2026 Social Security Earnings Test Calculator

Under full retirement age for all of 2026, the limit is $24,480; above it, $1 is withheld for every $2 you earn. In the year you reach full retirement age, the limit is $65,160, counting only earnings before that month, with $1 withheld for every $3 above it.

No. At full retirement age, Social Security recalculates your benefit to credit the months it withheld, so your monthly amount goes up from then on.

No. From the month you reach full retirement age you can earn any amount without benefits being withheld.

Wages from a job and net earnings from self-employment. Pensions, annuities, investment income, interest and capital gains do not count.

It holds back whole monthly payments, usually starting at the beginning of the year, until the amount owed is covered, then pays the rest of the year as normal. So you may get no payment for a few months rather than smaller payments. The calculator shows how many payments could be withheld.

Yes, a special rule can apply in the first year you retire. You can get a full benefit for any month your wages stay at or below $2,040 and you do not do substantial self-employment work, whatever you earned earlier that year. This calculator does not model that rule, so ask us or Social Security if it applies.

No. Only your own wages and net self-employment earnings count. But if your spouse or children get benefits on your work record, money withheld because of your earnings can reduce their payments too. A spouse’s own earnings only affect the benefits paid to them.

Yes. If you claim before full retirement age and keep working, give Social Security an estimate of your earnings for the year, and update it if it changes. That keeps withholding close to the right amount, so you are less likely to owe money back after the year ends.

Social Security adjusts the limits each year and publishes the new figures on ssa.gov in the fall. The 2026 amounts are $24,480 and $65,160. We update this calculator when the 2027 amounts are confirmed; until then, plan with the 2026 figures.