Fast Facts & Figures About Social Security, 2021

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.

General Information

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.

Cost-of-living adjustment, 2021: 1.30%

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

OASDI administrative expenses: Costs were 0.6% of contributions in calendar year 2020

Income of the Aged Population

We are suspending publication of the five charts that constitute the Income of the Aged Population section for the 2021 edition of Fast Facts and Figures as we continue to evaluate the adequacy of the charts' data source, the Annual Social and Economic Supplement (also known as the March Supplement) of the Current Population Survey ( CPS ). Findings from our initial evaluation are available in Dushi, Irena, and Brad Trenkamp. 2021. “Improving the Measurement of Retirement Income of the Aged Population.” ORES Working Paper No. 116. Washington, DC : SSA , Office of Retirement and Disability Policy, Office of Research, Evaluation, and Statistics.

OASDI Program

Earnings in Covered Employment, 1937–2020

People contribute to Social Security through payroll taxes or self-employment taxes, as required by the Federal Insurance Contributions Act ( FICA ) and the Self-Employment Contributions Act ( SECA ). The maximum taxable amount is updated annually on the basis of increases in the average wage. Of the 175 million workers with earnings in Social Security–covered employment in 2020, about 6% had earnings that equaled or exceeded the maximum amount subject to taxes, compared with 3% when the program began and a peak of 36% in 1965. About 83% of earnings in covered employment were taxable in 2020, compared with 92% in 1937.

Taxable earnings as a percentage of earnings in covered employment and percentage of workers with maximum taxable earnings, selected years

Insured Status, 1970–2020

The percentage of persons aged 20 or older who are insured for benefits has changed very little in recent years. To be fully insured, a worker must have at least one work credit (quarter of coverage) for each year elapsed after age 21 (but no earlier than 1950) and before the year in which he or she attains age 62, becomes disabled, or dies. The maximum number of work credits needed to be fully insured is 40. An individual is said to be permanently insured if he or she has earned 40 work credits. To be insured for disability, the worker must be fully insured and have at least 20 work credits during the last 40 calendar quarters. (Requirements for disability-insured status are somewhat different for persons younger than age 31.) Disability benefits are available up to FRA .

Insured Status, by Sex, 1970 and 2020

Although men historically were more likely than women to be insured, the gender gap is shrinking. The proportion of men who are insured declined slightly from 1970 to 2020, with 91% fully insured and 79% insured for disability in 2020. By contrast, the proportion of women who are insured increased dramatically—from 63% to 87% fully insured and from 41% to 75% insured for disability.

Percentage of population in the Social Security area fully insured and insured for disability benefits, by sex

NOTES: The population in the Social Security area includes residents of the 50 states and the District of Columbia adjusted for net census undercount; civilian residents of American Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and U.S. Virgin Islands; federal civilian employees and persons in the U.S. armed forces abroad and their dependents; noncitizens living abroad who are insured for Social Security benefits; and all other U.S. citizens abroad.

New Benefit Awards, 2020

Benefits were awarded to about 5.8 million persons; of those, 58% were retired workers and 11% were disabled workers. The remaining 31% were survivors or the spouses and children of retired or disabled workers. These awards represent not only new entrants to the benefit rolls but also persons already on the rolls who become entitled to a different benefit, particularly conversions of disabled-worker benefits to retired-worker benefits at FRA .