5 Tips for Getting the Most From Your HSA in 2027

Woman checking her HSA balance on a laptop.

Key takeaways:

Building good HSA habits can benefit you in 2027 and in the years to come.
Using your account wisely involves knowing what’s eligible, being organized with reimbursements, setting realistic contribution goals, investing your funds, and staying up to date on HSA laws.

The start of a new year is a great time to think about your health spending in the months ahead. And smart use of your HSA can help you save on healthcare—not only this year but for years to come.

In fact, your HSA can help you stay financially and physically healthy for decades.

So here are some HSA tips that’ll help you save this year AND form habits that’ll benefit you well into the future.

1. Learn What’s Eligible

Many HSA holders are surprised to find out how many of their everyday health purchases are eligible. Common items that are HSA qualified include:

What’s more, when you pay for these products with your HSA, you’re using pre-tax money. So you’re saving an average of 30%.

Of course, many health services are also eligible, including appointments with doctors, dentists, and optometrists.

Before you make a health purchase, check whether it’s HSA eligible. You can use our Eligibility List ®, which is the most comprehensive source of eligible health products and services on the web.

And remember, any item sold at HSA Store® is 100% eligible, guaranteed.

2. Develop a System for Reimbursement

You can pay for HSA eligible services and products with your HSA card, or you can reimburse yourself from your HSA. If you reimburse yourself, you’ll need to save a receipt of the purchase to prove that it was eligible.

Since you can reimburse yourself months or years later, you’ll need to make sure you’re keeping track of your receipts. Holding on to paper receipts can be a challenge, which is why we created the ExpenseTracker App™. It lets you upload and store paper receipts for future reimbursement. It can even generate expense reports and walk you through how to file a claim with your HSA administrator.

Keep in mind that you must make the purchase after you open your HSA to claim reimbursement.

And finally, remember that when you shop at HSA Store®, you can pay directly with your HSA card. You don’t need to submit receipts or reimbursement claims.

3. Set a Contribution Goal That Works for You

There are two main reasons to contribute as much as you can to your HSA.

The first is that doing so gives you the most tax savings. If you make contributions through your employer, the money is taken out pre-tax, lowering your taxable income. If you make HSA contributions on your own, you can deduct the contributions on your tax return.

The second reason to contribute as much as possible is that the more you put into your HSA, the more you have for future healthcare expenses. You can also invest your funds and earn tax-free interest, giving you even more money to cover healthcare costs (more on this in the next section).

The IRS raised contribution limits for 2027 to $4,500 for self-only and $9,000 for family coverage. If you’re over 55, you can also make a catch-up contribution of $1,000.

4. Invest Your HSA Balance

As mentioned above, you can invest your HSA funds in options such as stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and more. Any gains on your investments are tax-free.

Investing your funds allows you to grow your money to cover healthcare costs in the decades to come. And when you turn 65, you can use your HSA for medical and non-medical costs. You’ll just have to pay income taxes on money you withdraw for expenses that aren’t healthcare-related.

At this point, your HSA can function as a second retirement account.

Note that many HSA administrators require you to have a minimum balance before you can invest your HSA funds. Check with your provider to find out what their requirements are.

5. Stay on Top of HSA Changes

HSA rules are frequently updated or changed, and these changes can affect how you manage your HSA.

For example: The IRS typically adjusts HSA contribution limits each year, new products and services become eligible, and the minimum deductibles for high-deductible health plans (HDHPs) to be HSA-qualified also change each year.

You can keep up with everything in the HSA world at our Learning Center. Our experts bring you the latest updates so you can be prepared.

In Summary

These tips can help you make the most of your HSA in 2027 and beyond. It’s all about building good habits, staying informed, and planning ahead.

You can explore more HSA tips and expert advice with our article series.

FAQs

What is the HSA ‘triple tax advantage’?

The triple tax advantage refers to an HSA’s three main tax benefits:

Contributions to your account are pre-tax or tax deductible.
HSA investments grow tax-free.
Withdrawals for qualified medical expenses aren’t taxed.

As always, the information provided in this article should not be considered legal or tax advice. Please consult a licensed professional for appropriate advice given your individual situation.