Connect for Health Colorado Subsidy Calculator 2026
Enter your household size and your estimated 2026 income. This shows the most you are expected to pay for the benchmark Silver plan and, if you add that plan’s price, your tax credit in dollars. Colorado has its own marketplace, Connect for Health Colorado, not HealthCare.gov.
Estimates only. Estimates only. Figures on this page use published plan-year values and the details you enter. They are not a quote, an offer of coverage, or a determination of eligibility. Your final premium and any tax credit are confirmed at enrollment with the carrier or Connect for Health Colorado. Everything is calculated in your browser; nothing you type is sent to us or anyone else.
How a Connect for Health Colorado tax credit is estimated
The premium tax credit fills the gap between a benchmark plan’s price and the share of income the law expects you to pay. For 2026 that share comes from the applicable percentage table in IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-25, measured against the HHS 2025 poverty guidelines.
Job-based offers can block a credit. For 2026, employer coverage counts as affordable when the employee’s share of self-only coverage is no more than 9.96% of household income (IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-25); since 2023, relatives on the policy are tested against the family premium instead.
- Find your poverty line: $15,650 for one person plus $5,500 for each additional household member.
- Divide expected yearly household income by that line to get your percentage of the poverty level.
- Look up the applicable percentage for that level; the marketplace slides it smoothly within each band.
- Multiply income by that percentage and divide by 12: the most you are expected to pay monthly for the benchmark plan.
- Subtract that from the benchmark premium. The difference is your monthly credit, usable on any metal level.
- Check the edges. Above 400% of the poverty level there is no federal credit in 2026; very low incomes usually qualify for Health First Colorado instead.
Poverty % = household income ÷ poverty line × 100Expected monthly payment = income × applicable % ÷ 12Monthly credit = benchmark premium minus expected payment | Income as % of poverty level | Share of income toward benchmark |
|---|---|
| Up to 133% | 2.10% |
| 133% to 150% | 3.14% to 4.19% |
| 150% to 200% | 4.19% to 6.60% |
| 200% to 250% | 6.60% to 8.44% |
| 250% to 300% | 8.44% to 9.96% |
| 300% to 400% | 9.96% |
| Above 400% | No federal credit |
Worked example: a Brighton couple at $60,000 and at $84,000
Hypothetical couple, not clients. Both are 60 and expect 2026 household income of $60,000. Their poverty line is $21,150, putting them at 283.7% of the poverty level.
That sits in the 250% to 300% band, where the share climbs from 8.44% to 9.96%. At their level it is 9.46%, so they are expected to pay $5,678 a year, or $473.21 a month, toward the benchmark.
Suppose their benchmark Silver plan is $1,300 a month. That figure is a placeholder; your real benchmark comes from Connect for Health Colorado. Their credit would be $826.79 a month.
If they are eligible, Colorado Premium Assistance then applies automatically: $80 for the first person and $29 for the second, $109 in all, bringing the benchmark plan to about $364.21 a month.
Raise their income to $84,000, 397.2% of the poverty level, and the expected payment becomes $697.20 with a credit of $602.80. At $84,601, just over 400%, the federal credit vanishes in 2026: a $601 raise would cost about $7,234 a year in credit.
| Income | % of poverty level | Expected payment | Monthly credit |
|---|---|---|---|
| $60,000 | 283.7% | $473.21 | $826.79 |
| $84,000 | 397.2% | $697.20 | $602.80 |
| $84,601 | above 400% | full price | $0 |
Subsidy mistakes that turn into tax bills
- Estimating income too low. Advance credits are reconciled on your federal return. If actual income is higher, you can owe some or all of the credit back.
- Counting the wrong income. The marketplace uses modified adjusted gross income for everyone on the tax return, including untaxed Social Security. Leaving out a spouse or a dependent who must file throws the estimate off.
- Ignoring the cliff. In 2026 the 400% line is hard. A pre-tax retirement or HSA contribution that keeps MAGI under it can be worth thousands.
- Choosing Bronze by reflex. Below 250% of the poverty level, Silver plans carry lower deductibles and copays through cost-sharing reductions, which attach to Silver only.
- Not reporting changes. Connect for Health Colorado asks you to report household, income or address changes within 30 days (Connect for Health Colorado).
Colorado has its own marketplace and its own extra help
Coloradans enroll through Connect for Health Colorado, the state marketplace, not HealthCare.gov. Tax credits only apply to plans bought there.
Colorado Premium Assistance is state money on top of the federal credit: $80 for the first household member and $29 for each additional member who pays a premium, or the premium left after tax credits if that is smaller. Connect for Health Colorado says it is added automatically, is not claimed on your taxes and is not repaid if income changes. Senate Bill 26-178 extends it at current levels through plan year 2027.
Health First Colorado covers adults 19 to 64 with income up to 133% of the poverty level, 138% once the 5% disregard applies (HCPF). Children and pregnant people in families above that may qualify for CHP+.
Open Enrollment for 2027 coverage runs November 1, 2026 through January 15, 2027; enroll by December 15 for coverage from January 1 (Connect for Health Colorado).
Key terms: Colorado subsidy calculator
- Benchmark plan
- The second-lowest-cost Silver plan available to your household in your county.
- Applicable percentage
- The share of household income you are expected to contribute toward the benchmark.
- Advance premium tax credit
- The credit paid monthly to your insurer during the year, then reconciled on your federal return.
- Cost-sharing reductions
- Lower deductibles and copays on Silver plans for households up to 250% of the poverty level.
- Household MAGI
- Adjusted gross income plus untaxed Social Security, tax-exempt interest and excluded foreign income for everyone on the return.
Gather this before you apply on Connect for Health Colorado
- Last year’s return and recent pay stubs for everyone in the tax household.
- Expected self-employment, Social Security, pension or retirement withdrawals for the year.
- Any employer offer letter showing the employee-only premium.
- Immigration documents, if they apply, and the doctors and prescriptions you want covered.
What this assumes
- Uses the 2026 applicable percentage table from IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-25 (2.10% to 9.96% of income), interpolated within each band as the marketplace does.
- The extra federal credits of 2021 to 2025 expired at the end of 2025, so in 2026 there is no federal premium tax credit above 400% of the poverty level.
- Based on the 2025 HHS poverty guidelines for the 48 contiguous states and DC, which apply to 2026 coverage.
- The benchmark plan is the second-lowest-cost Silver plan for your household in your county, the figure the credit is calculated from.
- Adults with income up to 133% of the poverty level (138% with the 5% income disregard) usually qualify for Health First Colorado, the state Medicaid program, instead.
- Connect for Health Colorado also offers Colorado Premium Assistance, which can lower premiums further. It is not included here.
- Open Enrollment for 2027 coverage runs November 1, 2026 to January 15, 2027. Credits are reconciled on your tax return.
- An estimate from published figures and the numbers you enter, not a quote or an eligibility decision.
Where the figures come from
- HHS poverty guidelines 2025 (coverage year 2026) U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2025
- IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-25: 2026 applicable percentage table and required contribution percentage Internal Revenue Service, 2026
- Connect for Health Colorado: Colorado Premium Assistance Connect for Health Colorado, 2026
- Health First Colorado programs for adults (133% FPL limit) Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing, 2026
- Connect for Health Colorado: Open Enrollment for plan year 2027 Connect for Health Colorado, 2026
- Connect for Health Colorado: when can I buy insurance (60-day Special Enrollment Period) Connect for Health Colorado, 2026
What the subsidy estimate cannot tell you
- Your real benchmark price, which depends on ages, county and household.
- Plan networks and drug lists.
- Eligibility rulings on employer offers, immigration status or Medicaid, which Connect for Health Colorado makes.
- Your final credit, settled on your tax return.
Call me before you enroll if your income is near 400% or near 138% of the poverty level, someone has a job-based offer, or you are retiring mid-year. I can help you compare Connect for Health Colorado plans and enroll at no cost to you.
Headwaters Health and Wealth is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or operating on behalf of Connect for Health Colorado, HealthCare.gov, the Health Insurance Marketplace, or any federal or state government agency. Plan availability, premiums and advance premium tax credits are set by the carriers and the Marketplace.
Common questions
Who qualifies for an ACA subsidy in Colorado in 2026?
Generally, households with income between 100% and 400% of the federal poverty level who buy through Connect for Health Colorado and do not have an affordable job-based offer or other coverage. For a family of four, 400% is $128,600 for 2026 coverage.
Is there still a subsidy cliff at 400% of the poverty level in 2026?
Yes. The extra premium tax credits of 2021 to 2025 expired at the end of 2025, so in 2026 a household above 400% gets no premium tax credit. Expected contributions also rose to between 2.10% and 9.96% of income (IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-25).
What is the benchmark plan?
The second-lowest-cost Silver plan available to your household in your county. Your credit is the benchmark premium minus the share of income you are expected to pay, and you can use it on any metal level.
Where do Coloradans enroll in an ACA plan?
Through Connect for Health Colorado, the state marketplace, not HealthCare.gov. Open Enrollment for 2027 coverage runs November 1, 2026 to January 15, 2027; enroll by December 15 for coverage from January 1. I can help you compare plans and enroll at no cost to you.
What if my income is too low for a tax credit in Colorado?
Adults with household income up to 133% of the poverty level (138% once the 5% income disregard is applied) usually qualify for Health First Colorado, the state Medicaid program, and you can apply at any time of year. Children and pregnant people in families that earn more may qualify for Child Health Plan Plus (CHP+).
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Content reviewed by Lisa Asmussen, Medicare Broker and Licensed Insurance Agent at Headwaters Health and Wealth in Brighton, Colorado, certified to sell Medicare plans since 2018 (8 years). Last updated .