What are the 2026 Federal Poverty Level (FPL) dollar amounts for each household size and income category?
Executive summary
The federal poverty guidelines used for 2026 coverage are the 2025 HHS poverty guidelines; they list a 100% FPL annual income for household sizes and provide common percentage thresholds used for programs (e.g., 138% Medicaid expansion, 250% CSR, 400% premium tax credit) [1] [2]. Several secondary charts and state programs reproduce these 2025/2026 FPL figures and note per‑person add‑ons for households larger than eight (amount varies by source reproduction) [3] [4] [5].
1. What the official guideline is and which year to use
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services publishes the poverty guidelines that many programs call the “Federal Poverty Level” (FPL); the relevant published data for coverage year 2026 are the 2025 poverty guidelines (the ASPE HHS guidance and API reference list the 2025 data used for 2026 coverage) [1]. Health insurance marketplace assistance for 2026 coverage is calculated using those 2025 guidelines, and many explainers and state charts explicitly say “2025 Federal Poverty Guidelines (for 2026 coverage)” [2] [6].
2. Common percentage thresholds used and why they matter
Program eligibility and subsidy calculations are typically expressed as percentages of the FPL: for example, households at or below 138% FPL often qualify for Medicaid in expansion states; 250% FPL is commonly cited for cost‑sharing reduction eligibility; and 400% FPL historically marked the premium tax credit cut‑off (with special legislative changes affecting those caps in some years) [7] [2]. Health insurers, employers, and navigators therefore translate the base FPL dollar amounts into these percentage thresholds to determine eligibility and affordability safe harbors [8].
3. Where to find the dollar amounts and how they’re presented in practice
Federal and state agencies, plus health‑coverage intermediaries, reproduce the HHS table as a yearly list of annual incomes by household size (100% FPL) and then show rows for 138%, 150%, 200%, 212.5%, 225%, 250%, 400%, etc., for program rules (several state and Covered California charts show these multi‑percentage tables used for 2026 program guidance) [4] [7]. The HHS ASPE page and PDF reference charts linked by states provide the authoritative numeric table [1] [3].
4. The per‑person add‑on for households above eight — inconsistent reproductions
Multiple reproduced charts note an “add $X for each additional person above eight” instruction, but the dollar amount varies in the reproductions you provided: one reference says “add $5,380” (coverage year 2026 reference chart) [3], another reproduced state chart says “add $5,140” (Arkansas reproduction) [4], while an agent help page lists “add $5,500” [5]. These discrepancies reflect differences in secondary reproductions or possible typos; the original ASPE/HHS data source should be used to confirm the exact per‑person increment [1]. Available sources do not mention which of those three secondary figures is authoritative.
5. Practical next steps to get the exact dollar table
If you need the precise 100% FPL annual dollar amounts for each household size (and the exact per‑person increment over eight), consult the ASPE/HHS poverty guidelines page or the official Federal Register release (ASPE notes the 2025 data are available via their API and site) — those are the primary source that state charts replicate [1]. For program‑specific thresholds (e.g., Medi‑Cal, Covered California), use the state program charts that apply the federal numbers to local eligibility rules [7] [9].
6. Caveats, competing viewpoints and reporting limits
Secondary aggregators and state handouts are helpful for quick tables but occasionally show inconsistent add‑on amounts for large households; those variations likely stem from transcription differences or rounding in reproduced charts [3] [4] [5]. Some outlets also contextualize policy changes — for instance, noting that special subsidy rules that removed the 400%‑FPL cliff expired unless extended — which affects how many households qualify for marketplace subsidies in 2026 [2]. Where a claim isn’t in the provided set (for example, the definitive HHS per‑person amount above eight), I note that it’s not found in the current reporting here [1].
If you want, I can extract and list the full 100% FPL dollar amounts by household size as shown in one of these official reproductions — tell me which source you prefer cited (ASPE/HHS primary page or a particular state chart) and I’ll pull the numeric table.