The cheapest health insurance for a single person depends almost entirely on your income. If you earn below a certain threshold, you may qualify for Medicaid at no cost. If you earn more but still have a modest income, subsidies through the ACA Marketplace can bring your monthly premium down to $0 in some cases. And if you’re under 30 or earn too much for subsidies, catastrophic plans offer the lowest premiums of any ACA-compliant option. Here’s how each path works and what you’d actually pay.
Medicaid: Free Coverage if You Qualify
Medicaid is the cheapest health insurance available because it typically costs nothing, or close to nothing, for premiums, copays, and deductibles. In states that have expanded Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, any adult aged 18 to 65 with household income at or below 138% of the federal poverty level qualifies regardless of age, family status, or health conditions. For a single person, that income cutoff translates to roughly $20,000 to $21,000 per year, though the exact figure updates annually with the federal poverty guidelines.
Not every state has expanded Medicaid. In states that haven’t, eligibility rules are much stricter, and many single adults without children don’t qualify at all, even at very low incomes. You can check whether your state participates and apply directly through HealthCare.gov or your state’s Medicaid agency. If you’re approved, coverage can start as soon as the month you apply.
Subsidized Marketplace Plans
If your income is too high for Medicaid, the ACA Marketplace is where most single people find affordable coverage. The key mechanism is the Premium Tax Credit, a subsidy that reduces your monthly premium based on your income. The credit is calculated by comparing a percentage of your household income to the cost of the second-lowest-cost Silver plan in your area. If the benchmark plan costs more than that percentage of your income, the government covers the difference.
For people with lower incomes (just above the Medicaid threshold), the required contribution percentage starts near zero, which means your monthly premium after the subsidy can literally be $0 for a Bronze plan. As your income rises, you’re expected to contribute a larger share. Through 2025, there is no upper income cap for subsidy eligibility. Even people earning well above 400% of the federal poverty level can receive some assistance if premiums in their area are high relative to their income.
When shopping on the Marketplace, you’ll see your subsidy applied automatically to the listed prices, so you can compare what you’d actually pay each month rather than the full sticker price.
Bronze Plans: Lowest Premiums on the Marketplace
Among the four standard plan tiers (Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum), Bronze plans carry the lowest monthly premiums. In exchange, you take on more cost when you actually use care. A Bronze plan covers about 60% of average medical costs, leaving you responsible for the other 40% through deductibles, copays, and coinsurance. Deductibles on Bronze plans tend to be high, often several thousand dollars before the plan starts paying for most services.
This tradeoff works well if you’re generally healthy and rarely visit doctors. You’re protected against a catastrophic medical event (every ACA plan has an out-of-pocket maximum), but you’ll pay most routine costs yourself. Bronze plans are also compatible with Health Savings Accounts (HSAs), tax-advantaged accounts where you set aside pre-tax money to cover medical expenses.
If you qualify for subsidies, a Bronze plan is often where you’ll find the absolute lowest premium. In many markets, subsidized Bronze plans cost $0 to $50 per month for people earning under roughly 250% of the federal poverty level.
Silver Plans With Cost-Sharing Reductions
Silver plans deserve special attention even though their listed premiums are higher than Bronze. If your income falls between 100% and 250% of the federal poverty level (roughly $15,000 to $37,000 for a single person, depending on the year), you qualify for cost-sharing reductions that only apply to Silver plans. These reductions lower your deductibles, copays, and out-of-pocket maximums, effectively upgrading your Silver plan so it covers 73% to 94% of your costs instead of the standard 70%.
At the lowest income levels, a cost-sharing reduction Silver plan can function almost like a Gold or Platinum plan, with deductibles as low as a few hundred dollars. The monthly premium after subsidies may be slightly higher than a $0 Bronze plan, but the total amount you spend over the year, including what you pay at the doctor and pharmacy, can be significantly less if you use medical services regularly. For a single person who takes prescription medications or expects a few doctor visits per year, a Silver plan with these extra savings often ends up being the cheapest option overall.
Catastrophic Plans for People Under 30
Catastrophic plans sit below Bronze on the cost scale. They have the lowest premiums of any ACA plan and very high deductibles, often close to the ACA’s annual out-of-pocket maximum (over $9,000 for an individual). The plan covers three primary care visits per year and certain preventive services before you meet your deductible, but for everything else, you’re paying full price until that deductible is satisfied.
Eligibility is limited. You can enroll in a catastrophic plan if you’re under 30 years old, or if you’re over 30 and qualify for a hardship or affordability exemption (meaning Marketplace or job-based insurance is unaffordable for you). One important limitation: Premium Tax Credits cannot be applied to catastrophic plans. So if you qualify for substantial subsidies, a Bronze plan with credits applied will almost always be cheaper than a catastrophic plan at full price.
Catastrophic plans make the most financial sense for young, healthy people whose income is too high for meaningful subsidies. Like Bronze plans, they’re HSA-compatible.
Short-Term Plans: Cheaper but Limited
Short-term health insurance plans fall outside the ACA framework entirely. They don’t have to cover pre-existing conditions, may exclude prescription drugs or mental health care, and often impose annual or lifetime benefit caps. In return, premiums can be dramatically lower than ACA plans, sometimes under $100 per month for a healthy single person.
Federal rules have been in flux regarding how long these plans can last and whether they can be renewed. Some states restrict or ban them altogether. Because they can deny coverage for pre-existing conditions and exclude major categories of care, short-term plans are best understood as gap coverage, useful if you’re between jobs or waiting for other coverage to start, rather than a reliable year-round solution.
If you’re considering a short-term plan, read the exclusions carefully. A plan with a $75 monthly premium that excludes the one medication you take isn’t actually saving you money.
How to Find Your Cheapest Option
Start at HealthCare.gov (or your state’s Marketplace website if your state runs its own exchange). When you enter your income, age, and zip code, the system calculates your subsidy eligibility and shows you plans with subsidies already applied. This is the fastest way to see your real cost for Bronze, Silver, and catastrophic options side by side.
If your income is near or below the Medicaid threshold, the Marketplace application will automatically route you to your state’s Medicaid program. You don’t need to apply separately.
When comparing plans, look beyond the monthly premium. Add up the premium, the deductible, and the copays you’d expect to pay based on how often you use care. A plan with a $0 premium and a $9,000 deductible costs more than a plan with a $50 premium and a $500 deductible if you end up in the emergency room. For a healthy single person who rarely sees a doctor, the lowest-premium option is usually the cheapest. For someone managing a chronic condition or taking regular medications, a Silver plan with cost-sharing reductions will almost always come out ahead over the full year.