Medicare Cost Projector United States

What the Medicare cost projector does

The projector estimates the total Medicare premiums you are likely to pay over retirement. It builds a premium for each year from your current age to an end age you choose and adds them up. Along with the lifetime total, it shows the first-year cost, the final-year cost, the average annual cost and the share of the total that comes from IRMAA surcharges.

Medicare premiums are paid every month for life and tend to rise every year, so one month or one year understates the real cost. Compounding a realistic growth rate over a full retirement shows how a modest monthly premium adds up to a large lifetime figure for your retirement plan.

How each year is built

Each projected year adds four monthly amounts: the Part B base premium that almost everyone on Medicare pays; the IRMAA surcharge on Part B and Part D when your modified adjusted gross income is above the first bracket for your filing status; a Part D drug plan premium; and a Medigap or supplement premium if you have one. The four are multiplied by twelve for the yearly cost.

The first year uses the amounts as entered. Each later year grows the whole yearly cost by your medical inflation rate. The projector adds all the years for the lifetime total and tracks the IRMAA portion separately.

Why the growth rate matters so much

A premium that grows a few percent a year rises faster each year. Over a retirement of twenty-five or thirty years, the difference between a four percent and a six percent assumption can come to tens of thousands of dollars. Medicare premiums have historically outpaced general consumer inflation, so a rate based on healthcare cost trends gives a more realistic result than headline inflation.

Change the rate to see the effect on the lifetime total and the final-year cost. The final-year figure shows what one year of premiums could cost decades from now.

The role of IRMAA in a lifetime projection

For higher-income retirees, IRMAA can be a large part of lifetime Medicare cost. It is charged every month on top of the base premium for as long as you stay in a tier, and it grows along with everything else. The projector finds your tier from your MAGI and filing status, applies the surcharge across the whole projection and reports the IRMAA total on its own.

If the surcharge is a large share of your projected cost, it may be worth managing income around the brackets in the years Medicare uses to assess you. Each threshold is a cliff, so keeping MAGI just under a boundary in an assessment year can remove the surcharge for the matching coverage year. The projector shows what those decisions are worth over your lifetime.

Reading the results

The headline is the total projected cost, the sum of every year's premiums from your current age to your end age. The first-year monthly cost is what you would pay today, and the first-year cost annualizes it. The final-year cost shows where compounding leads, the average annual cost gives one representative figure for budgeting, the IRMAA total isolates the surcharge, and the number of years confirms the horizon used.

Apart from the growth rate, the projection holds your income tier and premium inputs constant, so it is a planning model, not a forecast. Premiums change with policy, your income can move between tiers and your coverage may change. Rerun it with different ages, incomes and growth rates to see a realistic range.

What the projector does not cover

The tool projects premiums only. It does not include deductibles, coinsurance, copays or care Medicare does not cover, such as most dental, vision and long-term care. Those costs vary too much between people to project from income and age. Treat the output as a premium budget, the most predictable part of retirement healthcare cost.

The figures are based on the current CMS Part B base premium and IRMAA brackets, which are updated each year, and on the assumptions you enter. The result is not tax, insurance or financial advice. Confirm specific numbers with official Medicare sources when you plan.

About This Tool: Medicare Cost Projector

Medicare cost projector: use this tool to get an instant, accurate estimate. The figures follow official guidance and every rate and threshold is kept up to date for 2026. Adjust the inputs above to match your situation, or browse all our calculators to plan your next step.