The average SSDI payment in 2019

In 2019, the average Social Security Disability Insurance payment was $1,234 per month. This was the amount most people received, though individual payments varied based on your work history and earnings record.

The actual amount you would have received depended on how much you had earned during your working years before becoming unable to work. Social Security calculates your payment using your highest 35 years of earnings, adjusted for inflation. Someone who worked at higher wages would have received a higher monthly payment than someone whose earnings were lower.

In 2019, the highest possible SSDI payment was $3,011 per month for someone who had earned at the maximum taxable wage level throughout their career. The lowest payments went to people with very limited work histories or very low past earnings.

Key Takeaways

  • The average SSDI payment in 2019 was $1,234 per month, but your actual payment depended on your individual earnings record.
  • Your payment amount was based on your highest 35 years of earnings before you became unable to work.
  • The maximum SSDI payment in 2019 was $3,011 per month for people who had earned at the highest wage levels.
  • SSDI payments increased slightly each year based on a cost-of-living adjustment, which in 2019 was 2.8 percent.

How Social Security calculated your 2019 payment

Social Security looked at your earnings record from the year you turned 22 through the year you became unable to work. They took your highest 35 years of earnings and adjusted them for inflation to account for wage changes over time. This adjusted total was then divided by 420 months (35 years) to find your average monthly earnings.

That average was then run through a formula called a bend point formula, which replaced a higher percentage of lower earnings and a lower percentage of higher earnings. This meant that someone who had earned less during their career received a larger portion of their past earnings as a monthly payment, while someone who had earned more received a smaller percentage.

The bend points themselves changed each year based on national wage trends. In 2019, the bend points were $926 and $5,583. These numbers determined where the formula shifted from one replacement percentage to the next.

The 2019 cost-of-living adjustment

In October 2018, Social Security announced that SSDI payments would increase by 2.8 percent starting in January 2019. This cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA, happened automatically each year to help payments keep pace with inflation.

The COLA was based on the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers, measured from the third quarter of one year to the third quarter of the next. In 2019, inflation had been higher than in some previous years, which is why the adjustment was larger than it had been in 2018 (when it was 2.0 percent).

If you were already receiving SSDI in January 2019, your payment increased automatically. You did not have to do anything to receive the higher amount.

Why 2019 payments differed from other years

SSDI payments change every year because of the cost-of-living adjustment. The 2019 COLA of 2.8 percent was higher than 2018's adjustment but lower than some years in the past. In 2008, for example, there was no COLA at all because inflation was negative. In 2016 and 2017, the COLA was only 0.3 percent.

Your individual payment could also have changed in 2019 if you had returned to work and then stopped, or if you had a significant life event like turning 62 or 70. Family members receiving benefits on your record could also have affected the total amount your household received, though it would not have changed your personal payment amount.

Comparing 2019 to nearby years

The average SSDI payment in 2018 was $1,197 per month, which means the 2019 average of $1,234 represented the 2.8 percent increase. In 2020, the average rose to $1,312 per month due to another COLA adjustment of 1.6 percent.

If you had been receiving SSDI continuously from 2018 through 2020, you would have seen your payment increase in both January 2019 and January 2020. The total increase from your 2018 payment to your 2020 payment would have been approximately 4.6 percent when both adjustments were combined.

What your 2019 payment meant for your household budget

For someone receiving the average payment of $1,234 per month in 2019, that income had to cover basic living expenses. In many parts of the country, this amount was below the federal poverty line, which in 2019 was $1,062 per month for an individual.

Many people receiving SSDI also received Supplemental Security Income, or SSI, which provided additional money to bring their total income up to a minimum level. Others had family members receiving benefits on their record, which increased the household total. Some worked part-time within the rules that Social Security allowed, which could have increased their income without losing their SSDI payment.

Frequently Asked Questions

Did everyone get the same SSDI payment in 2019?

No. The $1,234 average was the middle point, but payments ranged from very small amounts for people with minimal work histories to the maximum of $3,011 per month. Your payment depended entirely on how much you had earned during your working years.

What if I started SSDI in the middle of 2019?

Your first payment would have been calculated based on your earnings record, and it would have included the 2.8 percent COLA that was in effect for all of 2019. You would not have received a separate adjustment later that year.

Could my 2019 payment have been higher than the maximum?

No. The maximum SSDI payment in 2019 was $3,011 per month, regardless of how much you had earned. If your calculated payment exceeded that amount, Social Security would have paid you the maximum instead.

Did family members on my record receive the same amount I did?

No. Spouses and children on your record received their own separate payments based on their relationship to you and their age. The total amount paid to your entire family could not exceed a family maximum, which was typically 150 to 180 percent of your own payment.

How did the 2019 payment compare to what I could have earned working?

For most people, the SSDI payment was significantly less than their previous earnings. The payment was designed to replace a portion of lost income, not to match what you had been earning before you became unable to work.