The 2024 SSDI payment amounts
In 2024, the average SSDI payment is $1,550 per month. The maximum payment for a worker is $3,822 per month. These figures are set by Social Security each year based on a formula tied to wage growth in the economy, and they changed on January 1, 2024.
Your actual payment depends on your work history and earnings record, not on the national average or maximum. Social Security calculates your benefit by looking at your highest 35 years of earnings, adjusting them for inflation, and explore a formula that replaces a percentage of your past income. Someone who worked at lower wages will receive less than someone who worked at higher wages, even if both are approved for SSDI on the same day.
The payment you receive stays the same month to month unless Social Security recalculates it or you report a change in your circumstances. Each January, Social Security adjusts all payments by a cost-of-living increase (COLA). In January 2024, that increase was 3.2 percent.
Key Takeaways
- The average SSDI payment in 2024 is $1,550 per month, and the maximum is $3,822, but your payment is based on your own earnings record, not these figures.
- Social Security calculates your benefit using your highest 35 years of earnings, adjusted for inflation, then applies a formula that replaces a portion of your past income.
- Your payment amount is set when you are approved and does not change unless Social Security recalculates it or you report a change in work or income.
- Every January, Social Security increases all SSDI payments by a cost-of-living adjustment; in 2024 that increase was 3.2 percent.
How Social Security calculates your individual payment
Social Security does not look at your current need or your current income when calculating SSDI. Instead, it looks backward at your work history. The agency pulls your earnings record from the Social Security Administration database—the same record that has been tracking your wages since you started working.
Social Security takes your highest 35 years of earnings and adjusts each year's wages for inflation using a national wage index. This adjusted figure is called your Average Indexed Monthly Earnings (AIME). If you have fewer than 35 years of work history, Social Security counts the missing years as zero, which lowers your AIME and your benefit.
Once Social Security has your AIME, it applies a formula called the Primary Insurance Amount (PIA) formula. This formula replaces a higher percentage of your first dollars of income and a lower percentage of your higher income. For someone with an AIME of $2,000, the formula might replace 90 percent of the first $1,174, then 32 percent of earnings between $1,174 and $7,078, then 15 percent of anything above that. The result is your monthly SSDI payment.
You can see your own earnings record and an estimate of your SSDI payment by creating an account on ssa.gov and viewing your Social Security Statement. The statement shows your actual earnings year by year and estimates what your SSDI payment would be if you became disabled today.
Why your payment might be different from the average
The $1,550 average tells you nothing about what you will receive. If you worked in a low-wage job for most of your career, your payment will be lower than the average. If you worked in a high-wage job, your payment will be higher. If you have gaps in your work history—years when you did not earn wages—those years count as zero in your calculation, which reduces your benefit.
The maximum payment of $3,822 applies only to workers who had very high earnings throughout their careers and who wait until age 70 to claim retirement benefits. For SSDI, the maximum is the same, but you do not control when you claim—you receive SSDI as soon as you are approved. Your payment is locked in at the amount Social Security calculates based on your earnings record at the time of approval.
Self-employment income, investment income, and other non-wage income do not count toward your SSDI payment. Only wages you earned and paid Social Security taxes on count. If you spent years as a student, a caregiver, or unemployed, those years reduce your average and lower your benefit.
Cost-of-living adjustments and how they affect your 2024 payment
Every January, Social Security increases SSDI payments by a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA). This increase is meant to help your payment keep pace with inflation. The COLA is calculated by comparing the average Consumer Price Index for the third quarter of the current year to the third quarter of the previous year.
In 2024, the COLA was 3.2 percent. This means that if you received $1,500 per month in December 2023, your January 2024 payment increased to $1,548. The increase is automatic—you do not need to do anything to receive it. Social Security applies the COLA to all beneficiaries at the same time.
The COLA varies from year to year depending on inflation. In 2023, the COLA was 8.7 percent. In 2022, it was 5.9 percent. In 2021, it was 1.3 percent. You cannot predict what next year's COLA will be because it depends on inflation data that has not yet been collected.
Payments for family members on your SSDI record
If you are approved for SSDI, your spouse and unmarried children under age 19 (or up to age 19 if still in high school full-time) may also receive payments based on your earnings record. These are called family benefits. Each family member receives a percentage of your Primary Insurance Amount, not a percentage of your actual payment.
The total amount that can be paid to your entire family is called the family maximum, and it is usually between 150 and 180 percent of your Primary Insurance Amount. If your family maximum is $2,500 and your spouse and two children are all may be able to access, Social Security divides the $2,500 among the three of them. If you are also receiving SSDI, your payment comes out of the family maximum as well.
Family members' payments are reduced if they work and earn above a certain threshold. In 2024, if a family member under full retirement age earns more than $23,400 per year, Social Security reduces their payment by $1 for every $2 they earn above that amount. This is called the earnings test.
What happens to your payment if you return to work
If you return to work while receiving SSDI, your payment does not stop when ready. Social Security has a trial work period that allows you to test your ability to work without losing benefits. During the trial work period, you can earn any amount and still receive your full SSDI payment.
The trial work period lasts nine months (not necessarily consecutive). After the trial work period ends, Social Security applies the earnings test. If you earn more than $1,550 per month in 2024, Social Security will reduce or stop your payment. The exact reduction depends on how much you earn and whether you are under or over your full retirement age.
If your payment is stopped because of work earnings, you enter an extended period of may be able to access that lasts 36 months. During this time, you can stop working or reduce your earnings, and your payment will restart without a new approval process. After the 36-month period ends, if you are still working and earning above the limit, your SSDI ends.
How to find out what your specific 2024 payment will be
The only way to know your actual SSDI payment is to check your Social Security Statement or to contact Social Security directly. You can create a my Social Security account at ssa.gov, sign in, and view your statement. The statement shows your earnings record and an estimate of what your SSDI payment would be if you became disabled today.
If you are already receiving SSDI, you can see your current payment amount on your Social Security statement or on your monthly benefit verification letter. You can also call Social Security at 1-800-772-1213 (TTY 1-800-325-0778) and speak to a representative who can tell you your payment amount and answer questions about how it was calculated.
If you have not yet applied for SSDI and want to know what your payment might be, you can use the Social Security Retirement Estimator at ssa.gov/benefits/retirement/estimator.html. This tool uses your actual earnings record to estimate what your SSDI payment would be. The estimate is not a may provide—your actual payment will depend on the details of your case and the date you are approved.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the $1,550 average what I will receive?
No. The average is just a national figure. Your payment depends on your own earnings record. If you earned lower wages, your payment will be below the average. If you earned higher wages, it will be above the average. The only way to know your payment is to check your Social Security Statement or contact Social Security.
Can I increase my SSDI payment by working more before I explore?
Yes, but only if you have not yet reached your full retirement age. If you have fewer than 35 years of work history, adding more years of earnings will increase your AIME and your payment. If you already have 35 years of work history, adding more years will replace your lowest-earning years, which may increase your payment. Once you are approved for SSDI, your payment is locked in and cannot be increased by future work.
What if I have a gap in my work history because I was in prison?
Periods of incarceration do not count toward your work history. Those years are treated as zero in your AIME calculation, which lowers your benefit. You cannot earn Social Security credits while incarcerated. If you have significant gaps, your SSDI payment will be lower than it would have been without those gaps.
Will my payment change if inflation goes down next year?
No. The COLA is never negative. If inflation decreases or stays flat, Social Security will not reduce your payment. Your payment either stays the same or increases each January, depending on whether there is a COLA that year. The COLA has been zero only three times since 1975.
Do I have to pay taxes on my SSDI payment?
Most people do not pay federal income tax on SSDI. However, if you have other income (such as wages, self-employment income, or investment income), part of your SSDI may become taxable. You can contact a tax professional or the IRS to determine whether your SSDI is taxable based on your total income.