In 2026 the Medicare income-related surcharge (IRMAA) starts once the modified adjusted gross income on your tax return from two years earlier exceeds $109,000 (single) or $218,000 (married filing jointly). The first tier adds $1,148 per person per year across Part B and Part D.
2026 IRMAA tiers (annual surcharge per person)
| Surcharge tier | Single MAGI over | Joint MAGI over | Added per person / yr |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 | $109,000 | $218,000 | $1,148 |
| Tier 2 | $137,000 | $274,000 | $2,885 |
| Tier 3 | $171,000 | $342,000 | $4,620 |
| Tier 4 | $205,000 | $410,000 | $6,355 |
| Tier 5 | $500,000 | $750,000 | $6,936 |
A tier applies when MAGI clears its floor; crossing a floor by even one dollar moves the whole year into the higher tier. On a joint return each spouse on Medicare pays the surcharge.
Methodology
Floors read from the 2026 CMS IRMAA tier table (IRMAA_TIERS); the annual surcharge is annualSurcharge() from QuantCalc's parity-tested IRMAA module. See the 2026 IRMAA bracket dataset and the IRMAA cliff study.
Every figure on this page is computed at build time from QuantCalc's parity-tested calculation modules or a committed dataset — never hand-entered. Reference for research and planning only; not tax, legal, or investment advice.
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Changelog
- v2026.1 — first publication. Figures computed from the 2026 tax-constants mirror and committed datasets.
Cite this dataset
QuantCalc Research (2026). What income triggers IRMAA (the Medicare surcharge) in 2026?. https://quantcalc.app/answers/what-income-triggers-irmaa/ (accessed <date>).
BibTeX
@misc{quantcalc2026whatincometriggersirmaathemedicaresurcha,
title = {What income triggers IRMAA (the Medicare surcharge) in 2026?},
author = {{QuantCalc Research}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://quantcalc.app/answers/what-income-triggers-irmaa/},
note = {Accessed <date>}
}Machine-readable citation metadata (schema.org identifier and citation fields) is embedded in this page's JSON-LD, at the stable identifier https://quantcalc.app/answers/what-income-triggers-irmaa/.