Head-to-head, from CMS Plan Year 2026 data.
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South Carolina is the cheaper of the two: a 40-year-old pays about $636/month for the median Silver plan, versus $680 — a difference of $44/month (7%) before subsidies.
| South Carolina | Alabama | |
|---|---|---|
| Median Silver @40 | $636 | $680 |
| Cheapest Silver @40 | $456 | $583 |
| Most expensive county @40 | $931 | $1,124 |
| Age 27 | $374 | $478 |
| Age 60 | $968 | $1,238 |
| Carriers | 6 | 4 |
| Counties | 46 | 67 |
| 1-carrier counties | 0 | 7 |
| Plan types | EPO, HMO, POS, PPO | EPO, PPO |
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: South Carolina or Alabama. 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.
Moving permanently from South Carolina to Alabama is a qualifying life event, so you get a 60-day special enrollment window counted from the move date — time enough to work through the 4 carriers filing in Alabama without waiting for open enrollment. Two conditions trip people up: you generally need to have held qualifying coverage for at least one day in the 60 days before the move, and relocating purely for treatment or a holiday will not qualify.
Nothing transfers. You close the South Carolina plan and enroll fresh against Alabama’s 67 counties, which means a new network and a new price regardless of which insurer you land on.
Of the 6 carriers in South Carolina and 4 in Alabama, UnitedHealthcare appears in both. That overlap is worth knowing if continuity of insurer matters to you, though the plan itself is new either way.
PPO availability is total on both sides, 46 counties in South Carolina and 67 in Alabama. If you expect to keep needing care in both, that plan type is the reason this pairing is more workable than most.
You cannot carry one plan in South Carolina and a second in Alabama. Eligibility follows primary residence, the address on your return, and everything received in the other state is normally out of network.
Picking between South Carolina and Alabama on the headline number is a mistake. Enter your ZIP and I will show you what is actually filed for you.