The full cost of employer-sponsored health coverage is reported on the W-2 in Box 12 under code DD. That figure is the combined employer and employee cost, is informational rather than taxable, and subtracting your own payroll deductions leaves what the employer actually contributes. Employers issuing fewer than 250 W-2s are generally exempt from reporting it, so the box is sometimes empty.
The number that matters is the employer’s share
Not the plan’s headline value, not the deductible, not the network size. What the employer pays monthly toward your premium is the part that functions as compensation, and it is the only figure that belongs in a package comparison.
It is also a fair question at offer stage. Ask for the monthly employer contribution and the monthly employee contribution for the plan tier you would actually choose — individual, or family, which are very different numbers.
Why this line is bigger than people assume
Employer premium contributions are frequently worth several thousand dollars a year for an individual and well into five figures for a family. Against a base salary difference of a few thousand between two offers, the premium share routinely decides which is better.
People negotiate for weeks over base and never ask this question, largely because it does not appear on the offer letter and asking feels like a detail.
The three numbers to compare
Your monthly premium for the tier you would pick. This comes straight out of your pay, so it reduces take-home directly.
The deductible and out-of-pocket maximum. The maximum is the important one: it caps your worst year, and a low premium with a high maximum is a bet on staying healthy.
Whether your doctors and medications are covered. A cheaper plan that excludes your specialist is not cheaper.
Pre-tax makes it worth more than it looks
Your premium contribution generally comes out pre-tax, so a dollar of premium costs you less than a dollar of take-home. The exact saving depends on your bracket.
The same applies to health savings and flexible spending accounts, and to any employer contribution into an HSA — which is straightforwardly additional compensation that many people leave unclaimed.
Comparing two offers properly
Take each offer’s base. Add the annual employer premium contribution. Subtract your annual employee contribution. Then note each plan’s out-of-pocket maximum as the risk you are carrying.
What emerges is frequently different from the base comparison, and occasionally reversed. A $4,000 higher base against a premium share $6,000 worse is a lower offer.
The situations where this dominates everything
A family plan, an ongoing condition, or a planned medical event. In those cases the difference between two employers’ coverage can exceed the entire salary difference, and it is the single most important item in the comparison.
For a healthy individual it matters less, and a lower premium with a higher maximum may be the right trade — provided the maximum is a number you could actually absorb.
What happens when the job ends
Coverage generally ends with employment, and continuation through COBRA costs the full premium plus an administrative charge — frequently three or four times what was coming out of your pay.
Which is worth knowing before you need it. Losing job-based coverage triggers a marketplace special enrollment period, and a subsidized plan is often far cheaper than continuation for equivalent coverage.
The questions to ask at offer stage
What does the employer contribute monthly, for the tier I would choose? What is the employee contribution? What is the out-of-pocket maximum? Is there an employer HSA contribution? And when does coverage begin — a waiting period of a month or two is a real cost.
Five questions, all with definite answers, all normal to ask. An employer with good coverage answers them readily because it is a recruiting asset.
A worked comparison
Offer A pays $95,000 and contributes $1,100 a month toward a family plan, leaving you $350. Offer B pays $101,000 and contributes $600, leaving you $850.
Offer A costs you $4,200 a year in premiums; Offer B costs $10,200. The $6,000 base advantage in Offer B is entirely consumed, before considering that the premium comes out pre-tax and before comparing the out-of-pocket maximums.
That is not an unusual spread between employers. It is the ordinary range, and it is invisible unless somebody asks the question.
The waiting period nobody mentions
Coverage frequently begins on the first of the month after 30 or 60 days. Between leaving one job and being covered at the next, you are either uninsured or paying continuation rates at full premium.
Ask when coverage starts, and factor a gap into the move. For a family it is one of the larger one-off costs of changing jobs and almost nobody budgets for it.
Common questions
Where do I find what my employer pays for coverage?
Box 12, code DD on your W-2 reports the total cost of employer-sponsored coverage. Subtract your own payroll deductions to get the employer's share.
Is that figure taxable?
No. It is reported for information only and does not change what you owe.
Why is Box 12 code DD empty on mine?
Employers filing fewer than 250 W-2s in the prior year are generally exempt from reporting it. An empty box does not mean there was no coverage.
What should I ask about at offer stage?
The annual employer contribution for the specific plan and the coverage level you need. Employee-only and family figures are often very far apart.
Is a lower premium a better plan?
Not on its own. Check the deductible and the out-of-pocket maximum, which decide what a bad year costs you.
How do I value employer health coverage?
By the employer's monthly premium contribution for the tier you would choose — not the plan's headline value or the deductible.
Can coverage outweigh a salary difference?
Frequently. A $4,000 higher base against a premium share $6,000 worse is a lower offer, and family coverage differences can exceed the whole salary gap.
What should I ask at offer stage?
Employer and employee monthly contributions, the out-of-pocket maximum, whether there is an employer HSA contribution, and when coverage begins.