Employer health insurance costs
Most Americans under 65 get health insurance through work. KFF’s 2025 Employer Health Benefits Survey found that the total premium, paid partly by the employer and partly by the worker, rose again:
| Single coverage | Family coverage | |
|---|---|---|
| Average total annual premium | $9,325 | $26,993 |
| Increase from 2024 | +5% | +6% |
| Average worker share per year | $1,440 (about 16%) | $6,850 (about 26%) |
Source: KFF 2025 Employer Health Benefits Survey.
On top of premiums, most workers face a deductible before the plan starts paying for many services. For single coverage, the average general deductible among workers who have one was $1,886 in 2025.
ACA Marketplace costs for 2027
If you don’t get coverage through work, you can buy a plan on HealthCare.gov or your state’s Marketplace. Prices there have climbed sharply two years in a row:
- The average benchmark (second-lowest-cost silver) premium is up 13% for 2027: 11% in HealthCare.gov states and 16% in states that run their own Marketplace.
- Benchmark premiums rose about 26% from 2025 to 2026, and about 42% from 2025 to 2027.
- The enhanced premium tax credits that lowered costs from 2021 to 2025 expired in 2026. People earning more than 400% of the federal poverty level no longer get any premium tax credit and pay the full price.
What that means for a real household: in Peterson-KFF’s example, a 40-year-old in Indianapolis earning $65,000 paid $316 a month for a silver plan in 2025 after subsidies, $477 in 2026, and would pay about $546 in 2027, an increase of $158 a month over two years.
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Sponsored listings. FindBestInsurance may be paid when you click them.Why health insurance keeps getting more expensive
Insurers filing 2027 rates pointed to several pressures:
- Medical costs: a median “medical trend” of about 10%, from higher prices and more use of hospital care, doctor visits and prescription drugs.
- GLP-1 drugs: growing use of weight-loss and diabetes medicines such as semaglutide.
- A smaller, sicker risk pool: with enhanced subsidies gone, healthier people dropped coverage. Insurers estimate this added about 4 percentage points to 2026 premiums and a similar amount for 2027.
- Labor shortages and inflation pushing up what hospitals and providers charge.
What affects your own premium
ACA-compliant plans can only set prices using a few factors: your age (older adults can be charged up to three times as much as younger adults), where you live, whether you use tobacco, the plan category you choose and whether the plan covers just you or your family. Your health history can’t be used. Your income doesn’t change the price either, but it decides how much help you get with it.
How to pay less
- Check your subsidy. If your household income is up to 400% of the poverty level, you may qualify for a premium tax credit. Below 250%, silver plans also come with lower deductibles through cost-sharing reductions.
- Compare plan categories. Bronze plans have lower premiums but higher deductibles; see our guide to bronze, silver and gold plans.
- Consider an HSA-eligible plan. Bronze and catastrophic Marketplace plans now qualify for health savings accounts, so you can save for medical bills with pre-tax money.
- Shop every year. With insurers entering and leaving markets (Cigna is leaving the individual market in all 11 states where it sold plans), last year’s best plan may not be this year’s.
- Check your state. Some states add their own help: New Mexico replaced lost federal subsidies, and California is expanding state subsidies.
Frequently asked questions
What is the average cost of health insurance per month?
For employer coverage in 2025, the average total premium was about $777 a month for single cover and about $2,249 a month for family cover, but workers paid only part of it: about $120 and $571 a month on average.
Why is Marketplace health insurance so expensive for 2027?
Benchmark premiums are up 13% on average after rising about 26% for 2026. Medical costs are rising, and the enhanced subsidies that kept prices down expired in 2026, so healthier people left the market.
Can I still get a subsidy for 2027?
Yes, if your household income is between 100% and 400% of the federal poverty level and you don’t have affordable coverage through work. Above 400%, there is no longer any premium tax credit.
Does my health affect my premium?
Not for ACA-compliant plans. Insurers can only use age, location, tobacco use, plan category and whether the plan covers you alone or your family.
Sources
- KFF: 2025 Employer Health Benefits Survey
- KFF: 9 Things to Watch for the 2027 ACA Open Enrollment Period (Nov. 6, 2026)
- Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker: How much and why ACA Marketplace premiums are going up in 2027
- HealthCareInsider: Open enrollment 2027 dates and deadlines
Figures checked November 7, 2026. Insurance rules and prices change and vary by state and insurer; confirm details with the insurer or your state.