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By Aliss Higham
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Millions of retirees can expect their Social Security payments today, which may be worth up to $4,873.
The Social Security Administration is expected to send out checks on May 22 to retirement claimants born between the 21st and 31st of any month.
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Recipients born on dates earlier in the month should have already received their checks. Those receiving regular retirement benefits with no added extras, such as Supplemental Security Income, usually receive their benefits on a Wednesday. Those born between the first and 10th of any month should have been paid on May 8, and those with birthdays falling between the 11th and 20th should have been paid on May 15.
Those who get Social Security but live abroad or have claimed since before 1997 should have been paid on May 1. Those who claim SSI—which is for elderly, blind, and disabled individuals with minimal income and assets—should also have received their payments at the beginning of the month.
In May, SSI beneficiaries can expect to be paid twice because the usual payment date—June 1—falls on a weekend, so the payment is scheduled to arrive in bank accounts on May 31.
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The SSA recommends waiting three working days following a scheduled payment date before contacting the agency about missing checks.
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Unlike some other government benefits, Social Security payments go directly into a recipient's bank account. However, not everyone receives the same amount. Social Security checks are calculated based on the age you started claiming and how much you earned during your 35 highest-paid working years. The average amount paid in January was $1,907, but the maximum available to those who qualify is $4,873.
In 2024, the $4,873 maximum is available only to those who retired at age 70. If you stop working and begin claiming at 62—the earliest age possible—your maximum benefit would be $2,710, the SSA said.
Regardless of how much you receive, the benefit amount increases each year because of the cost of living adjustment, to account for inflation and maintain purchasing power.
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How much of a raise retirees can expect to receive next year will not be known until October. However, the Senior Citizens League has projected a 1.75 percent increase in Social Security benefits for the year 2025, and the Congressional Budget Office has forecast an increase of 2.5 percent based on current inflation rates.
The calculation for the annual boost is based on the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers, also known as CPI-W. In 2023, benefits rose by 8.7 percent—the largest single jump in the SSA's history—because of high inflation as the U.S. recovered from the lingering coronavirus pandemic. In 2024, the annual increase was 3.2 percent.
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