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The standard Medicare Part B premium is $202.90 a month in 2026, up $17.90 from 2025, and the Part B deductible is $283. Most people pay nothing for Part A. Higher earners pay a surcharge on top of the Part B premium, starting above $109,000 of income for an individual — measured on the return filed two years earlier.
| Standard Part B premium | $202.90 | Per month, up from $185.00 in 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Part B annual deductible | $283 | Up from $257 in 2025 |
| Part A inpatient hospital deductible | $1,736 | Per benefit period, up from $1,676 in 2025 |
| Part A coinsurance, days 61–90 | $434 | Per day, per benefit period |
| Part A coinsurance, lifetime reserve days | $868 | Per day; 60 reserve days over a lifetime |
| Skilled nursing coinsurance, days 21–100 | $217 | Per day; days 1–20 carry no coinsurance |
| Part A premium, 30–39 quarters of work | $311 | Per month. Most people pay nothing for Part A |
| Part A premium, under 30 quarters | $565 | Per month |
| Up to $109,000 · joint up to $218,000 | $202.90 | No surcharge |
|---|---|---|
| $109,000–$137,000 · joint $218,000–$274,000 | $284.10 | Surcharge $81.20 |
| $137,000–$171,000 · joint $274,000–$342,000 | $405.80 | Surcharge $202.90 |
| $171,000–$205,000 · joint $342,000–$410,000 | $527.50 | Surcharge $324.60 |
| $205,000–$500,000 · joint $410,000–$750,000 | $649.20 | Surcharge $446.30 |
| $500,000 and above · joint $750,000 and above | $689.90 | Surcharge $487.00 |
The two halves of original Medicare are paid for differently. Part A covers inpatient hospital care and is premium-free for anyone with 40 quarters — ten years — of Medicare-taxed work. It is not free to use: a hospital admission carries a $1,736 deductible per benefit period in 2026, and long stays add daily coinsurance.
Part B covers outpatient care and carries a monthly premium for everyone, $202.90 at the standard rate, plus a $283 annual deductible before it starts paying. For most people that premium is deducted directly from the Social Security payment rather than billed.
Someone without 40 quarters can still buy Part A: $311 a month with 30 to 39 quarters, $565 a month below that.
Above an income threshold, Part B costs more. The income-related monthly adjustment amount adds between $81.20 and $487.00 to the standard premium across five tiers, taking the monthly total from $284.10 to $689.90. The first tier starts above $109,000 for an individual and $218,000 for a couple filing jointly.
The figure used is modified adjusted gross income from two years earlier, so the 2026 surcharge is set by income reported for 2024. That lag is the source of most surprises: a year with a large one-off gain — a property sale, a Roth conversion, a redundancy payment — raises the premium two years later, by which time the income is long gone.
The tiers are cliffs rather than slopes. A dollar of income over a threshold moves the whole premium to the next tier, which is why the boundary figures are worth knowing precisely when income is close to one.
Where the income has fallen because of a specific life change — retirement, the death of a spouse, divorce, loss of a pension — Social Security will reconsider using current income instead, on form SSA-44. It is a defined list of qualifying events, not a general appeal.
Couples who file separately do not get half the joint thresholds. The same $109,000 figure applies, and above it there are only two tiers rather than five: $649.20 a month up to $391,000, and $689.90 at or above it.
The practical effect is a much steeper jump — the intermediate tiers that soften the increase for other filers simply do not exist.
These are the published national figures for original Medicare, set each year by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. They do not describe what a particular person will pay: Medicare Advantage and Part D plans carry their own premiums, and supplemental cover is priced separately.
This is general information, not financial, tax, medical or legal advice. Your own premium and any surcharge are determined by Social Security from your tax records.
Figures sourced from CMS — 2026 Medicare Parts A & B premiums and deductibles, SSA — Medicare income-related monthly adjustment amount (SSA-44).
Figures on this page apply to 2026 and were last checked against the source publications on 2026-09-11. This page is general information, not financial, tax or legal advice.