Here's how much Social Security benefits are increasing in 2025
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Older Americans have relied heavily on Social Security to help them through their retirement years over the past eight-plus decades.
Almost 68 million people per month received a check from the program in 2024, said the Social Security Administration. As of June 30, nearly 90% of people 65 and older were getting such benefits.
Social Security is tweaked each year to account for changes in areas such as life expectancy and cost of living. This means recipients will see a difference in how much money goes into their pocket year over year, while the general public — which contributes to the program via taxes — may also notice a change in their payment depending on income.
Cost-of-living adjustment for Social Security
Social Security checks this year feature a 2.5% cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA, the calculation that accounts for the effects of inflation on goods and services annually. The COLA is the smallest in four years but is also the fourth straight year when the increase is above the 15-year average jump of 2.3%.
Retirees can expect to see their monthly check increase by an average of $49 to $1,976 in 2025. But experts say the bump in pay will likely be offset by high expenses for things like shelter and medical care.
Greater spending from high earners
Beginning in 2025, all earned income (defined as wages and salary, but not investment income) between $0.01 and $176,100 is subject to the payroll tax that primarily funds Social Security. The upper limit, known as the maximum taxable earnings cap, is an increase from $168,600 in 2024.
About 94% of workers are unaffected by the change because they earn less than the cap. The remaining 6% could see their payroll tax contribution rise by up to $930 if self-employed or $465 if employed by someone else.
Increase in maximum retirement earnings
The maximum monthly check at full retirement age, the age when workers become eligible to receive 100% of their monthly benefit, is $4,018 in 2025, an increase of $196 from last year.
This change will affect only about 2% of beneficiaries, who must meet three criteria to reach the maximum payment. Retired workers need to wait until full retirement age before collecting their benefit, work a minimum of 35 years, and have met or surpassed the maximum taxable earnings cap in all of those years.
Benefits for early filers
The Social Security program encourages those at retirement age to wait before claiming their payouts. A retiree's monthly benefit can grow by as much as 8% for every year a worker holds off on the money from age 62 to 70, while so-called early filers can see a permanent reduction of 25% to 30%.
In 2025, early filers who will not hit their full retirement age can earn up to $23,400, or $1,950 per month. That represents an increase from $1,860 per month in 2024, with $1 in benefits withheld for every $2 above $22,320 in total yearly income.
For those who will reach full retirement age this year, Social Security can withhold $1 in benefits for every $3 above $62,160, or $5,180 per month. In 2024, those figures were $59,520 over the year and $4,960 monthly.
Changes for workers with disabilities
Non-blind workers with disabilities will get an increased income threshold in 2025. They can earn $1,620 per month without the Social Security Administration stopping their disability payments, a $70 jump from $1,550 last year.
Blind workers will receive an even greater increase, to $2,700, or $110 per month, before they stop receiving Social Security benefits.
Stricter conditions to qualify
As many of the monthly payments relating to Social Security have increased for 2025, so have the guidelines to qualify for the program.
Americans typically earn their benefits through working, with 40 lifetime work credits needed to start earning the retiree payments. Workers can earn up to four credits each year.
In 2024, each credit was worth $1,730 in earned income, meaning it took $6,920 to max out credits for the year. This year, those numbers have risen to $1,810 per credit and $7,240 for all four.
