Exchanges are required to establish a navigator program that provides grants to community or consumer-focused nonprofits and other organizations to conduct outreach and help consumers and small employers connect to health coverage. States have broad flexibility in designing their programs as long as minimum federal guidelines are met. While similar to existing models of consumer assistance in Medicaid and Medicare, navigator programs are newly created to specifically help consumers navigate the expanded health coverage options under the Affordable Care Act. This brief describes what is required of navigator programs and outlines the steps and considerations that are important as states design their own programs.