How the earnings test works
If you claim Social Security before your full retirement age and keep working, SSA holds back part of your benefits once your earnings pass a yearly limit. The limit and the rate depend on how close you are to full retirement age:
- Every year before the year you reach full retirement age: $1 withheld for every $2 you earn above $24,480 in 2026.
- The year you reach it: $1 withheld for every $3 above $65,160, counting only what you earn in the months before your full retirement age month.
- From the month you reach full retirement age: no limit at all.
Withheld = (earnings − limit) ÷ 2, or ÷ 3 in the year you reach full retirement age
Only pay from work counts: wages, bonuses, commissions and vacation pay, or net profit if you're self-employed. Pensions, annuities, investment income, interest and veterans or other government retirement benefits don't.
Worked examples (SSA's own)
Under full retirement age all of 2026, with a $800 monthly benefit ($9,600 a year), you earn $33,400: $8,920 over the limit. SSA withholds $4,460, so you receive $5,140 of your $9,600.
Reaching full retirement age in August 2026, with the same benefit, you earn $66,000 from January to July: $840 over the $65,160limit. SSA withholds $280, so you get $5,320 of the $5,600 for those seven months, and your full benefit from August, however much you earn.
Things to know
- It isn't lost. At full retirement age SSA recalculates your benefit to give you credit for the months it withheld, so your monthly benefit goes up from then on.
- The first year has a special rule. In the year you start, SSA can pay a full benefit for any month you're considered retired, whatever you earned in the year as a whole: generally a month you earn no more than one-twelfth of the annual limit, $2,040 in 2026.
- Tell SSA if your earnings change. Withholding is based on the estimate you give; a big difference is settled after the year ends.
- 2027 limits. SSA announces next year's limits with the COLA in October. We'll update them then.
- Related: when to claim, in the Social Security claiming calculator, and next year's raise, in the COLA calculator. This is general information, not advice.
Questions people ask
What is the Social Security earnings limit for 2026?
$24,480 if you're under full retirement age for the whole year, and $65,160 (counting only the months before) in the year you reach it. After that, there's no limit.
Does the earnings test apply after full retirement age?
No. From the month you reach full retirement age you can earn any amount without any benefits being withheld.
Is it better to wait to claim if I'm still working?
Often, if you'd lose most of your benefit to the earnings test anyway. Waiting also raises your monthly benefit permanently. Compare claiming ages with the claiming calculator.
Sources
- Social Security Administration: exempt amounts under the earnings test (2026)
- Social Security Administration: receiving benefits while working
- Social Security Administration: How Work Affects Your Benefits (publication)
- Social Security Administration: full retirement age by year of birth
Reviewed September 29, 2026 by The Dollars World team. How we build and check our calculators · Our data and formulas. This is general information, not financial advice.