Head-to-head, from CMS Plan Year 2026 data.
Prefer to talk? Call (713) 575-9904
Licensed Independent Agent · NPN #22052447 · 23 States
Alabama is the cheaper of the two: a 40-year-old pays about $680/month for the median Silver plan, versus $807 — a difference of $127/month (19%) before subsidies.
| Alabama | Texas | |
|---|---|---|
| Median Silver @40 | $680 | $807 |
| Cheapest Silver @40 | $583 | $540 |
| Most expensive county @40 | $1,124 | $1,409 |
| Age 27 | $478 | $443 |
| Age 60 | $1,238 | $1,146 |
| Carriers | 4 | 15 |
| Counties | 67 | 254 |
| 1-carrier counties | 7 | 7 |
| Plan types | EPO, PPO | EPO, HMO, POS |
Network note: Texas has no PPO plans in 2026 while Alabama does.
Source: CMS Plan Year 2026 Qualified Health Plan Landscape. Full-price filed rates before premium tax credits; not a quote or an offer of coverage.
This page sets two states against each other. For county-by-county carriers, plan data and help actually enrolling, I publish a page for each state on Coverage by County: Alabama or Texas. There is also a blog covering deductibles, subsidies and special enrollment periods.
Put your ZIP code in and I will show you the carriers filing in your county, what the cheapest plan costs, and what you would actually pay after any help you qualify for. No cost, and you talk to me — not a call center.
An Alabama-to-Texas move triggers a 60-day special enrollment period, so the 15 carriers filing in Texas are open to you outside the usual window. The catch is on both ends — you normally need to have carried qualifying coverage for a day or more in the 60 days before moving, and moves made for treatment or travel are excluded.
Nothing transfers. You close the Alabama plan and enroll fresh against Texas’s 254 counties, which means a new network and a new price regardless of which insurer you land on.
Some continuity is possible: Oscar Insurance Company and UnitedHealthcare file in both, out of 4 in Alabama and 15 in Texas. Same company is easier paperwork, but it is a different plan on a different network at a different price.
This is the asymmetry that bites. Alabama has PPO plans across all 67 counties; Texas sells none in any of its 254. The PPO is the plan type most likely to pay outside its own network, so heading toward Texas usually costs you the ability to see Alabama providers for anything short of an emergency.
Only one of the two can be your plan state. Marketplace eligibility runs on primary residence, so if you file from Alabama the Texas care is the out-of-network half, and the reverse if you file from Texas.
State averages hide enormous county-level spread. Whichever of Alabama or Texas you are in, your ZIP is what sets your premium.