Solo owner
You're an individual buyer with the self-employed deduction. Price both markets.
You plus one
A spouse on payroll or one W-2 employee opens guaranteed-issue small-group coverage. Often the answer when one person has a condition.
3–50 employees
Level-funded and traditional group plans, deductible to the business. Under 50 there's no mandate to offer coverage. California regulates non-ACA coverage more tightly than most states, and the state mandate and Covered California's state subsidies change the math for many people, so private options here are narrower and the honest answer is often a careful comparison, not a promise of savings.