2021 Social Security Statistics: Fast Facts & Figures
DID YOU KNOW THAT…
69.8 million people received benefits from programs administered by the Social Security Administration (SSA) in 2020.
5.8 million people were newly awarded Social Security benefits in 2020.
55% of adult Social Security beneficiaries in 2020 were women.
55.0 was the average age of disabled-worker beneficiaries in 2020.
86% of Supplemental Security Income (SSI) recipients received payments because of disability or blindness in 2020.
Fast Facts & Figures answers the most frequently asked questions about the programs administered by the Social Security Administration (SSA). It highlights basic program data for the Social Security (retirement, survivors, and disability) and Supplemental Security Income programs. Most of the data come from the Annual Statistical Supplement to the Social Security Bulletin, which provides detailed data on the programs administered by SSA. Data on trust fund operations are from the 2021 Trustees Report. The tables and charts illustrate the range of program beneficiaries, from the country’s oldest to its youngest citizens. In all, about 69.8 million people receive some type of benefit or assistance.
Tax rates, 2021 (in percent) Program Employee Employer Self-employed Total 7.65 7.65 15.30 OASI 5.30 5.30 10.60 DI 0.90 0.90 1.80 HI a 1.45 1.45 a 2.90 a. Earned income exceeding $200,000 for individual filers and $250,000 for married couples filing jointly is subject to an additional HI tax of 0.90 percent.
Abbreviations
AIME average indexed monthly earnings
DI Disability Insurance
FICA Federal Insurance Contributions Act
FRA full retirement age
HI Hospital Insurance
OASDI Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance
OASI Old-Age and Survivors Insurance
PIA primary insurance amount
SECA Self-Employment Contributions Act
SSA Social Security Administration
SSI Supplemental Security Income
General Information
OASDI & HI Contributions
Tax rates
Taxes payable
Maximum taxable earnings
Work credits
General Information
Tax rates, 2021 (in percent)
Program
Employee
Employer
Self-employed
Total
7.65
7.65
15.30
OASI
5.30
5.30
10.60
DI
0.90
0.90
1.80
HI
a 1.45
1.45
a 2.90
a. Earned income exceeding $200,000 for individual filers and $250,000 for married couples filing jointly is subject to an additional HI tax of 0.90 percent.
Taxes payable, 2021 (in dollars)
Type of earner
OASI
DI
HI
Average
3,130
532
856
Maximum
7,568
1,285
No limit
Self-employed maximum
15,137
2,570
No limit
Maximum earnings subject to Social Security taxes, 2021 (in dollars)
Program
Amount
OASDI
142,800
HI
No limit
Earnings required for work credits, 2021: $1,470 for one work credit (one quarter of coverage)
NOTE: A worker may earn a maximum of four credits a year. Doing so in 2021, therefore, requires $5,880 in earnings.
OASDI Benefits
Benefit payments
Cost-of-living adjustment
Full retirement age
Maximum benefit
Benefit formula bend points
Average wage index
Earnings test
Benefit payments as a percentage of gross domestic product, 2019–2020
Calendar year
Total
OASI
DI
2019
4.89
4.21
0.68
2020
5.23
4.55
0.69
NOTE: Figures are subject to change.
Cost-of-living adjustment, 2021: 1.30%
Age for full retirement benefit for retired workers
Year of birth
Full retirement age (FRA)
1937 and earlier
65
1938
65 and 2 months
1939
65 and 4 months
1940
65 and 6 months
1941
65 and 8 months
1942
65 and 10 months
1943–1954
66
1955
66 and 2 months
1956
66 and 4 months
1957
66 and 6 months
1958
66 and 8 months
1959
66 and 10 months
1960 and later
67
Maximum monthly Social Security benefit: $3,148 for workers retiring at FRA in 2021
NOTE: Higher benefits are possible for those who work or delay benefit receipt after reaching FRA.
Benefit formula bend points (for workers with first eligibility in 2021):
Primary insurance amount (PIA) equals 90% of the first $996 of average indexed monthly earnings (AIME), plus 32% of AIME over $996 through $6,002, plus 15% of AIME over $6,002
Average wage index, 2019–2021
Year
Dollars
Increase from previous year (in percent)
2019
54,099.99
3.7
2020 (estimated)
55,576.94
2.7
2021 (estimated)
59,064.67
6.3
Exempt amounts under the retirement earnings test, 2021 (in dollars)
Age of retired person in 2021
Annually
Monthly
Under FRA ($1 for $2 withholding rate)
18,960
1,580
FRA ($1 for $3 withholding rate) a
50,520
4,210
Above FRA
No limit
No limit
NOTE: Retired-worker beneficiaries younger than FRA have some of their benefit withheld if they have earnings above the exempt amounts.
a. The test applies only to earnings made in months prior to the month of attainment of FRA.
SSI & DI Rates and Limits
Rates and limits
Disability program thresholds
SSI payment rates and resource limits, January 2021 (in dollars)
Program aspect
Individual
Couple
Federal benefit rate
794
1,191
Resource limit
2,000
3,000
Monthly earnings levels affecting disability program eligibility, 2021 (in dollars)
Determinant
Monthly amount
Substantial gainful activity
For nonblind persons
1,310
For blind persons
2,190
Trial work period
940
Trust Funds
Trust fund operations, 2020–2021 (in billions of dollars)
Calendar year and trust fund
Income
Outgo
Fund at end of year
2020 (actual)
Total
1,118.1
1,107.2
2,908.3
OASI
968.3
961.0
2,811.7
DI
149.7
146.3
96.6
2021 (estimated)
Total
1,073.8
1,151.0
2,831.0
OASI
930.1
1,005.4
2,736.4
DI
143.7
145.7
94.5
NOTE: Totals do not necessarily equal the sum of rounded components.
Poverty Thresholds and Administrative Data
Poverty thresholds
Expenses
Workload
Poverty thresholds, 2020 (in dollars)
Family unit
Amount
Aged individual
12,413
Family of two, aged head
15,644
Family of four
26,246
SOURCE: U.S. Census Bureau as of January 2021 (preliminary estimates).
OASDI administrative expenses: Costs were 0.6% of contributions in calendar year 2020
