Social Security Benefits
Do you wonder how much you might receive in Social Security? Use this calculator to help you estimate your Social Security benefits. Remember, this is only an estimate. Your actual benefits may vary depending on your actual work history and income.
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| Social Security may provide $33,773
If you start collecting your benefits at age 65 you could receive approximately $33,773 per year or $2,814 per month. This is 44.7% of your final year's income of $75,629. This is only an estimate. Actual benefits depend on work history and the complete compensation rules used by Social Security.
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Definitions
- Current age
- Your current age.
- Age of retirement
- Age you desire to retire.
- Annual income
- Your total annual income. If you are married, this should not include your spouse's income. When we calculate your social security benefit, if you check the married box, the total is increased to include an additional 50% of your benefit for your spouse. If your spouse will be collecting their own benefit, do no check the "married" box. You will need to run the calculator separately for their income.
- Expected salary increase
- Annual percent increase you expect in your annual income.
- Expected rate of inflation
- This is what you expect for the average long-term inflation rate. A common measure of inflation in the U.S. is the Consumer Price Index (CPI). From 1925 through 2015 the CPI has a long-term average of 2.9% annually. Over the last 40 years highest CPI recorded was 13.5% in 1980. For 2015, the last full year available, the CPI was 0.0% annually as reported by the Minneapolis Federal Reserve.
- Include spousal benefit?
- Check this box if you are married and wish to include a spousal benefit in the calculation. Married couples with only one spouse who works have a higher maximum Social Security benefit than single wage earners.
- Social Security income
- Social Security is based on a sliding scale depending on your income, how long you work and at what age you retire. Social Security benefits automatically increase each year based on increases in the Consumer Price Index. Including a spouse increases your Social Security benefits by 1.5 times your individual estimated benefit. Please note that this calculator assumes that only one of the spouses work. Benefits could be different if your spouse worked and earned a benefit higher than one half of your benefit. If you are a married couple, and both spouses work, you may need to run the calculation twice – once for each spouse and their respective income. This calculator provides only an estimate of your benefits.
The calculations use the 2016 FICA income limit of $118,500 with an annual maximum Social Security benefit of $31,668 per year ($2,639 per month) for a single person and 1.5 times this amount for a married couple. To receive the maximum benefit would require earning the maximum FICA salary for nearly your entire career. You would also need to begin receiving benefits at your full retirement age of 66 or 67 (depending on your birth date). This calculator rounds your age of full Social Security benefits to the next highest full year. If your birthdate is between 1955 and 1959 your actual full retirement age for Social Security is 66 plus two months for each year after 1954. Your actual benefit may be lower or higher depending on your work history and the complete compensation rules used by Social Security.
Alliance Benefit Group, LLC
Information and interactive calculators are made available to you as self-help tools for your independent use and are not intended to provide investment advice. We cannot and do not guarantee their applicability or accuracy in regards to your individual circumstances. All examples are hypothetical and are for illustrative purposes. We encourage you to seek personalized advice from qualified professionals regarding all personal finance issues.