2027 IRMAA Brackets — Projected
Projected Medicare Income-Related Monthly Adjustment Amount (IRMAA) thresholds for 2027, set by your 2025 modified adjusted gross income under the two-year lookback.
What are the IRMAA brackets for 2027?
Computed from published CPI-U; official CMS figures pending: CMS has not yet published the 2027 thresholds (its 2026 announcement is at cms.gov, checked 2026-11-04), and your 2027 tier is set by your 2025 MAGI through the two-year lookback. Every input to the statutory CPI-U formula is now published (BLS CPI-U through August 2026, average up 3.14% year on year with the never-published October 2025 reading interpolated), and the formula puts the first IRMAA tier above $112,000 for single filers (2026: $109,000) and above $224,000 for married filing jointly (2026: $218,000), with the higher tiers starting above $141,000 / $176,000 / $211,000 single and $282,000 / $352,000 / $422,000 joint. The top tier is set by statute: $500,000 single / $750,000 joint is held flat through 2027. If CMS leaves October 2025 out of the average instead (+3.27%), single tiers 2–4 each come in $1,000 higher and joint tiers 2–4 $2,000 higher — see the single, joint and October-2025 tables (CPI-U: BLS series CUUR0000SA0).
Surcharges: CMS has not yet announced the 2027 surcharges; for reference, the 2026 Part B IRMAA surcharges are $81.20, $202.90, $324.60, $446.30 and $487.00 a month on top of the $202.90 standard premium (CMS, November 14, 2025).
Key numbers — each row links to the table it is taken from. Last reviewed 2026-11-04; tiers 2–4 updated from published CPI-U.
| Threshold | Single (2027 projected) | Married filing jointly (2027 projected) | Where on this page |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 starts above | $112,000 | $224,000 | Single table · Joint table |
| Tier 2 starts above | $141,000 | $282,000 | Single table · Joint table |
| Tier 3 starts above | $176,000 | $352,000 | Single table · Joint table |
| Tier 4 starts above | $211,000 | $422,000 | Single table · Joint table |
| Tier 5 starts at (inclusive) — held flat by statute, not projected | $500,000 | $750,000 | Single table · Joint table |
| Tiers 2–4 if October 2025 is left out of the CPI-U average | $142,000 / $177,000 / $212,000 | $284,000 / $354,000 / $424,000 | October-2025 table |
Estimate your 2026 return
The return you file in early 2027 is for tax year 2026. Free calculators:
- 2026 tax return calculator for retirees — your federal and state refund or amount owed with Social Security, IRA and 401(k) withdrawals, pensions and Roth conversions.
- Retiree withholding calculator — how much federal tax to withhold from your pension, IRA and Social Security (Forms W-4P, W-4R and W-4V).
- Senior deduction calculator — how much of the new deduction for filers aged 65 and older you keep after the income phase-out.
- 2026 Return Preview — what you owe or get back on your 2026 federal and state returns, with Social Security, IRA withdrawals, pensions and Roth conversions; free, with the line-by-line return in the Tax Season Pass.
Why our 2027 projections don't agree with each other — and shouldn't. Three different statutes index to three different price measures: Medicare IRMAA thresholds use CPI-U (42 U.S.C. §1395r(i)(5)), the federal tax brackets use the chained C-CPI-U (IRC §1(f)), and the Social Security COLA uses CPI-W (42 U.S.C. §415(i)) over a different averaging window again. This page projects on CPI-U. So the percentages quoted on 2027 IRMAA brackets, 2027 tax brackets and the 2027 COLA legitimately differ from one another — that is the law working as written, not an inconsistency in our numbers.
Projected 2027 IRMAA MAGI thresholds
The tables below use the published CPI-U: CPI-U growth of 3.14% from the September 2024–August 2025 average to the September 2025–August 2026 average (BLS series CUUR0000SA0, with the never-published October 2025 reading interpolated). The October-2025 table further down shows what leaving that month out would produce instead — tiers 2–4 up by $1,000 single.
| Tier | 2026 official MAGI band | 2027 projected MAGI band (2025 income) | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | $0 – $109,000 | $0 – $112,000 | Projected |
| 1 | $109,001 – $137,000 | $112,001 – $141,000 | Projected |
| 2 | $137,001 – $171,000 | $141,001 – $176,000 | Projected |
| 3 | $171,001 – $205,000 | $176,001 – $211,000 | Projected |
| 4 | $205,001 – $499,999 | $211,001 – $499,999 | Lower edge projected |
| 5 | $500,000 and above | $500,000 and above | Set by statute |
| Tier | 2026 official MAGI band | 2027 projected MAGI band (2025 income) | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | $0 – $218,000 | $0 – $224,000 | Projected |
| 1 | $218,001 – $274,000 | $224,001 – $282,000 | Projected |
| 2 | $274,001 – $342,000 | $282,001 – $352,000 | Projected |
| 3 | $342,001 – $410,000 | $352,001 – $422,000 | Projected |
| 4 | $410,001 – $749,999 | $422,001 – $749,999 | Lower edge projected |
| 5 | $750,000 and above | $750,000 and above | Set by statute |
The married-filing-jointly thresholds have been exactly twice the single thresholds in every year the brackets have existed, so the projection above doubles the projected single figures. The top tier is not a projection: $500,000 / $750,000 is held flat by statute through 2027.STATUTORY
How this projection is built
The statutory rule. Section 1839(i)(5) of the Social Security Act, codified at 42 U.S.C. §1395r(i)(5), indexes each IRMAA dollar threshold as follows:
threshold = base amount × (average CPI-U over the 12 months ending August of the preceding year ÷ average CPI-U over the 12 months ending August 2018), then rounded to the nearest multiple of $1,000. The base amounts are the 2019 thresholds ($85,000 / $107,000 / $133,500 / $160,000 single); the joint thresholds are twice the single ones. Run on the 2026 window, this reproduces CMS’s official 2026 table exactly.
For calendar year 2027, the numerator is the CPI-U average over September 2025 through August 2026. "CPI-U" is the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers, U.S. city average, published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics as series CUUR0000SA0.
What we did. We applied the formula to the published BLS prints, as published on BLS series CUUR0000SA0, checked 2026-11-04. The September 2017 to August 2018 average is 249.280; the September 2025 to August 2026 average is 329.223 with October 2025 interpolated as the mean of September (324.800) and November (324.122), 3.14% above the September 2024 to August 2025 average of 319.205. Each 2019 base amount times 329.223 ÷ 249.280, rounded to the nearest $1,000, gives $112,000 / $141,000 / $176,000 / $211,000 single, doubled for joint. We did not invent a CPI print.
Where this can be off, and by how much. One place: October 2025, which BLS never published (the month is blank on BLS series CUUR0000SA0, checked 2026-11-04). If CMS averages the eleven published months instead (329.656, +3.27%), single tiers 2–4 come out $1,000 higher and joint tiers 2–4 $2,000 higher; tier 1 and the statutory top tier do not move. The October-2025 table below shows both.
What we deliberately do not project. The dollar surcharges and the standard Part B premium. Part B IRMAA is set so each tier pays 35%, 50%, 65%, 80% or 85% of total Part B costs rather than the standard 25% — those amounts track Medicare program spending, not consumer prices, and cannot be derived from CPI. They arrive with the CMS announcement (its 2026 one is at cms.gov, checked 2026-11-04).
Sensitivity: what different CPI outcomes produce
| Tier entry | 2026 official | October 2025 interpolated, +3.14% (used above) | October 2025 left out, +3.27% |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 starts above | $109,000 | $112,000 | $112,000 |
| Tier 2 starts above | $137,000 | $141,000 | $142,000 |
| Tier 3 starts above | $171,000 | $176,000 | $177,000 |
| Tier 4 starts above | $205,000 | $211,000 | $212,000 |
| Tier 5 starts at (inclusive) | $500,000 | $500,000 | $500,000 |
Both columns use only published BLS prints (CUUR0000SA0); they differ only in how the missing October 2025 month is handled. Tier 1 lands at $112,000 either way. Official CMS figures pending.
What this means if you are planning
The uncomfortable part of the two-year lookback: your 2027 IRMAA tier was decided by your 2025 tax return, which is already filed. Nothing you do in 2026 changes your 2027 surcharge. If a 2025 Roth conversion, a large capital gain, or a first RMD year pushed you over a threshold, the 2027 bill is already set — the remaining moves are a life-changing-event appeal (Form SSA-44) where one applies, not income timing.
Where planning still bites is 2028 and beyond, which your 2026 income sets. That is the year still in your hands as you read this, and it is the reason to model the whole ladder rather than one bracket table.
Next decision: Which of your income years crosses a threshold? — run the two-year lookback projector →
Will your RMD alone push you over? — check the RMD → IRMAA interaction →
Or run your own income forward: the planner projects your MAGI, applies the two-year lookback that makes one year’s income set a later year’s premium, and prices the Part B + Part D surcharge for the tier you land in — see your tier, free →
Your 2027 tier is already set by your 2025 return. The income you are earning now, in 2026, sets your 2028 tier, and December is the last month you can still move it. The 2028 floors are not projected here: the widget measures against the 2026 tiers, which the indexed 2028 floors will be above.
Example: a single 72-year-old with $32,000 of Social Security, a $30,000 pension, $45,000 of IRA withdrawals, $4,000 of interest and $3,000 of tax-exempt interest has a 2026 IRMAA MAGI of $109,200 — over the first floor, $109,000 (CMS 2026 tiers), so 2028 Part B and D premiums carry a surcharge of $1,148.40 for the year. IRA withdrawals of up to $44,800 would have kept MAGI at the floor. Sending $10,000 of the IRA money to charity as a QCD instead lowers the 2026 federal tax by $2,332 and removes the $1,148.40 surcharge; a Roth conversion of up to $27,800 would keep MAGI below the second tier.
An estimate from QuantCalc’s open tax engine (federal 2.6.0, state 1.26.0) for the 2026 tax year. Not tax advice: your return depends on facts this page does not ask about, so check a move with your tax preparer or custodian before acting. IRMAA uses the 2026 tiers: the 2028 tiers your 2026 MAGI is measured against are not published, and indexed tiers will be higher. How the engine computes each line, with its official source: federal, state.
How close is your December 2026 MAGI to the next tier?
Your 2026 MAGI sets your 2028 Medicare premiums. Enter what 2026 looks like with December still to go: the tax engine builds the MAGI (IRMAA adds tax-exempt interest back), finds your tier and shows how much more income fits before the next one.
Common questions
- What are the IRMAA brackets for 2027?
- Computed from published CPI-U; official CMS figures pending: CMS has not yet published the 2027 thresholds (its 2026 announcement is at cms.gov, checked 2026-11-04), and your 2027 tier is set by your 2025 MAGI through the two-year lookback. Every input to the statutory CPI-U formula is now published (BLS CPI-U through August 2026, average up 3.14% year on year with the never-published October 2025 reading interpolated), and the formula puts the first IRMAA tier above $112,000 for single filers (2026: $109,000) and above $224,000 for married filing jointly (2026: $218,000), with the higher tiers starting above $141,000 / $176,000 / $211,000 single and $282,000 / $352,000 / $422,000 joint. The top tier is set by statute: $500,000 single / $750,000 joint is held flat through 2027. If CMS leaves October 2025 out of the average instead (+3.27%), single tiers 2–4 each come in $1,000 higher and joint tiers 2–4 $2,000 higher — see the single, joint and October-2025 tables (CPI-U: BLS series CUUR0000SA0).
- Are the 2027 IRMAA brackets official yet?
- No. CMS announces the following year's Medicare premiums and IRMAA thresholds in the autumn — the 2026 amounts were released on November 14, 2025. CMS had not published the 2027 figures as of 2026-11-04. Until it does, the 2027 thresholds here are QuantCalc's computation from the statutory formula and published CPI-U, not CMS's own figures.
- Which year's income sets my 2027 IRMAA?
- Your 2025 modified adjusted gross income, through the two-year lookback. That return is already filed, so your 2027 tier is effectively locked in — the planning window for 2027 closed on December 31, 2025.
- How are the IRMAA thresholds indexed?
- Under 42 U.S.C. 1395r(i)(5), each threshold is the 2019 base amount ($85,000 / $107,000 / $133,500 / $160,000 single) grown by the ratio of average CPI-U over the 12 months ending in August of the preceding year to average CPI-U over the 12 months ending August 2018, then rounded to the nearest $1,000; the joint thresholds are twice the single ones. For 2027 that means the 12 months ending August 2026.
- Why are the 2027 numbers still labelled projected?
- Because CMS has not published them yet, not because an input is missing. BLS published the August 2026 CPI-U on 2026-09-11, so the whole September 2025 to August 2026 window is known except October 2025, which BLS never published. We interpolate that month (the same convention we use for the chained CPI on the tax-bracket page); leaving it out instead raises single tiers 2–4 by $1,000. Official CMS figures pending. CPI-U source: BLS series CUUR0000SA0.
- Is the top IRMAA bracket also indexed?
- No. The highest threshold is held at $500,000 single and $750,000 married filing jointly through 2027; indexing on that tier resumes in 2028 from an August 2026 base. So the top bracket in our 2027 projection is not a projection at all — it is set by statute.
- Do you project the 2027 surcharge dollar amounts too?
- No, and neither should anyone else from CPI alone. The Part B surcharges are set so each tier covers 35, 50, 65, 80 or 85 percent of total Part B costs instead of the standard 25 percent, so they follow the 2027 Part B premium, which is driven by program spending rather than consumer prices. Those amounts arrive with the CMS announcement. For reference, the 2026 Part B IRMAA surcharges are $81.20, $202.90, $324.60, $446.30 and $487.00 a month on top of the $202.90 standard premium (CMS, November 14, 2025).
Other 2027 figures:
The surcharge sits on top of the standard premium — see the 2027 Part B premium and deductible →