Ranked 12 of 15 states · median $807/mo · CMS PY2026
Licensed Independent Agent · NPN #22052447 · 21 States
A 40-year-old insurance agent in Texas pays a median $807/month for a Silver plan before subsidies — 12th of 15 on cost. The cheapest plan in the state is $540 from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas in Cameron. On counties covered, Texas ranks 1 of 15 for this occupation.
Once your work crosses county and state lines, network geography stops being a detail and becomes the whole decision. An HMO contracted in one metro leaves you paying cash 200 miles down the road, and a handful of states filed no PPO at all for 2026. These rankings lead with reach.
Occupational context: Sedentary strain; driving exposure on client visits.
Two things get confused here constantly. Risk exposure decides what coverage you should buy. It does not decide what you are charged — Texas carriers rate on age, ZIP, tobacco and family size, full stop. A insurance agent with a bad back and a healthy 40-year-old office worker in the same county see the same number.
Premium is set by rating area, so a insurance agent in one Texas county can pay materially more than one an hour away. Six counties from across the state, cheapest Silver plan for a 40-year-old:
| County | Cheapest Silver @40 | Issuer | Deductible | Carriers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Willacy | $710 | Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas | $6,000 | 4 |
| Liberty | $720 | UnitedHealthcare | $6,000 | 5 |
| McLennan | $721 | Ambetter from Superior HealthPlan | $6,000 | 3 |
| Cooke | $731 | Molina Healthcare | $7,000 | 5 |
| Presidio | $741 | UnitedHealthcare | $6,000 | 2 |
| Dallam | $770 | Ambetter from Superior HealthPlan | $6,000 | 4 |
The spread across just these six is $60/month — $716 a year for the same metal tier. Statewide the range runs $540 to $1,409. Coverage by County publishes all 254 Texas counties individually.
| Texas — network reach | 2026 |
|---|---|
| Counties in the state | 254 |
| Counties with only one carrier | 7 (3%) |
| Plan types available | EPO, HMO, POS |
| PPO available on exchange | No |
| Carriers filing in the state | 15 |
| Cheapest Silver @40 | $540 — Cameron |
Texas has no PPO plans on the exchange at all. For a insurance agent covering distance, that single fact outweighs premium: 7 of 254 counties here are served by one carrier, so an HMO bought in one metro may leave you out of network for the rest of your route.
Source: CMS Plan Year 2026 Qualified Health Plan Landscape file. 13,013 plan records across 254 Texas counties. Full-price filed rates before premium tax credits — verify at enrollment.
Cheaper for the same coverage: Kansas ($765), Florida ($789), Utah ($805). More expensive: North Carolina ($828), Arkansas ($828), Nebraska ($875).
Side-by-side: Texas vs Florida · Texas vs Utah · Texas vs North Carolina · Texas vs Arkansas
Read the comparison as context, not as a shopping list. Your county of residence determines what you can buy, and for a insurance agent that is fixed unless you relocate. Where it is actionable is a move already in progress — that is a qualifying life event, and you have 60 days on either side of it.
Deduction categories that generally fit this trade: Licensing, E&O insurance, CRM, continuing education. Note the ordering problem with health premiums: the §162(l) deduction lowers your AGI, and your AGI is what sets your premium tax credit, so the two calculate against each other. That is a CPA conversation and worth having before you enroll, not after.
If your household income is above the subsidy range, ACA is not automatically the answer. There are other categories of coverage that may fit, and they work very differently. That is a conversation, not a web page.
The cheapest Silver plan for a 40-year-old in Texas is $540 per month from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas, with a state median of $807. Both figures are full price before premium tax credits; most buyers pay less after subsidies.
No. Texas exchange plans are guaranteed issue and community rated, so a insurance agent pays exactly what anyone else of the same age in the same ZIP pays. Occupation is not on the application as a rating factor.
No. Only EPO and HMO and POS plans were filed for 2026.
Texas ranks 12 of 15 states covered here, at a median $807 per month. Indiana is cheapest at $558 and Nebraska is most expensive at $875.
This page compares states. For Texas specifically — county-by-county carriers, plan data and enrollment help — I publish that on Coverage by County, including a page written for Insurance Agents in Texas and a blog covering deductibles, subsidies and special enrollment.