How Much SSI Will I Get?

Update: The Social Security Administration has announced the latest cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) will increase disability payments by 2.5% in 2025. The new federal payment for disabled SSI recipients will be $967 per month. Married couples who live together and who both receive SSI will receive $1,450 per month.

Everyone who receives disability benefits through SSI (Supplemental Security Income) is eligible for the same SSI benefit amount: $943. But, your actual monthly SSI payment will depend on:

• what state you live in
• whether you have any "countable" income, and
• whether you're married.

SSI is a federal program that pays benefits to disabled, blind, or elderly people who have very low income and resources.

How Much Does SSI Disability Pay?

In 2024, the maximum SSI payment is $943. But most SSI recipients receive less than the federal benefit rate of $943, and some receive more. Your actual monthly payment will depend on how much income you or your family earns and how much of a "state supplemental payment" (SSP) your state pays, if any.

If you're married and your spouse is also eligible for SSI benefits, you'll get less than two individuals would get. The maximum federal benefit rate for couples is only $1,415, which is less than two $943 payments.

What Is the Average SSI Benefit Amount in 2024?

The average SSI benefit amount in mid-2024 is $674. (This average is before any state supplemental payments are added.)

Disabled and blind adults receive a bit more than this average ($718) because elderly adults receive less on average ($553). Children also receive more than the average ($785). Here's a chart showing the SSI disability amounts for 2024:

Source: SSA Monthly Statistical Snapshot, November 2023

How Much SSI Will I Get?

The SSI benefit amount you'll get depends on whether you have any income and where you live. First, let's look at how income affects how much you get for disability.

How Does Income Affect Your SSI Disability Amount?

If you have any income coming in other than SSI, some of it, but not all of it, will be subtracted from your SSI payment.

The Social Security Administration (SSA) will first look to see what income you have is countable. Countable income includes:

• money you earn from work (you can make a small amount of money and still be eligible for SSI)
• food or shelter you get for free, or for less than what it's worth (called "in-kind support and maintenance")
• money you get from friends or family, and
• other benefits, such as workers' compensation, unemployment, SSDI, or a pension.

But not all of your income is subtracted from your SSI payment. Each month, the SSA doesn't count:

• the first $20 of any kind of income you receive
• the first $65 of money you earn from work, plus half of the remainder
• food stamps
• income tax refunds
• veterans benefits, or
• food or shelter provided by a nonprofit agency.

Here's an example of how the SSA deducts part of your income when it calculates your SSI payment.

How Is Free Food and Shelter Subtracted From Your SSI Payment?

If you live with someone else and you receive free room and board, your SSI payment will be reduced by one-third. (It doesn't matter how much free rent you receive or how much food you get.)

Here's an example.

But if you only receive free rent, or only free food, or you live with someone for less than a month, you can dispute the "one-third reduction" rule in your situation. Read our article on in-kind support and maintenance (ISM) for more information.

Do SSI Payment Amounts Vary by State?

While the federal benefit rate of $943 is the same throughout the United States, many states add a state supplemental payment to the federal benefit. The extra state payment varies from $10 to $400, depending on the state.

Even within your own state, the supplementary payment can be different depending on whether you're married or single and what your living arrangement is. For instance, in 2023, California added an extra $219 (the maximum) to the monthly SSI payment for people living independently with a kitchen and $338 (the maximum) for those living independently without cooking facilities. (SSI in California, 2023.)

Which States Pay Extra SSI Payments, and How Much?

While many states pay all SSI recipients some additional money, some states pay the supplement only to SSI recipients who live in nursing homes. For example, Texas pays a $60 supplement to those living in a nursing home and pays nothing to others. Similarly, Georgia pays an extra $20 to those living in nursing homes, and nothing to others. Maine pays only $10 extra, both to those living independently and those living in nursing homes.

A few states don't pay a supplement at all, including Arizona, Arkansas, Mississippi, North Dakota, Tennessee, and West Virginia. Oregon no longer pays an SSI supplementary payment to all residents, but some residents with special needs can receive a cash benefit through the Oregon Supplemental Income Program.

Below you'll find a chart with the average SSI payments in each state, including the state supplement amount.

Visit our state SSI disability articles to learn the details of the SSI payment for your state.

Does Social Security Send the State SSI Checks?

The SSA administers (pays) the state supplement for some states, including California, Hawaii, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, and Vermont, so the extra state payment is included in people's SSI checks in those states.

If the SSA administers the payment for your state, you apply for it automatically when you fill out an SSI application; there's no need to fill out another form.

Other states pay the supplement directly to you, separately from your federal SSI payment. If you live in a state that pays its own supplement, you need to apply for the state disability check directly from a state agency (your local Social Security office can tell you how).

For more information, see our article on the state supplemental payment.

When Will I Receive My SSI Check?

You'll usually receive your SSI payment on the first of each month. But if the first falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, you'll receive your SSI deposit to your bank account or debit card on the business day before the first day of the month. For example, since June 1 is a Saturday, you'll receive your June check on May 31. Because you also received a check on May 1, it may seem like you're getting two checks during the month of May, but you won't get a check during the month of June.

Here's the SSI payment calendar for 2024.

Cost of Living Increases to the SSI Disability Amount

The federal SSI disability amount regularly increases with cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) each year. The COLA is usually between 1% and 3%, but in some years, it can be as high as 8% or as low as 0%.

For 2024, the COLA was 3.2%, which increased the maximum federal SSI payment from $914 in 2023 to $943 in 2024. Read our article on Social Security's annual COLA for more information.

Average SSI Payment Amounts by State

California pays the highest average supplement, making the average combined federal and state payment in that state $780 per month (at the end of 2023). The following SSI state payment chart has the average SSI payments, including the state supplemental amounts where provided by the SSA.

_{Source: SSA Annual Statistical Supplement, December 2023.}