Your 2026 contribution room after employer money, catch-ups and proration
| Limit | 2025 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Self-only contribution | $4,300 | $4,400 |
| Family contribution | $8,550 | $8,750 |
| Catch-up (55+) | $1,000 | $1,000 (not indexed) |
| HDHP minimum deductible (self / family) | $1,650 / $3,300 | $1,700 / $3,400 |
| HDHP max out-of-pocket (self / family) | $8,300 / $16,700 | $8,500 / $17,000 |
One spouse's family-plan HSA holds the full family limit; the other spouse's account is only for a catch-up. If both spouses have self-only HDHPs, each gets their own $4,400, not the family number.
| Scenario | Months Covered | Base Limit | With One $1,000 Catch-up |
|---|---|---|---|
| Self-only, full year | 12 | $4,400 | $5,400 |
| Self-only, hired Oct 1 | 3 | $1,100 | $2,100 |
| Family, full year | 12 | $8,750 | $9,750 |
| Family, started July 1 | 6 | $4,375 | $5,375 |
With the last-month rule, a July 1 start could instead justify the full-year limit, as long as HDHP coverage continues through December 31 of the following year. Lose eligibility early and the extra amount is income, plus a 10% penalty in most cases.
An HSA is the only account in the tax code with a triple payoff: contributions deduct, growth compounds untaxed, and qualified medical withdrawals come out tax-free. The hard part is the contribution ceiling, because several rules stack on top of the headline number. This calculator assembles them in the right order.
Start with the statutory limit ($4,400 self-only, $8,750 family). Prorate by months of HDHP coverage if you didn't have the plan all year and you're using the proration method (limit × months ÷ 12). Add the $1,000 catch-up if you'll be 55 by December 31, and your spouse's catch-up if they're 55+ with their own account. Subtract employer contributions and anything you've already put in; what's left is your room.
Pick your coverage type, your age at year-end, and how many months you'll have the HDHP. If you were covered on December 1, the last-month rule usually beats proration; switch between the two to compare. Enter employer seed money (check your benefits portal; "employer HSA contribution" or "wellness credit"), then your bracket and state rate to price the tax savings.
Married couple, both on the family HDHP all of 2026. She's 57, he's 56, and her employer seeds $2,000 into her HSA. Statutory limit: $8,750 + $1,000 (her catch-up) = $9,750 in her account, and his $1,000 catch-up goes into his own HSA on top. Her personal room after the employer money: 9,750 − 2,000 = $7,750. Add his $1,000 and the household puts away $10,750 for the year.
Now the tax side. If she contributes through payroll at a 22% federal bracket and 5% state tax, every dollar skips 34.65% in tax (22 + 5 + 7.65 FICA). Her $7,750 saves $2,685; his direct $1,000 at the same income-tax rates (no FICA outside payroll) saves $270. Household savings: $2,955, on contributions they were going to need for a deductible anyway.
$4,400 for self-only HDHP coverage and $8,750 for family coverage, per IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-19. If you're 55 or older by the end of 2026, add a $1,000 catch-up, and a spouse who is also 55+ can add their own $1,000 in their own HSA. Employer contributions, including payroll deductions and flex credits, count toward the same cap.
Yes. Every dollar that lands in the HSA, whether from your paycheck or your employer's seed money, uses the same annual cap. A family-plan employee whose employer seeds $2,000 has $6,750 of personal room in 2026 before any catch-up. The only thing employer money changes is the tax angle: employer dollars skip FICA and income tax automatically.
Multiply the annual limit by your months of HDHP coverage and divide by 12. Family coverage starting July 1 gives 8,750 × 6/12 = $4,375 of base limit. Catch-ups are not prorated; if you turn 55 by December 31, the full $1,000 applies. The alternative is the last-month rule: if you're HDHP-covered on December 1, you can contribute the full annual limit, but you must stay eligible through December 31 of the following year or the excess becomes taxable.
It depends on your bracket and how the money goes in. Contributions through payroll dodge federal income tax, state income tax in most states, and the 7.65% FICA tax. Direct contributions skip FICA but get deducted on your return. At a 22% federal bracket with 5% state tax, a payroll contribution saves 34.65 cents per dollar: $8,750 of personal contributions keeps about $3,032 in your pocket.
Excess contributions draw a 6% excise tax each year they stay in the account. You can fix it cleanly by withdrawing the excess plus any earnings before the filing deadline (the earnings are taxable income, the principal isn't). After the deadline, the fix is to count the excess toward next year's limit and keep paying the 6% until it's absorbed.
Each spouse's $1,000 catch-up must go into that spouse's own HSA; a single account can't hold two catch-ups. Many couples keep two HSAs for exactly this reason: one family-coverage HSA for the base $8,750 plus each spouse's individual HSA for their own $1,000.