Social Security disability
How much SSDI and SSI pay
Your SSDI amount depends on your work. SSI has a top amount set by law. Here are the 2026 numbers.
How much you can get
- Your SSDI amount is based on your average earnings over your working life. SSA uses a formula on your average indexed monthly earnings to get your 'primary insurance amount.'
- You can see an estimate of your disability benefit in your my Social Security account.
- Your spouse and children may also get benefits. For SSDI, the family total is limited to the smaller of 85% of your average indexed monthly earnings (but not less than your benefit) or 150% of your benefit.
- SSDI has a 5-month waiting period. Payments start with the sixth full month of disability. The waiting period can start no earlier than 17 months before you apply.
- There is no waiting period if you had SSDI within the last 5 years, or if you have ALS and were approved on or after July 23, 2020.
- SSDI can pay for up to 12 months before the month you apply, if you were disabled and past the waiting period then.
- SSI starts no earlier than the month after you apply. It does not pay for months before you applied.
- If your SSI back pay is 3 times the monthly maximum or more, SSA must pay it in up to 3 payments, 6 months apart. Exceptions apply if you are expected to die within 12 months, or to pay for things like food, housing, medical needs, or buying a home.
- Benefits go up each year with the cost of living. The increase was 2.8% for December 2025 and is 3.6% for December 2026 (paid starting January 2027).
The numbers
| Figure | Amount | In effect | Next |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work limit (SGA) | $1,690/mo | 2026 (January 1 - December 31, 2026) | $1,770/mo (2027) |
| Work limit if blind (SSDI) | $2,830/mo | 2026 | $2,950/mo (2027) |
| Trial work month | $1,210/mo | 2026 | $1,270/mo (2027) |
| Most SSI pays: one person | $994/mo | January - December 2026 | $1,029/mo (January 2027) |
| Most SSI pays: couple | $1,491/mo | January - December 2026 | $1,544/mo (January 2027) |
| SSI resource limit: one person | $2,000 | Since January 1, 1989 (not indexed) | – |
| SSI resource limit: couple | $3,000 | Since January 1, 1989 (not indexed) | – |
| Earnings for one work credit | $1,890 | 2026 | $1,970 (2027) |
| Cost-of-living increase | 2.8% | Benefits for December 2025 (paid January 2026); SSI payments for January 2026 | 3.6% (Benefits for December 2026 (paid January 2027); SSI payments for January 2027 (paid December 31, 2026)) |
| Most a representative can be paid from your back pay (fee cap) | $9,200 | For favorable decisions on or after November 30, 2024 | – |
| Essential person amount | $498/mo | 2026 | $516/mo (January 2027) |
| Student pay not counted (SSI), monthly | $2,410/mo | 2026 | $2,500/mo (2027) |
| Student pay not counted (SSI), yearly | $9,730/yr | 2026 | $10,080/yr (2027) |
| Most earnings taxed for Social Security | $184,500/yr | 2026 | $192,300/yr (2027) |
| Medicare Part B premium | $202.90/mo | Calendar year 2026 | – |
| Medicare Part B deductible | $283/yr | Calendar year 2026 | – |
| SSI income not counted each month | $20/mo | Fixed in law (not indexed) | – |
| SSI work pay not counted each month, then half of the rest | $65/mo | Fixed in law (not indexed) | – |
| Default overpayment withholding: SSDI | 50% | Overpayment notices sent on or after April 25, 2025 | – |
| Default overpayment withholding: SSI | 10% | Ongoing; unchanged by the 2025 Title II change | – |
| ABLE account yearly contribution limit | $20,000/yr | 2026 | – |
| ABLE balance not counted for SSI | $100,000 | Ongoing | – |
| Federal court filing fee | $405 | Current | – |
| Most SSA charges a representative for paying the fee directly (fee cap) | $123 | December 2025 - November 2026 | $128 (December 2026) |
Benefit formula dollar amounts (bend points) for workers first eligible in 2026: $1,286 / $7,749. 2027: $1,340 / $8,077.
- The blind SGA amount is for SSDI (title II). For SSI, SGA is not used for blind people.
- 3 × $994 = $2,982 for one person with no state supplement
- Older notices (before April 25, 2025) keep the 10 percent rate unless a new overpayment happens.
- The $55 administrative fee does not apply to people granted in forma pauperis (fee waiver) status.
Guides
Sources
- 20 CFR 404.403; 91 FR 67380 (Oct. 26, 2026), Cost-of-Living Increase and Other Determinations for 2027
- POMS GN 03910.040 (link to my Social Security)
- 20 CFR 404.403(d-1)
- 20 CFR 404.315(a)(4)
- 20 CFR 404.621(a)(1)
- 20 CFR 416.335
- 20 CFR 416.545
- 90 FR 49047 (Nov. 3, 2025), Cost-of-Living Increase and Other Determinations for 2026
- 20 CFR 416.1205
- 89 FR 40523 (May 10, 2024), Maximum Dollar Limit in the Fee Agreement Process; 90 FR 19241 (May 6, 2025), Maximum Dollar Limit in the Fee Agreement Process; Partial Rescission
- CMS, 90 FR 52063 (Nov. 19, 2025); Medicare.gov 'Medicare costs'
- 20 CFR 416.1124(c)(12)
- 20 CFR 416.1112(c)(5), (c)(7)
- SSA Emergency Message EM-25029 REV (effective 08/28/2025 - present)
- POMS SI 01130.740
- 28 U.S.C. 1914(a); Judicial Conference District Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule
Last checked: November 2026