Best Medicare Supplement Plans for 2027: Plan G vs Plan N and the 10 Letters

Is there one best Medicare supplement plan?

No. All Medigap policies are standardized, which means policies with the same letter offer the same basic benefits no matter where you live or which insurance company you buy from. The letter decides the benefits. The company decides the price and the service.

So the useful question is not which plan is best, but which letter matches how you use care and how much premium you want to carry. Our beginner’s guide to Medicare supplement plans walks through the vocabulary, and the Medicare hub covers how Medigap fits with Part A, Part B, and drug coverage.

What are the standardized plan letters for 2027?

Ten Medigap plan types are offered in most states, named A through D, F, G, and K through N, and Massachusetts, Minnesota, and Wisconsin standardize their policies in a different way. Insurance companies that sell Medigap do not have to offer every plan.

Two letters are restricted. Not everyone can buy Plan C and Plan F, and your eligibility depends on when you first became eligible for Medicare. The high-deductible version of Plan F is available only to those not new to Medicare before January 1, 2020, high-deductible Plan G is available to people new to Medicare on or after that date, and people new to Medicare are those who turn 65 on or after January 1, 2020.

Plans K and L work on a different math. They pay 100 percent of covered services for the rest of the calendar year after you meet the out-of-pocket yearly limit and the yearly Part B deductible of $283 in 2026, with 2026 limits of $8,000 for Plan K and $4,000 for Plan L.

How do Plan G and Plan N differ once you add up the year?

These two letters carry most of the new enrollment, and the gap between them is copays rather than coverage. Plan N pays 100 percent of Part B coinsurance, but you pay a copayment of up to $20 for some office visits and up to $50 for emergency room visits when you are not admitted as an inpatient. Neither letter pays the Part B deductible.

Plan N tends to price lower per month, so the tradeoff is visit volume. Twelve office visits at the full copay is $240 of copays before you count the deductible, while a year with two visits looks very different. Plan G also pays Part B excess charges and Plan N does not, so check the excess charge row on the medicare.gov chart if your specialists do not accept assignment.

The third column suits people who want the lowest premium and can absorb a bad year. With the high-deductible option for Plans F or G, you must pay the first $2,950 in 2026 of deductibles, copayments, and coinsurance for covered services not paid by Medicare before the policy pays. Our post on comparing Medicare supplement plans shows how to run those numbers against your own claims history.

Which 2027 numbers are final and which are not?

Medigap benefits do not change for 2027, but the dollar amounts attached to them update every year. CMS updates the high-deductible amount for Plans F, G, and J each year after the Bureau of Labor Statistics releases the August CPI-U figures, which generally occurs in mid-September. The amount effective January 1, 2026 is $2,950. Until the fall announcements land, price your 2027 decision using the 2026 figures and confirm before your policy starts.

Drug costs are a separate track. For 2027, the Part D base beneficiary premium will be $41.33. Medigap never includes drug coverage, so pair any letter with a stand-alone plan from the Part D hub, and read our breakdown of Medicare Part D changes for 2027 before December 7.

Does community-rated or attained-age pricing cost less over time?

Each Medigap policy can be priced one of three ways: community-rated, also called no-age-rated, issue-age-rated, also called entry-age-rated, and attained-age-rated. Community-rated policies charge the same premium regardless of age. Issue-age policies set the premium by your age at purchase. Attained-age policies reprice as you get older.

Medicare’s own guide illustrates an attained-age policy that rises from one year to the next as the buyer ages, and the guide notes that the examples show how age affects premiums and that the amounts are not actual costs. The practical rule: ask which method the policy uses, then ask for the carrier’s rate increase history for that plan letter in your state. A low first-year quote on an attained-age policy can be the most expensive option by age 78.

When can you switch letters without answering health questions?

Your 6-month Medigap Open Enrollment Period starts the first month you have Medicare Part B and you are 65 or older, and it is a one-time period that does not repeat every year. During that window an insurance company cannot make you wait for coverage, except for coverage related to a pre-existing condition.

After it closes, two things can happen. Situations where an insurance company cannot deny you a Medigap policy are called guaranteed issue rights, or Medigap protections. Otherwise, the insurance company is allowed to deny you a policy if you do not meet its medical underwriting requirements. Guaranteed-issue triggers, underwriting questions, and extra state windows vary by state, and some states have additional open enrollment periods, including for people under 65, so confirm your state’s rules before you apply. If you are weighing the two coverage paths, read our Medicare Advantage vs Medigap comparison first, since moving back to Medigap later may require underwriting.

How do you shop by price when the benefits are identical?

Once you pick a letter, the shopping problem is narrow: same benefits, different premiums, different rate histories. Quote the same letter across every carrier available in your ZIP code, then compare the pricing method and the increase history rather than the first-year number alone.

If you want a second set of eyes on the quotes, our team works by phone and video across 40-plus states, excluding California. You can also start with the contact page and tell us which letter you are leaning toward.