To find out how many work credits you have for Social Security, log into your free my Social Security account at ssa.gov. Your credit total and full year-by-year earnings history appear as soon as you sign in. If you’d rather not use the website, you can request a paper statement by mail using Form SSA-7004, call the SSA at 1-800-772-1213, or visit a local office in person.1Social Security Administration. my Social Security
In 2026, you earn one credit for every $1,890 in covered earnings, up to a maximum of four credits per year. That means $7,560 in covered wages or self-employment income gets you the full four credits for the year.2Social Security Administration. Social Security Credits The threshold typically rises a little each year to track average wages. If you see “quarters of coverage” on older SSA paperwork, that’s the same thing as a credit; the SSA still uses it as the legal term.3Social Security Administration. Quarter of Coverage
Check Your Credits Online
The my Social Security account is the fastest option and the one the SSA points people toward. Creating the account takes a few minutes and involves verifying your identity. Once you’re in, you’ll see your credit total, a year-by-year table of earnings taxed for Social Security and Medicare, and estimates of what your future benefits would be at various claiming ages.4Social Security Administration. Your Social Security Statement
Read the earnings table carefully against your own records. Errors happen more often than people expect, especially in years when you changed jobs, worked for more than one employer, or had self-employment income. A missing year on your record is a missing chunk of future benefit, and it’s much easier to fix while your W-2s and tax returns are still in reach.
Other Ways to Get Your Statement
Paper Statement by Mail
If you don’t want to set up an online account, or if identity verification gives you trouble, fill out Form SSA-7004 (Request for Social Security Statement) and mail it to the address printed on the form. Delivery usually takes four to six weeks.5Social Security Administration. Request for a Social Security Statement (SSA-7004) The form is on the SSA’s website and available at any local office.
Automatic Mailings at 60 and Older
If you’re 60 or older and you don’t have a my Social Security account, the SSA currently mails you a paper statement about three months before your birthday each year.6Social Security Administration. Get Your Social Security Statement An online account still gives you access on demand rather than once a year.
By Phone or In Person
The SSA’s main line is 1-800-772-1213, open 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. local time, Monday through Friday. Wait times tend to be shorter early in the morning, later in the week, and later in the month. TTY users can call 1-800-325-0778.7Social Security Administration. Contact Social Security By Phone For in-person help, look up your local Social Security office and call ahead to confirm whether you need an appointment and what identification to bring.
How Many Credits You Need
The count on your statement matters because it tells you how close you are to qualifying for a specific benefit. No one ever needs more than 40 credits for any Social Security benefit.8Social Security Administration. Survivors Benefits
- Retirement: 40 credits, roughly 10 years of covered work. There’s no partial benefit; 39 credits pays nothing.9Social Security Administration. How You Earn Credits
- Premium-free Medicare Part A: 40 credits. You can still enroll at 65 without them, but you’ll pay a monthly premium.2Social Security Administration. Social Security Credits
- Disability: Fewer credits than retirement, on a sliding scale that depends on your age when the disability began and how recently you worked. Younger workers can qualify with as few as six credits.2Social Security Administration. Social Security Credits
- Survivors benefits: Based on the deceased worker’s credits, with fewer required the younger the worker was at death. A special rule can pay benefits to children and a caregiving spouse when the worker had at least six credits in the three years before death.8Social Security Administration. Survivors Benefits
If You’re Self-Employed
Self-employment counts the same way employment does, but the reporting path is different. You report net self-employment earnings on Schedule SE with your federal tax return, and the SSA uses that filing to calculate your credits.10Internal Revenue Service. About Schedule SE (Form 1040), Self-Employment Tax The 2026 thresholds are identical: $1,890 per credit, $7,560 for four.
Two situations quietly cost self-employed workers credits. One is a year where net earnings fell below the threshold. The other is a year where Schedule SE simply wasn’t filed. Both show up as zero earnings on your Social Security record, and neither corrects itself.
Fixing Errors in Your Record
If your statement is missing wages, shows the wrong employer, or reports incorrect amounts, submit Form SSA-7008 (Request for Correction of Earnings Record) with supporting documents.11Social Security Administration. Request For Correction of Earnings Record W-2s, tax returns, and pay stubs for the years in question are the strongest evidence. The SSA can match your documents against employer filings and correct the record when they don’t line up.12eCFR. 20 CFR 404.822 – Correction of the Record of Your Earnings After the Time Limit Ends
There’s a deadline. The general time limit to correct an earnings record is three years, three months, and 15 days after the end of the tax year in question.13Social Security Administration. Time Limit for Correcting Earnings Records After that window, corrections are still possible in limited situations, such as when the correction matches a tax return already on file, when wages were credited to the wrong person, or when a clerical error is obvious from the SSA’s own records. For self-employment income reported after the deadline, though, the SSA can only reduce or remove the amount, never increase it.14eCFR. Correcting the Earnings Record
Checking your statement once a year is the cheap version of this problem. Reconstructing a decade-old missing year after the deadline has passed is the expensive one.