COBRA Cost Estimator

COBRA lets you keep employer health insurance for 18 months (sometimes 36) after job loss, but you pay the full premium plus a 2% administrative fee. What felt like $180/month when your employer was covering 78% becomes $830/month when you're paying everything. COBRA is almost never the cheapest option — but it's sometimes the only option mid-treatment.

Real example. Mike's job ends. His old paycheck showed $180/month for family coverage; the employer was actually paying $650/month on top. COBRA premium = ($650 + $180) × 1.02 = $846/month. For 12 months: $10,156. A comparable silver plan on the federal exchange for the same family at $85,000 household income: $512/month after premium tax credit, or $6,144/year — saves $4,012. The only reason to stay on COBRA: you're mid-cancer-treatment with a specialist who is in-network on COBRA but not on any marketplace plan.

Enter your previous monthly contribution AND your employer's contribution (check your last pay stub or ask HR for the W-2 Box 12 code DD amount divided by 12). Add 2% admin fee. Compare against a marketplace quote at your expected post-job-loss income — job loss qualifies as a Special Enrollment Period, so you can enroll anytime within 60 days of losing coverage.

If you want to stress-test the answer, pair with health insurance total cost calculator and HMO vs. PPO comparison — the two numbers should corroborate each other within ~15%. If they don't, one of your inputs is off.

Mistakes: electing COBRA reflexively on day 1 without pricing marketplace alternatives (you have 60 days to decide); paying COBRA premiums retroactively to cover a gap (you can elect COBRA up to day 60, pay back to day 1, and get coverage — use the 60 days to shop); ignoring state-continuation laws that may extend beyond the federal 18 months (California Cal-COBRA adds 18 more months for small groups).

COBRA premium is literally your employer's actual total cost plus 2%. There is no underwriting. The only ways to reduce: drop dependents you don't need (voluntary termination of dependents is allowed), switch to a lower-tier plan during open enrollment (sometimes allowed by the group), or time it around a qualifying event that opens a marketplace SEP.

Mini-COBRA laws in most states extend continuation rights to employees of groups under 20 (federal COBRA only applies to 20+). California (Cal-COBRA), New York (36 months in some cases), and Texas (nine months) all have additional protections.

Before you pull quotes, write a one-page spec: exact limits, exact deductible, exact riders, exact coverage period. Give all carriers the same spec. When quotes come back, ignore the headline premium and normalize — is the deductible identical, are the riders identical, is the liability limit identical? Only then compare.

Drop each carrier's real number back into this calculator to see the expected annual cost (premium + deductible × claim probability), not just the sticker. A $150 cheaper premium with a $750 higher deductible is usually worse once you account for probability. Pair with short-term disability calculator and Medicare supplement calculator to confirm you're sizing limits correctly.

Run this before accepting COBRA. After the 60-day election window closes, you're locked in or out. Also re-run at each renewal — COBRA renews once a year and your employer's plan may change.

Calendar a reminder for 45 days before the renewal. Pull three fresh quotes — one from a direct writer (GEICO, Progressive), one from a captive agent (State Farm, Allstate, Farmers), and one from an independent agent who represents 8–12 carriers. Combine with critical illness calculator for your full portfolio view.

This tool is educational, not financial or insurance advice. Actual premiums depend on factors no web tool can perfectly model, including carrier-specific underwriting, state regulations, your individual history, and policy-form details. Formulas here use simplified national averages to get you within a reasonable planning range — not to produce a bindable quote. Before purchasing any COBRA policy, consult a licensed insurance agent in your state. Carrier links on this page are sponsored affiliate placements; we may earn a commission if you click and purchase, at no additional cost to you. This does not influence the calculator math or our editorial picks.

This calculator runs entirely in your browser using JavaScript. Nothing you type is transmitted to our servers. Nothing is stored after you close the tab. Use the Export PDF button to take the inputs and results with you. If you want a COBRA feature that doesn't exist yet, send a note via the contact page — we prioritize tool-building based on real user requests.