Retirement Social Security

You Have Less Than 4 Weeks to Prepare for 6 Big Social Security Changes

Learn what changes are coming to Social Security benefits and how to prepare.

By Katy Willis

Edited by Laura Hohenstein

Updated Dec. 8, 2025

With just a few weeks to go until your January Social Security deposit hits your account, it's important you know what changes are coming that impact how much benefit you get.

Most of these Social Security changes are automatic. Your benefit amount, taxes, and income limits will reset whether you plan or not. But if you know what's coming, you can adjust your budget, your work hours, and your voluntary tax withholding so you don't derail your retirement plan.

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Your base benefit is increasing by 2.8%

In January, retirement, disability, and survivor benefits will all get a 2.8% cost-of-living adjustment (COLA). This increase is meant to help keep up with higher prices.

For the average retired worker, the monthly benefit goes from $2,015 to $2,071, giving them a gross increase of around $56 per month. The raise is applied automatically to December benefits, which are paid in January 2026. If you get Supplemental Security Income (SSI), your first higher payment shows up on December 31, 2025.

You can check how much your new gross and net benefit amount will be by logging in to your "my Social Security" account and checking your COLA notice. Here you'll find your full gross benefit amount, deductions for Medicare and tax withholding, and the net deposit you'll receive.

Then update your budget to reflect the new amount, any auto-pays, and any debt payments tied to your Social Security deposit. And, if you've been putting off things like catching up on utilities or building a small emergency fund, decide now how much of that extra benefit amount goes toward those things so you don't just fritter it away.

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Earnings limits are rising if you work while claiming benefits

If you're under full retirement age (FRA) and working while claiming, the Social Security Administration (SSA) temporarily withholds part of your benefit if your wages are too high. In 2026, you can earn up to $24,480 for the year, or around $2,040 per month. Above that, $1 in benefits is held back for every $2 you earn.

In the year you reach FRA, the limit is higher. For 2026, the limit jumps to $65,160. If you earn more than this, SSA withholds $1 for every $3 above that limit. And, at the start of the month you reach your full retirement age, the earnings test stops.

Figure out what you expect to earn in 2026 so you know if you're close to or exceeding those earnings limits. Then you can either prepare yourself for the temporarily lost benefits or figure out if you can bring yourself under the limits by adjusting hours or delaying claiming if you haven't already.

High earners will pay more Social Security taxes

If you're still working, the maximum amount of earnings subject to the 6.2% Social Security payroll tax is rising again. In 2025, you paid tax on wages up to $176,100. In 2026, that cap jumps to $184,500.

That means workers with earnings at or above the cap will pay Social Security tax on an extra $8,400 of income next year. At the 6.2% rate, that's up to about $521 more in Social Security tax for high earners. If you're self-employed, your tax rate is 12.4%, so you'd pay up to roughly $1,042 more per year.

If you're still working, revisit your pay estimates for the year and consider increasing your voluntary federal tax withholding if necessary. While paying more tax can seem harsh, the higher earnings (and therefore higher tax) can increase your future benefit, since your benefits are based on your highest 35 years of earnings, up to that taxable maximum.

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It takes more wages to earn Social Security credits

You earn up to four credits a year toward future Social Security retirement or disability benefits. In 2025, each credit takes $1,810 in covered earnings. In 2026, that's going up to $1,890, so you'll need to earn $7,560 in covered wages or self-employment income next year to earn all four credits.

You still only need 40 credits to qualify for a retirement benefit, which is about 10 years of work that meets the minimum covered earnings requirement. Most people achieve this, but some part-time, seasonal, or gig workers may not reach the threshold without planning.

And, because you can't earn more than four credits in a year, no matter how much you earn, pre-planning is critical if you haven't got your full quota of credits already. Check your Social Security account and see how many more credits you need to hit the full 40.

Disability and trial work rules are shifting in 2026

If you receive Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and are thinking about going back to work, there are changes you need to be aware of. In 2026, the "substantial gainful activity" (SGA) limit rises to $1,690 a month for most disabled workers, up from $1,620 in 2025. For workers who are statutorily blind, the 2026 SGA cap is rising from $2,700 to $2,830 per month.

The trial work period threshold also increases. Any month in which you earn more than $1,210 in 2026 will count as one of your trial work months. You get nine of those months within a rolling five-year window while still receiving your full SSDI benefit. After that, your check depends on whether your earnings are above or below SGA. If you think you're getting close to these limits, it's worth talking to a benefits counselor so you don't accidentally trigger a loss of benefits.

SSI payments are going up, but limits are not

If you get Supplemental Security Income (SSI), your base federal payment is rising due to the 2.8% COLA. The maximum monthly federal SSI payment goes from $967 to $994 for eligible individuals and from $1,450 to $1,491 for eligible couples. Some states add their own supplement on top.

At the same time, the basic SSI resource limits are staying stuck at $2,000 for an individual and $3,000 for a couple. That means that you need to make sure your savings don't grow beyond these limits if you don't want it to impact your benefit.

The student earned income exclusion is also getting a small bump. In 2026, qualifying students can exclude up to $2,410 a month, up to $9,730 per year, before affecting their SSI benefits.

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Bottom line

Because the Social Security changes for 2026 are automatic, it's easy to get taken by surprise and end up making avoidable mistakes with your money. You've only got a few weeks left before the changes take effect, so now is the time to act.

Log in to your "my Social Security" account, check that your earnings record is accurate, and request a correction if it's not. Look at your gross benefit, deductions, and net deposit. Understand how the changes might affect your benefit and plan around them to make the most of your money.

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