43 other states + DC offer only the federal APTC.
How does this compare with HealthCare.gov?
HealthCare.gov is the federal exchange used by 30 states + 3 SBE-FP states. The other 18 jurisdictions run their own state-based exchanges (Covered California, Pennie, Georgia Access, etc). This comparison page covers all 51, and each state row links to the relevant enrollment destination.
What about tobacco surcharges?
Federal law allows ACA plans to charge up to 1.5x the non-tobacco rate to tobacco users. Nine jurisdictions prohibit any tobacco surcharge: California, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont, DC, Maryland, and New Mexico. Three more cap surcharges below the federal 1.5x ceiling: Colorado, Kentucky, and Arkansas. Virginia re-prohibits surcharges starting 1/1/2027. The search form has an opt-in tobacco-user toggle that reprices every plan with the carrier's filed surcharge for the household's rating area; default pricing on this site is non-tobacco.
Did the ARPA / IRA enhanced subsidies get extended?
The ARPA / IRA enhanced premium tax credits expired December 31, 2025. PY2026 reverts to the original ACA contribution curve with a hard 400% Federal Poverty Level cliff. Households above 400% FPL get no federal APTC, which is why this site exists: to make pre-subsidy price discovery fast for self-employed, FIRE, and other above-cliff buyers.
Sources
Plan data is sourced from public-domain federal and state regulatory datasets (17 USC §105 for federal records). Per-age premiums computed exactly from the HHS standardized age-rating curve (45 CFR 147.102). Methodology on the about page and the terms page.