What is the 2026 federal poverty guidelines and how do they vary by household size and state?
Executive summary
The federal poverty guidelines used for 2026 coverage are the HHS “2025” poverty guidelines (published for use in 2026 benefit determinations) and list a 48‑state/D.C. baseline of $25,750 for a four‑person household (with Alaska and Hawaii higher and per‑person additions for households >8) as published by ASPE and summarized across guidance materials [1] [2]. States use these guidelines differently: Medicaid and CHIP typically apply current‑year FPL in eligibility calculations while Marketplace premium tax credits for 2026 use the prior year’s guidelines; some states that did not expand Medicaid will set eligibility starting points differently [3] [1].
1. What the “2026” guidelines actually are — and the naming confusion
Federal guidance makes two facts plain: HHS publishes the annual poverty guidelines (ASPE hosts the official figures) and programs use them on different schedules — the guidelines published in 2025 are used for many 2026 coverage determinations (commonly reported as “2025 guidelines for 2026 coverage”) [1] [2]. That naming convention causes consistent public confusion: materials for coverage year 2026 refer to the 2025 poverty guidelines that were published by HHS and are used for eligibility and subsidy calculations in 2026 [2].
2. Core numbers and how they vary by household size
The official ASPE tables provide single‑year baseline figures by household size for the 48 contiguous states and D.C.; secondary digests echo that the four‑person baseline is $25,750 (2025 guideline used for 2026) and show per‑person increases — for example, typical summaries add roughly $5,500 per additional person beyond eight, with specific add‑ons noted in various guides [2] [4]. Multiple aggregators reproduce the same household‑size progression used in Marketplace and program calculations [4] [5].
3. Alaska and Hawaii — higher thresholds, program discretion
ASPE and downstream guidance note Alaska and Hawai‘i have separate (higher) guidelines than the contiguous 48 states and D.C.; the ASPE materials and state handbooks are the authoritative sources for those adjusted figures [1] [2]. Programs serving territories such as Puerto Rico or the U.S. territories must decide whether to apply the contiguous‑states figures or a locally determined standard — ASPE states poverty guidelines are not defined for some territories, leaving program offices to set policy [1].
4. How agencies and programs actually apply the guidelines
Different federal and state programs use the guidelines differently: Medicaid and CHIP often compare a household’s current monthly or annual income to the current year’s FPL and states may implement the new numbers at different times (commonly Feb–April) [3]. Marketplace premium tax credits for a coverage year are typically calculated using the prior year’s poverty guideline numbers — that is why 2026 marketplace subsidies rely on the 2025 guidelines [3] [2]. This timing mismatch matters for eligibility and subsidy amounts [3].
5. Policy changes that affect the practical cutoff points
Beyond the raw poverty numbers, statutory changes alter eligibility. For example, temporary subsidy enhancements that removed the 400% FPL cut‑off have lapsed unless Congress acts; several trackers emphasize that traditional 100%–400% ranges will matter again in 2026 absent new legislation [5] [3]. Health‑coverage affordability calculations and employer safe‑harbor figures also reference the explicit FPL thresholds published by HHS [4] [2].
6. Where reporting varies and why to read the federal source
Commercial sites and state agencies reproduce ASPE numbers but sometimes add differing per‑person adders for households larger than eight or annotate policy‑specific nuances inconsistently — for example, several pages show small discrepancies in the “add $X for each additional person” note [2] [5]. For the authoritative table, ASPE’s poverty‑guidelines pages and the Federal Register notice cited by state handouts remain the primary source to resolve disagreements [1] [2].
7. Practical takeaway for readers in different states
If you need an eligibility calculation this year, use the ASPE/ HHS table appropriate to your state (contiguous 48, Alaska, or Hawai‘i) and remember which program you’re examining: Medicaid/CHIP usually uses the current‑year guideline; Marketplace subsidies for 2026 use the 2025 guideline figures [1] [3]. For program‑specific thresholds (e.g., state CHIP cutoffs, Medicaid expansion differences), consult state agencies because states exercise discretion in applying or supplementing the federal figures [3] [1].
Limitations: available sources do not provide a single consolidated 2026‑labeled table; they show that the 2025 HHS guidelines are used for 2026 coverage and that ASPE’s official tables are the authoritative reference [1] [2].