Maximum social Security benefit Amount in 2025 Maximizing Social Security retirement benefits requires to work ten years to earn 40 work credits. The maximum retirement benefit that a retiree can receive depends on the age at which they begin collecting benefits and their earnings history, among other factors.
How the government calculates Social Security benefits
There are three main factors that influence the calculation for each individual:
- Your earnings history
- When you were born
- When you claim benefits
How Social Security Benefits Are Figured
- Your Social Security benefit amount is calculated using factors that include the year when collection begins, FRA, and whether an individual will continue to work while collecting benefits.3
- Further, Social Security benefits are derived by combining an individual’s 35 highest-paid years. All wages are indexed to account for inflation.
- Wages from previous years are multiplied by a factor based on the years in which they were earned. This calculation provides an amount comparable to buying power based on the U.S. dollar’s current value.3
- Once all wages are indexed, an average indexed monthly earnings (AIME) amount is computed by dividing the sum of all indexed wages by 420 (35 years expressed as months). A zero is entered for years when an individual did not work.3
The maximum earnings reported to Social Security
While Social Security looks at your entire earnings history, not every penny you earn will necessarily count toward your benefit calculation. That’s because Social Security caps the amount of wages you pay taxes on in any given year. If you don’t pay taxes on the wages, they don’t count toward your earnings history.
For 2025, the earnings limit will be $176,100. Here are the earnings limits from the previous 50 years.
| Year | Earnings | Year | Earnings |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | $14,100 | 2000 | $76,200 |
| 1976 | $15,300 | 2001 | $80,400 |
| 1977 | $16,500 | 2002 | $84,900 |
| 1978 | $17,700 | 2003 | $87,000 |
| 1979 | $22,900 | 2004 | $87,900 |
| 1980 | $25,900 | 2005 | $90,000 |
| 1981 | $29,700 | 2006 | $94,200 |
| 1982 | $32,400 | 2007 | $97,500 |
| 1983 | $35,700 | 2008 | $102,000 |
| 1984 | $37,800 | 2009 | $106,800 |
| 1985 | $39,600 | 2010 | $106,800 |
| 1986 | $42,000 | 2011 | $106,800 |
| 1987 | $43,800 | 2012 | $110,100 |
| 1988 | $45,000 | 2013 | $113,700 |
| 1989 | $48,000 | 2014 | $117,000 |
| 1990 | $51,300 | 2015 | $118,500 |
| 1991 | $53,400 | 2016 | $118,500 |
| 1992 | $55,500 | 2017 | $127,200 |
| 1993 | $57,600 | 2018 | $128,400 |
| 1994 | $60,600 | 2019 | $132,900 |
| 1995 | $61,200 | 2020 | $137,700 |
| 1996 | $62,700 | 2021 | $142,800 |
| 1997 | $65,400 | 2022 | $147,000 |
| 1998 | $68,400 | 2023 | $160,200 |
| 1999 | $72,600 | 2024 | $168,600 |
Data source: Social Security Administration.
But even if you earn above those limits for 35 years in your career, you still might not be in line for the $5,108 maximum possible benefit.
