How is Social Security taxed?

If your total income is more than $25,000 for an individual or $32,000 for a married couple filing jointly, you must pay federal income taxes on your Social Security benefits. Below those thresholds, your benefits are not taxed. That applies to spousal benefits, survivor benefits and Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) as well as to retirement benefits.

The portion of your benefits subject to taxation varies depending on your income level. You’ll be taxed on:

• up to 50 percent of your benefits if your income is $25,000 to $34,000 for an individual or $32,000 to $44,000 for a married couple filing jointly.
• up to 85 percent of your benefits if your income is more than $34,000 (individual) or $44,000 (couple). 

'Combined' income is key

For purposes of determining how the IRS treats your Social Security payments, “income” means your adjusted gross income (line 11 on your 1040 form) plus nontaxable interest income plus half of your Social Security benefits. The IRS calls this your “combined” or “provisional” income.

Say you file individually and your income for 2025 consisted of $40,000 in 401(k) withdrawals and a $1,500-a-month retirement benefit. Your combined income was $49,000 ($40,000 from your savings and half of the $18,000 you got from Social Security). You owed taxes on 85 percent of your $18,000 in annual benefits, or $15,300, at the regular rate for your tax bracket. Nobody pays taxes on more than 85 percent of their Social Security benefits, no matter their income.

The IRS has an online tool you can use to calculate how much of your benefit income is taxable. The Social Security Administration (SSA) estimates that about half of Social Security recipients owe income taxes on their benefits.

New deduction could affect taxes on benefits

The One Big Beautiful Bill, enacted in July 2025, includes a new tax deduction for people 65 and older. This bonus deduction does not change the way Social Security income is taxed — but it could reduce or offset taxes on benefits for millions of older Americans by lowering their overall taxable income.

To qualify for the full, $6,000 deduction, you must be at least 65 years old by the end of the tax year and have a modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) of less than $75,000 for an individual taxpayer or $150,000 for a married couple filing jointly. (If both spouses are age 65-plus, both can claim the $6,000 deduction.) Those with higher incomes up to $175,000 for singles or $250,000 for joint filers may qualify for a reduced deduction.

The bonus deduction is temporary: It takes effect with 2025 taxes and year and expires after the 2028 tax year.

Some states tax benefits, too

All of the above concerns federal income taxes. For the 2025 tax year, nine states also tax Social Security to varying degrees: Colorado, Connecticut, Minnesota, Montana, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Vermont, Utah and West Virginia. (West Virginia is eliminating its tax on benefits, starting with the 2026 tax year.) 

Some use the federal rules for determining if benefits are taxable, but most have their own deductions and exemptions based on age or income. Contact your state tax agency for details on how benefits are taxed.

Keep in mind

• If your child receives Social Security dependent or survivor benefits, those payments do not count toward your taxable income. That money is taxable if the child has sufficient income (from Social Security and other sources) to have to file a return in his or her own name.
• Supplemental Security Income (SSI) — an SSA-administered benefit for people with low incomes and limited assets who are 65 or older, blind or have a disability — is never taxed.
• If you do have to pay taxes on your benefits, you have a choice as to how: You can file quarterly estimated tax returns with the IRS or ask Social Security to withhold federal taxes from your benefit payment.