Medicare 2026

How to Use Medicare's Plan Finder to Compare 2027 Plans

Choosing Medicare coverage can feel like a lot, but Medicare.gov's Plan Finder is built to make the comparison manageable. It pulls together the Medicare Advantage and stand-alone Part D plans available where you live, estimates what your prescriptions would cost under each, and lets you enroll when you're ready. Here's a plain-English walk-through so you can approach the 2027 plan year with a clear head.

When to use Plan Finder

Most people use Plan Finder during the Annual Enrollment Period (also called Open Enrollment), which for the 2027 plan year runs October 15 through December 7, 2026. Any plan you select during that window begins January 1, 2027. You can also use Plan Finder year-round to research plans, especially if you qualify for a Special Enrollment Period.

Getting started

Go to Medicare.gov and open Plan Finder. You can browse as a guest, but logging in with your Medicare.gov account has a real advantage: it saves your drug list, so you don't have to re-enter prescriptions each time you compare.

Enter your ZIP code and choose what you want to look at:

• Medicare Advantage plans (Part C), which bundle hospital, medical, and usually drug coverage into one plan from a private insurer.
• Stand-alone Part D prescription drug plans, which pair with Original Medicare.

Enter your drugs and pharmacies

This is the step people most often skip, and it's the one that makes Plan Finder useful. Add each prescription, the dose, and how often you fill it. Then add one or two pharmacies you'd actually use, including mail order if you're interested.

With that information, Plan Finder estimates each plan's yearly drug cost, blending premiums, deductible, and copays or coinsurance across the year. Two plans with similar monthly premiums can produce very different annual totals once your specific medications are factored in.

What the numbers mean in 2027

A few program-level facts apply nationwide and are worth keeping in mind as you compare:

• The Part D out-of-pocket cap is $2,400 in 2027 (up from $2,100 in 2026). Once your out-of-pocket spending on covered drugs hits that amount, you pay $0 for covered drugs the rest of the year.
• No Part D plan may charge a deductible higher than $700 in 2027. Some plans set a lower deductible or none at all.
• The Part D base beneficiary premium for 2027 is $41.33. This is a national figure used to calculate the late-enrollment penalty; actual plan premiums vary and are set by each plan.

The 2027 Part B standard premium and deductible, and the IRMAA income brackets that can raise what higher-income enrollees pay, had not been announced at the time of writing. CMS typically announces those figures in the fall. Check Medicare.gov for the official numbers once released.

Social Security also announced a 3.6 percent cost-of-living adjustment for benefits payable beginning January 2027, which can affect the net amount deposited to your account after Medicare premiums are withheld.

Reading the results

Plan Finder shows each plan's Star Rating (1 to 5 stars), a CMS quality measure based on member experience, customer service, and clinical performance. It also displays the monthly premium, drug deductible, estimated yearly drug cost based on your list, and — for Medicare Advantage — information on medical copays and the plan's provider network.

Filter and sort to focus on what matters to you: estimated total cost, Star Rating, whether your preferred pharmacy is in the preferred tier, or whether specific drugs are on the formulary.

Medicare Advantage vs. Original Medicare + Medigap

Plan Finder helps with Medicare Advantage and Part D, but many people also weigh Original Medicare paired with a Medigap (Medicare Supplement) policy and a stand-alone Part D plan. There are honest trade-offs on both sides:

• Medicare Advantage often has lower monthly premiums, bundled drug coverage, and sometimes extra benefits, but typically uses provider networks and requires referrals or prior authorization for some services.
• Original Medicare with Medigap and Part D generally allows you to see any provider who accepts Medicare and has more predictable cost-sharing, but Medigap premiums are an added monthly cost and extra benefits aren't built in.

Neither path is "better" in the abstract — it depends on your doctors, medications, travel habits, and budget.

Special situations: Medicaid and Extra Help

If you have Medicaid or qualify for Extra Help with Part D costs, you have more flexibility. Since 2025, there's a monthly Special Enrollment Period that lets you move from Medicare Advantage to Original Medicare with a stand-alone Part D plan, or switch stand-alone Part D plans. Full-benefit dual-eligible enrollees can join an integrated D-SNP in any month. You don't have to wait for Open Enrollment to make these changes.

Enrolling and keeping records

When you've picked a plan, you can enroll directly through Plan Finder. Save or print the confirmation. If you logged in, your drug list stays saved for next year's comparison.

Where can you get help with Medicare questions?

For official information and to use Plan Finder, go to Medicare.gov. For questions by phone, call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227), available 24/7. Taking the time to compare carefully each year — even if you're happy with your current plan — is one of the simplest ways to make sure your coverage still fits.