COBRA quote is huge, any alternatives? - what worked for you?

The COBRA quote for my family is $650 a month and I do not know how to afford it. There are 8 people counting on me, so I am trying to be careful. I saw that marketplace plans might cost less. How did you decide?

Thanks for writing this out. I went through something close to it last year, and it got easier once I kept a simple log of every call and form.