Social Security Pays $4,764 More Per Year in Some States - Here's What That Means for Your Check

Social Security is one of the most important senior benefits today. And if you don't have a lot of retirement savings, you may end up depending heavily on Social Security to cover your costs once you stop working.

The amount of Social Security retirees get varies tremendously by state. In fact, the gap between the states with the highest benefit payments and the states with the lowest payments is almost $400 per month, or $4,764 on an annual basis.

But you should know that the state you call home in retirement does not determine how much money Social Security pays you, and that there's a specific formula your benefits are based on.

Seniors in some states get a lot more Social Security

Just as people in certain states tend to earn more money than in others, the average Social Security benefit can vary significantly from one state to another. Recent data shows that the states with the largest Social Security benefits are New Hampshire and Connecticut, with an average monthly benefit of $2,287.

Other states with large average Social Security benefits include Delaware with an average benefit of $2,268, New Jersey with an average benefit of $2,264, and Maryland with an average $2,238 Social Security check.

On the flipside, Mississippi has the smallest Social Security checks, with the average coming in at just $1,890. That's followed by Louisiana, whose average check is $1,898; Arkansas, whose average benefit is $1,927; Kentucky, whose average benefit is $1,932; and New Mexico, which has an average $1,937 Social Security benefit.

All told, the difference between the highest average Social Security benefit at the state level and the lowest is $397 per month. That's $4,764 on an annual basis.

Your benefit isn't determined by where you live

Based on this data, you may be inclined to assume that the state you live in determines what Social Security pays you. But that's not the case.

Your monthly Social Security benefit in retirement depends on your 35 highest-paid years of wages. The reason some states have higher average benefits is that they tend to attract higher earners or have higher-paying jobs or companies headquartered there.

To put it another way, moving to New Hampshire or Connecticut won't give you a larger Social Security benefit than what you'd get in Mississippi. If you're at the end of your career, your earnings history is what it is, and a move won't change that.

It's also worth noting that across all U.S. states, men average about $2,295 a month in Social Security, as opposed to $1,848 for women. That's a $447 difference. The main reason male benefits are higher than female benefits boils down to the fact that men tend to have higher career earnings due to being paid more and are less likely to take time out of the workforce to be caregivers.

It's important to file for benefits carefully

While your personal wage history plays a big role in determining how much money Social Security pays you each month in retirement, there's another factor that goes into your benefits: your filing age.

You can claim Social Security as early as age 62. But for each month you file for benefits ahead of full retirement age (FRA), your benefits get reduced.

You can also delay your claim past FRA for a larger monthly benefit. Each year you wait beyond FRA gives your Social Security checks an 8% boost, up until you turn 70.

Other ways to boost your monthly checks

Filing for Social Security on the later side instead of the earlier side could lead to larger monthly benefits. But there are other things you can do to score bigger checks.

First, you can boost your job skills so you're able to qualify for higher pay. Secondly, you can job-hop strategically to chase larger paychecks, which could lead to larger benefits in retirement.

Also, if you don't have a full 35-year work history, continuing to work part-time while you're getting Social Security could boost your monthly payments. Once your late-in-life wages are accounted for, that extra income can replace some years with $0 earnings in your benefits formula, leading to bigger benefits.

Bottom line

If your retirement plan assumes you'll be living on just Social Security, then it's important to do what you can to score the largest benefit possible. But that doesn't mean moving to one state over another. It means filing at the right time and taking other steps to boost your benefits.

That said, while the amount of money Social Security pays you does not hinge on the state you retire in, the amount of purchasing power you get from that benefit can vary significantly from one state to another.

If you retire in a state where living costs are high, your Social Security benefits may not go very far. But if you retire in a state with lower costs, you may find that you're able to do more with your benefits.

If you won't have income outside of Social Security in retirement, you may want to specifically target a state with low or no income taxes, low property taxes, and low costs in general. Just keep in mind that leaving a more expensive state could mean losing access to better health care systems and Medicare plan choices, not to mention your social network. So you'll need to weigh the pros and cons carefully before making a move later in life.

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