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What is the income limit to qualify for Obamacare?

There is a lower boundary that matters more in Texas than the upper one. Here is how the limits actually work.

Updated August 17, 2026 · 3 min read

People ask about the income limit as though there is a single cutoff. There are really two boundaries, and in Texas the lower one causes far more trouble than the upper one.

How the limits are expressed

Eligibility is measured as a percentage of the federal poverty level for your household size. The poverty level figures are updated annually, so the dollar amounts move every year.

Household size matters as much as income. The same income can qualify comfortably for a family of five and not at all for a single person.

The lower boundary, which is the Texas problem

Marketplace subsidies were designed to begin where Medicaid expansion was expected to end. Texas did not expand Medicaid, so for adults there is a gap between the two.

Someone whose income is below the subsidy starting point, and who does not fit one of Texas Medicaid's narrow categories, can qualify for neither program. That is the coverage gap and it affects real people here.

See the coverage gap in Texas.

The upper boundary

There has historically been an upper limit, above which no credit was available. Rules in this area have changed over recent years and are subject to further change, so the practical advice is the same regardless of where the line currently sits.

Check your actual eligibility rather than assuming you earn too much. People with incomes well above what they expected to qualify have received meaningful credits, particularly older applicants and larger households, because the credit is calculated against the cost of coverage rather than income alone.

The figure that is used

Not your gross pay and not last year's tax return. It is a modified adjusted gross income for the coverage year, for your whole tax household.

• Include everyone you claim on your tax return, even if they are not on the plan
• Estimate the coming year, not the past one
• For self employment, use income net of business expenses
• Include the untaxed portion of Social Security benefits, which surprises people

If your income changes

Report it to the Marketplace when it happens rather than waiting. Your credit adjusts going forward, and it prevents an unpleasant reconciliation at tax time.

An income increase you did not report means paying back part of the credit. An income decrease you did not report means you paid more than you had to all year.

How to check

Enter your household size and estimated income at HealthCare.gov. It shows what you would actually pay. Looking commits you to nothing.

Because the poverty level figures update annually and the rules have been changing, we would rather run current numbers with you than publish thresholds here that go stale. See the full eligibility rules.