How much income you can make while on Social Security depends on which benefit you receive and how old you are. In 2026, if you claim retirement benefits before your full retirement age, you can earn up to $24,480 before Social Security starts withholding part of your check.1Social Security Administration. 2026 Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) Fact Sheet Once you reach full retirement age, there is no earnings limit at all. Disability Insurance and Supplemental Security Income use entirely different rules, and even for retirees, working can pull more of your benefit into taxable income and raise your Medicare premiums.
If You Collect Retirement Benefits
Before Full Retirement Age
Claim retirement early and keep working, and Social Security applies the Retirement Earnings Test. In 2026, you can earn $24,480 for the year with no effect on your benefits. For every $2 you earn above that, the agency withholds $1 from your monthly check.1Social Security Administration. 2026 Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) Fact Sheet Only wages and net self-employment income count. Investment returns, pensions, and other passive income do not.
The Year You Reach Full Retirement Age
A more generous limit applies during the calendar year you actually hit full retirement age. For 2026, you can earn $65,160 in the months before your birthday month, and Social Security withholds only $1 for every $3 above that amount.1Social Security Administration. 2026 Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) Fact Sheet Anything you earn in or after the month you reach full retirement age is ignored. Full retirement age is 66 for people born from 1943 through 1954 and rises to 67 for anyone born in 1960 or later.2Social Security Administration. Retirement Benefits
After Full Retirement Age
Starting the month you reach full retirement age, the earnings test is gone. Earn any amount, collect your full benefit.3Social Security Administration. Receiving Benefits While Working
Withheld Benefits Come Back
Money withheld under the earnings test is not lost. Once you reach full retirement age, Social Security recalculates your monthly benefit to credit every month it reduced or withheld your check, producing a higher payment going forward.3Social Security Administration. Receiving Benefits While Working The agency also reviews your earnings record each year, and if your recent wages are among your highest, your benefit may rise further.4Social Security Administration. Program Explainer – Retirement Earnings Test
If You Collect Social Security Disability Insurance
The Substantial Gainful Activity Limit
SSDI uses a different standard called substantial gainful activity. It works less like a sliding cap and more like an on-off switch: if your monthly earnings consistently exceed the limit, the agency may decide you are no longer disabled and end your benefits. In 2026, the monthly limit is $1,690 for most recipients and $2,830 for recipients who are legally blind.5Social Security Administration. Substantial Gainful Activity
Trial Work Period
Before that switch flips, you get a chance to test working. During the Trial Work Period, you can earn any amount and still receive your full benefit. A month counts as a trial month only if you earn at least $1,210 in 2026.6Social Security Administration. Trial Work Period You get nine trial months within any rolling 60-month window, and they do not need to be consecutive. The substantial gainful activity limit is suspended entirely during those nine months.
Extended Period of Eligibility
After you use all nine trial months, you enter a 36-month extended period of eligibility. In that window, Social Security pays your full benefit for any month your earnings fall below the substantial gainful activity limit. Earn above it and payments are suspended, but your underlying disability status stays on file. If your condition worsens and you stop working within those 36 months, payments can restart without a new application.
Deductions That Lower Your Countable Earnings
Disability recipients can subtract certain out-of-pocket costs from gross earnings before Social Security compares them to the substantial gainful activity limit. These impairment-related work expenses cover items you need because of your disability in order to work, including attendant care, medical devices and prosthetics (wheelchairs, artificial limbs, pacemakers), specialized work equipment such as one-hand keyboards or telecommunication devices for the deaf, prescription drugs and physical therapy needed to keep working, and transportation modifications like structural changes to a vehicle.7Social Security Administration. Code of Federal Regulations 404-1576 – Impairment-Related Work Expenses If your gross wages are slightly above the substantial gainful activity limit, subtracting qualifying expenses can bring you back under and preserve your benefits.
If You Collect Supplemental Security Income
How SSI Adjusts Your Payment
SSI is needs-based, so your monthly payment shrinks as your income rises. The formula is built so working always leaves you better off financially than not working. In 2026, the maximum federal SSI payment is $994 per month for an individual and $1,491 for an eligible couple.8Social Security Administration. SSI Federal Payment Amounts for 2026 Many states add a supplement.
Social Security applies a series of exclusions. It ignores the first $20 of any income in a month, then the first $65 of earned income (wages or self-employment). Only half of the remaining earnings count against your benefit.9Social Security Administration. SSI Income — 2025 Edition
An example. You earn $500 in wages one month with no other income. Subtract the $20 general exclusion and the $65 earned income exclusion, leaving $415. Divide by two: $207.50 in countable income. Your SSI check that month is $994 minus $207.50, or $786.50. Combined with your $500 paycheck, your total is $1,286.50 — well above what you would receive from SSI alone.10Social Security Administration. SSI Only Employment Supports
Student Earned Income Exclusion
If you are under 22 and regularly attending school, an additional exclusion applies. In 2026, SSI ignores up to $2,410 per month of your earnings, with an annual cap of $9,730.11Social Security Administration. Student Earned Income Exclusion for SSI This runs before the standard $65 earned income exclusion, which can significantly reduce or eliminate the effect of a part-time job on your monthly payment.
Resource Limits
SSI also caps the total value of assets you can own. In 2026, an individual can have no more than $2,000 in countable resources; a couple, no more than $3,000.1Social Security Administration. 2026 Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) Fact Sheet Countable resources include bank accounts, stocks, and cash on hand, and generally exclude your home and one vehicle. Save too much from work earnings and you can lose eligibility even if your monthly income stays within limits.
Keeping Medicaid After Your Check Stops
If your earnings eventually push your countable income above the maximum SSI payment and your cash benefit drops to zero, you may still qualify for Medicaid under Section 1619(b). To keep coverage, you must still meet the disability requirement, need Medicaid to continue working, and have earnings low enough that they cannot replace the combined value of your SSI and Medicaid benefits.12Social Security Administration. Continued Medicaid Eligibility (Section 1619(B)) The earnings threshold varies by state.
What Counts as Earnings
Only active work income triggers the retirement earnings test or the disability substantial gainful activity limit. For employees, that means gross wages before tax withholding, the figure on your W-2. For self-employed workers, Social Security uses net earnings: gross business revenue minus allowable deductions and depreciation.13Social Security Administration. Calculate Your Net Earnings From Self-Employment Passive income does not count for retirement or disability purposes, including private pensions, bank interest, stock dividends, capital gains, annuity payouts, and rental income from property you do not actively manage.14eCFR. 20 CFR 404.429 – Earnings; Defined For SSI, unearned income does reduce your monthly payment: it gets the $20 general exclusion but not the $65 earned income exclusion or the one-half reduction, so each dollar above $20 reduces your SSI dollar for dollar.9Social Security Administration. SSI Income — 2025 Edition
Some payments tied to work you did before retiring are excluded from the earnings test even though they appear on a W-2 or 1099. Accumulated sick or vacation pay earned before retirement but paid afterward, severance, bonuses or commissions based on sales completed before you started collecting, and deferred compensation reported in one year but earned in a prior year all fall outside the limit.15Social Security Administration. Special Payments After Retirement If you receive a lump sum from a former employer after claiming benefits, tell Social Security the earnings belong to a prior period so they are not counted against your current limit.
Taxes on Your Benefits When You Work
Earning income while collecting Social Security can pull part of your benefits into federal income tax. The IRS uses “combined income” — your adjusted gross income, plus any tax-exempt interest, plus half of your Social Security benefits — to decide how much is taxable.16Internal Revenue Service. Publication 915 (2025), Social Security and Equivalent Railroad Retirement Benefits
- Single filers with combined income between $25,000 and $34,000: up to 50 percent of your benefits may be taxable.
- Single filers with combined income above $34,000: up to 85 percent may be taxable.
- Married couples filing jointly between $32,000 and $44,000: up to 50 percent may be taxable.
- Married couples filing jointly above $44,000: up to 85 percent may be taxable.
These thresholds are set by federal statute and are not adjusted for inflation, so more beneficiaries cross them each year as wages and cost-of-living adjustments rise.17Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 86 – Social Security and Tier 1 Railroad Retirement Benefits If you are married filing separately and lived with your spouse at any point during the year, up to 85 percent of your benefits are taxable regardless of income.
For tax years 2025 through 2028, the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act adds a temporary deduction for filers 65 and older: an extra $6,000 on top of the standard deduction, or $12,000 for a married couple where both spouses are 65 or older. It phases out above $75,000 in modified adjusted gross income for single filers and $150,000 for joint filers, and is available whether you itemize or take the standard deduction.18Internal Revenue Service. One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act – Tax Deductions for Working Americans and Seniors
Medicare Premiums When Your Income Rises
Higher earners pay more for Medicare Part B and Part D through an Income-Related Monthly Adjustment Amount, or IRMAA. The surcharge is based on your modified adjusted gross income from the tax return filed two years earlier, so your 2024 income sets your 2026 premiums.
The standard Part B premium in 2026 is $202.90 per month. Surcharges begin above $109,000 for individuals or $218,000 for joint filers and rise in tiers:19Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. 2026 Medicare Parts A and B Premiums and Deductibles
- $109,001–$137,000 individual ($218,001–$274,000 joint): $81.20 surcharge, total $284.10.
- $137,001–$171,000 individual ($274,001–$342,000 joint): $202.90 surcharge, total $405.80.
- $171,001–$205,000 individual ($342,001–$410,000 joint): $324.60 surcharge, total $527.50.
- $205,001–$499,999 individual ($410,001–$749,999 joint): $446.30 surcharge, total $649.20.
- $500,000 or more individual ($750,000 or more joint): $487.00 surcharge, total $689.90.
Part D prescription drug plans carry a separate IRMAA surcharge at the same income brackets, ranging from $14.50 to $91.00 per month on top of your plan premium.19Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. 2026 Medicare Parts A and B Premiums and Deductibles Because the surcharge lags by two years, a big earnings year or a one-time event like selling a business can raise your premiums well after the income arrives.
Reporting Your Earnings and Avoiding Overpayments
Keeping Social Security informed helps you avoid a surprise debt. You can report wages or a new job through the “my Social Security” online portal, by calling 1-800-772-1213, or in person at a local field office. Pay stubs or employer contact information make verification easier.
SSI recipients must report any change in income within 10 days after the end of the month it happened.20Social Security Administration. Code of Federal Regulations 416-714 – When Reports Are Due Late reporting can bring a penalty. Retirement and disability recipients should report as soon as they know their earnings will exceed the program’s limits.
When Social Security pays more than you were entitled to, usually because earnings ran higher than expected, the agency sends an overpayment notice and asks for the money back. If you do not repay within 30 days, it automatically withholds 50 percent of your monthly retirement or disability benefit, or 10 percent of your SSI payment, until the debt clears.21Social Security Administration. Resolve an Overpayment You can request a lower withholding rate or, if the overpayment was not your fault and you cannot afford repayment, ask for a waiver. Overpayments of $2,000 or less can be handled by phone or at a field office rather than by paper form.22Social Security Administration. Form SSA-632-BK – Request for Waiver of Overpayment Recovery Reporting income promptly and keeping your pay stubs is the simplest way to prevent the problem in the first place.