Social Security benefits may produce less income than you think.
A look at the average Social Security benefits at every age shows that most retirees can’t live on their benefits alone.
You’ll need to save in a retirement plan to supplement your benefits.
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When it comes to Social Security benefits, you may be surprised to find that your retirement checks don’t provide quite as much income as you hoped for. Unfortunately, Social Security is really only meant to replace about 40% of pre-retirement income. This leaves workers to replace the other 40% to 50% or so that they’ll likely need for a comfortable retirement.
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Far too many people end up relying on Social Security for more income than they should because they don’t realize Social Security was supposed to be just one part of a three-legged stool supporting them during their golden years. It’s supposed to be complemented by a pension and savings. Unfortunately, almost no one in the private sector has a pension anymore, and many people have savings that falls short.
If you’re currently working, waking up to the reality of what Social Security can do is critical. Understanding the truth allows you to save enough to build the secure future you deserve, instead of struggling to live on benefits alone. Taking a look at the average Social Security benefits by age can help you do that, as you’ll get a clear picture of how much income Social Security provides.
The Social Security Administration publishes periodic reports showing the benefits it pays to workers. The table below shows the average benefit according to the SSA as of December 2025. This is the average retirement benefit, not the overall average, as Social Security also pays other benefits, including Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits.
Age
Average Benefit
Age
Average Benefit
62
$1,424.40
81
$2,099.82
63
$1,435.81
82
$2,098.76
64
$1,478.00
83
$2,102.12
65
$1,607.27
84
$2,101.26
66
$1,807.28
85
$2,077.11
67
$2,016.48
86
$2,036.62
68
$2,052.64
87
$2,015.54
69
$2,096.95
88
$1,983.29
70
$2,274.68
89
$1,925.36
71
$2,247.76
90
$1,898.34
72
$2,205.21
91
$1,894.74
73
$2,207.96
92
$1,899.20
74
$2,178.87
93
$1,920.13
75
$2,144.88
94
$1,907.78
76
$2,157.21
95
$1,890.03
77
$2,170.80
96
$1,889.08
78
$2,140.16
97
$1,891.21
79
$2,155.77
98
$1,887.57
80
$2,106.29
99+
$1,845.00
The average benefit increases as you get older since late claimers generally get larger checks than early claimers. Still, at no point does the average benefit provide more than around $26,000 in income. That is not nearly enough to live comfortably on, especially as a senior who may have expensive medical care to pay for.
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Of course, these are average benefits, and there’s absolutely a possibility that your benefit will beat the average. In fact, each worker’s benefits are based on their own personal work history, so your monthly checks from the Social Security Administration could be much higher if you earned a big paycheck.
However, even if your benefit does beat the average– in fact, even if you collect the maximum monthly benefit of $5,181 in 2026 — you’re most likely not going to be able to live comfortably on Social Security alone due to the inherent limitations in the program.
Your benefit is based on your average earnings over the highest 35 earning years of your career, so the more money you make, the higher your benefit will be. But the more money you make, the more you tend to spend.
Someone earning the maximum benefit of $5,181 would need to have earned at least the inflation-adjusted equivalent of $184,500 over most of their career, as earning the max benefit requires earning the highest amount of income subject to Social Security tax (there’s a cap on how much income is taxed, and how much is used to calculate benefits, so the program doesn’t end up paying millionaires hundreds of thousands of dollars a month).
If you were earning $184,500 or more, seeing your income drop to $62,172 per year would mean making major lifestyle changes. Most people don’t want that, so most people must make sure they have the savings they need to supplement their benefits. That’s true regardless of whether their checks are above average, below average, or pretty close to average.
Working with a financial advisor can help you build the nest egg you need, so if you aren’t sure how much to save or how to invest your retirement funds, reach out to a professional today to get started.
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