Bronze vs silver vs gold health plans: which should you pick?

• 60 / 70 / 80percent of average covered costs paid by bronze, silver, and gold plans, per HealthCare.gov
• 18 of 22Florida and Texas counties I analyzed where the cheapest 2026 gold plan costs less than the cheapest silver
• 40%of 2026 marketplace enrollees picked bronze, up from 30 percent in 2025, per KFF

What the metal levels actually mean

The metal level tells you how the costs are split between you and the plan on average, not how good the doctors are. A bronze plan and a gold plan from the same carrier can use the exact same network. The number is called actuarial value: the share of covered costs the plan pays for a typical group of people.

Averages across a standard population, from HealthCare.gov and CMS. Your own share depends on how much care you use.

The deductibles show the gap in real dollars. Peterson KFF Health System Tracker puts the average 2026 marketplace deductible at $7,186 for a bronze plan and $5,304 for a silver plan. Gold deductibles run far lower. In Hillsborough County, gold deductibles in 2026 range from $0 to $3,000.

Cost sharing reductions: when silver is the clear winner

If your household income is between 100 and 250 percent of the federal poverty level, you qualify for cost sharing reductions, but only if you pick a silver plan. These are automatic upgrades to the silver plan that cut its deductible, copays, and out of pocket maximum. CMS sets three levels:

• 100 to 150 percent of poverty: the silver plan pays about 94 percent, better than platinum. For 2027 coverage that is up to $23,940 for a single person.
• 150 to 200 percent: about 87 percent, better than gold. Up to $31,920 for a single person.
• 200 to 250 percent: about 73 percent, a modest bump. Up to $39,900 for a single person.

KFF found that for someone at 150 percent of poverty, the average 2026 silver deductible drops to about $80, compared with $5,304 on a regular silver plan. If you are in the bottom two tiers, silver is almost always the right call. In the 200 to 250 percent tier, compare it against gold, because the upgrade is small.

Silver loading: why gold is often cheaper than silver

This is the part that surprises people. In 2017 the federal government stopped paying insurers for cost sharing reductions, and KFF reports that most insurers responded by raising silver premiums to cover the cost. That practice is called silver loading, and it continues into 2027.

The result is that silver plans are priced higher than their benefits alone would justify. In many areas a gold plan, which pays more of your bills, now costs less per month than a silver plan. When I went through the 2026 CMS plan file for 22 counties in Florida and Texas, the cheapest gold plan cost less than the cheapest silver plan in 18 of them.

Here is Hillsborough County, full monthly price for a 40 year old before any tax credit:

Source: CMS plan year 2026 individual market file, Hillsborough County, Florida. Both cheapest bronze and gold plans are HMOs.

The cheapest gold plan is $50.21 a month less than the cheapest silver plan. And because the premium tax credit is a fixed dollar amount set by the benchmark silver price, that $50 gap stays the same after your subsidy. You would pay less for a plan with a lower deductible. The four counties where this did not hold in my data were Polk, Lee, Manatee, and Sarasota, which is why it pays to check your own county. You can compare all 22 on my plans by county page.

Silver loading also makes bronze look cheap after subsidies. A bigger silver price means a bigger tax credit, and that credit can be applied to any metal level. That is a big part of why KFF counted 40 percent of 2026 enrollees in bronze, up from 30 percent the year before, while silver fell from 57 percent to 43 percent.

Who each metal level fits

• Bronze fits people who rarely see a doctor and want protection against a big bill at the lowest premium. Starting in 2026, bronze plans are HSA eligible, which makes them more attractive for people who can save. See my guide on how an HSA plan works.
• Silver fits anyone who qualifies for cost sharing reductions. Outside of that, it is rarely the best value because of silver loading.
• Gold fits people who expect regular care, take ongoing prescriptions, are planning a surgery or a baby, or simply want predictable costs. In most counties I checked, it also costs less than silver.
• Platinum fits heavy users of care where it is sold. It costs far more. In Hillsborough the cheapest platinum plan is $1,128.70 a month at age 40.

There is also a catastrophic tier for people under 30 and people with a hardship exemption. For 2026, CMS widened that exemption to include people whose income is too high for a tax credit.

How I would decide

Start with your income. If you are under 250 percent of poverty, look at silver first. If you are above it, line up the cheapest bronze, silver, and gold plans that include your doctors, and add up the yearly premium plus the deductible you could realistically hit. For most of my clients above the savings range, that math lands on gold or bronze, rarely silver. My guide on picking a good deductible walks through that math, and my subsidy calculator shows what your tax credit would be.

Common questions