The 2.5% cost-of-living adjustment for 2025 is set to start in January, which means that millions of people will finally get their higher Social Security checks next year.
The Social Security Administration says that with this raise, the biggest monthly Social Security check for a worker who retires at full retirement age will go up from $3,822 to $4,018.
The agency does say, though, that retirement payments will go up by an average of $50 per month, while the highest benefits will go up by $196 per month.
The average monthly income for retired workers is $1,927 this year. However, by 2025, the Social Security Administration says it will go up by $49 to $1,976 a month.
Who is eligible to receive the maximum Social Security payment in the US?
Paul Van de Water, a senior fellow at the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities, says that people who have made the most money while working usually get the most from Social Security.
Based on the highest 35 years of earnings, Social Security benefits are calculated. This means that workers must regularly earn enough to get the full retirement benefit.
People who work pay into Social Security through payroll taxes, but only up to a certain amount. This amount is called the “taxable maximum.”
From 2024 to 2025, income up to $168,600 are taxed at a rate of 6.2% for workers and 12.4% for self-employed workers. The amount will go up to $176,100 in 2025. Interestingly, that limit only refers to wages that need to be taxed by the federal government.
Jim Blair, vice president of Premier Social Security Consulting and a former Social Security administrator, says that a rich person’s other sources of income, like investments that do not cause them to pay payroll taxes, will not change the amount of their Social Security payments.
Blair says that some people get more than $4,000 a month in Social Security benefits, and most of the time, they wait until they are 70 years old to file for benefits.
Beneficiaries who take their retirement benefits at the earliest age possible, which is 62, will always get less money. When people hit their full retirement age, which is different for each person based on their birth date, they are entitled to all of their benefits.
Beneficiaries can also wait to start getting their benefits until they turn 70 years old, which will increase them by 8% each year. People who wait until they are between 62 and 70 years old may see their benefits go up by 77%.
What should beneficiaries consider about their financial circumstances?
Based on what Jim Blair said, it might not always make sense to wait until the highest possible age to make a claim because everyone’s situation is different.
He also said that people who might be beneficiaries should think about how their choice about how to handle their claim will affect their spouse and any children or other responsibilities.

He also said that people who might get benefits will need to make an online My Social Security account in order to look over their benefit records. This will show the agency’s past earnings as well as predictions for its future earnings.
Blair says that people should double-check their salary information to make sure it is correct, since it is used to figure out Social Security payments. So long as it is not, they should call the Social Security Administration and get it fixed.
How much will beneficiaries earn in maximum Social Security payments in 2025?
The federal government will start giving the new, higher maximum Social Security payments to all retirees, survivors, disabled people, and SSI recipients in January 2025, based on the official 2.5% COLA raise. Here’s how it works:
Maximum Social Security payments | Social Security payments | 2.5% COLA increase | Extra income |
Retirement benefits | $4,873 | $4,995 | $122 |
Survivor benefits | $3,653 | $3,744 | $91 |
Disability benefits | $3,822 | $3,918 | $96 |
SSI benefits | $1,415 | $1,450 | $35 |
Also see:-Two Major New Social Security Changes Announced for 2025 – Now Official
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