MNsure income limits for 2026

These are the figures from MNsure's 2026 income guidelines table, annual income unless marked. MNsure's own note applies: they are approximate, and only a completed application determines eligibility. Medical Assistance has separate, higher limits for children (shown) and for pregnant women (higher again), and slightly higher limits still for infants under two. Medical Assistance is decided on current monthly income, so the monthly figure is the one that matters there.

The tax-credit column is a ceiling, not a promise. The credit is the gap between what the benchmark plan costs someone your age and the share of income the law expects you to pay — and because younger people are charged less for the same plan, their gap closes, and their credit runs out, at a lower income. This year, for example, a 30-year-old earning $45,000 gets no credit at all, while a 45-year-old with the same income gets about $78 a month off. $62,600 is the most a single person can earn and still qualify; plenty of younger people reach $0 well before it, while an older person at the same income usually still gets something.

The rule of thumb: the younger you are and the closer to the line, the more likely the credit has already run out; from the mid-fifties on, the line is much closer to the truth. Either way the only real answer is the actual quote — your county, your age, your household and your income — which is what we run.

MNsure uses modified adjusted gross income for the tax household: wages, net self-employment profit, unemployment, Social Security including the non-taxable portion, interest and dividends, most pension and retirement-account withdrawals, and Roth conversions. It does not count Supplemental Security Income, child support received, gifts, loans or inheritances.

For the tax credit it is the income you expect for the whole year, not last year’s return and not this month’s paycheck. Medical Assistance looks at current monthly income instead, which is why someone can qualify for Medical Assistance in a slow month and a tax credit for the year.

Everyone on the same federal tax return: you, a spouse you file with, and the dependents you claim — including a child who lives elsewhere if you claim them, and not including an adult child who files their own return even if they live with you. Getting the household size right moves every line of the table.

The tax credit for a coverage year is measured against the poverty guidelines in effect when that year's open enrollment opens. The 2026 guidelines put the poverty line at $15,960 for one person and $33,000 for four, so the 400% cap for 2027 coverage works out to about $63,840 and $132,000. MNsure publishes its updated sheet each fall; the enrollment window is November 1 to January 15.

The enhanced credits of 2021 through 2025 are gone, and the cap is a cliff, not a slope: a household one dollar over it gets nothing. If you are near the line, the timing of a retirement withdrawal or a Roth conversion can be worth more than any plan choice — a conversation to have before December, not after.