What is the HSA contribution limit for 2026?

$4,400 for self-only coverage and $8,750 for family coverage, plus $1,000 from age 55. In 2027 the limits are $4,500 and $9,000.

What is the deadline for HSA contributions?

April 15 of the following year. You can add to your HSA for 2026 until April 15, 2027.

Can I keep my HSA if I change jobs?

Yes. The account is yours, including what your employer put in. You can keep using it, or move it to another HSA provider.

Can I contribute to an HSA after 65?

Not once you’re enrolled in Medicare, including Part A. You can still spend what’s in it, tax-free for medical costs.

HSA explained: limits for 2026 and 2027

Can I have one?

You need a high-deductible health plan (HDHP), and no other health coverage except things like dental, vision or accident cover. You can’t have one once you’re enrolled in Medicare, and nobody else can claim you as a dependent.

HDHP limits	2026	2027
Minimum deductible, self-only	$1,700	$1,750
Minimum deductible, family	$3,400	$3,500
Out-of-pocket maximum, self-only	$8,500	$8,700
Out-of-pocket maximum, family	$17,000	$17,400

How much can I put in?

HSA limits	2026	2027
Self-only coverage	$4,400	$4,500
Family coverage	$8,750	$9,000
Extra from age 55	$1,000	$1,000

The limits include anything your employer puts in. With family coverage, spouses share the family limit, and each can add the $1,000 catch-up to their own HSA.

How much tax does it save?

An HSA has three tax breaks: contributions are deducted, growth isn’t taxed, and withdrawals for qualified medical costs aren’t taxed.

If you contribute through payroll, you also skip Social Security and Medicare tax. Single, earning $75,000, putting the full $4,400 in through payroll saves:

$968 of federal income tax (22%)
$336.60 of Social Security and Medicare (7.65%)

That’s $1,304.60 a year, plus state tax in most states. California and New Jersey tax HSA contributions, so there’s no state saving there.

Using the money

Medical costs: deductibles, copays, prescriptions, dental and vision costs, for you, your spouse and dependents, tax-free at any age.
Other spending before 65: income tax plus a 20% penalty.
Other spending from 65: income tax only, just like a traditional IRA. Medical costs stay tax-free.

There’s no deadline to reimburse yourself: you can pay a medical bill from your own pocket today, keep the receipt, and take the money out of your HSA years later, as long as the cost came after you opened the HSA.

Using it for retirement

Because the money rolls over and can be invested, an HSA can be one of the best retirement accounts there is. If you can afford to pay medical bills from your normal budget, leaving the HSA invested lets it grow tax-free for decades, and health costs in retirement are usually large.

$4,400 of pay a year for 20 years, spent on medical costs What’s left after tax, at 6% growth a year

HSA, through payroll No tax in, on growth or out: $161,857
Traditional 401(k) Taxed at 22% when it comes out: $126,248
Taxable brokerage Paid in after tax; 15% on the gains: $106,072

An illustration for a single filer at 22% who contributes through payroll. In the taxable account, dividends taxed each year would leave a little less. State tax isn’t included.

HSA vs FSA

	HSA	Health FSA
Needs a high-deductible plan	Yes	No
Unused money	Rolls over every year	Mostly lost at the end of the year
If you change jobs	It’s yours	Stays with the employer
Can be invested	Yes	No

See your own numbers

The HSA calculator shows the tax you’d save in your state and what your HSA could grow to. The paycheck calculator shows how an HSA contribution changes your take-home pay, including the Social Security and Medicare saving. Buying your own cover? The ACA subsidy calculator shows what a Marketplace plan would cost after the premium tax credit.