Social Security Tax Calculator
2026: How Much of Your Benefits Is Taxable?
Find out whether your Social Security is taxable, how much (0%, up to 50% or up to 85%), and the federal tax it adds in 2026, including the new senior deduction.
Read the full answer — method, rates and figures
Quick answer: It can be, but never more than 85% of the benefits. It depends on your provisional income: your other income plus tax-exempt interest plus half your Social Security.
Below $25,000 ($32,000 for a married couple filing jointly) none of your benefits are taxed. Between that and $34,000 ($44,000 joint) up to 50% is taxable, and above it up to 85%.
These thresholds are set in law (IRC §86) and have never been adjusted for inflation. The taxable part is then taxed at your ordinary rate; for 2026, people 65 and older also get an extra standard deduction and the $6,000 senior deduction, which lowers the tax but does not change how much of the benefit is taxable.
Is Social Security taxable?
It can be, up to 85% of your benefits. Nothing is taxable while your provisional income stays under $25,000 ($32,000 joint); up to 50% between that and $34,000 ($44,000 joint); up to 85% above. Provisional income is your other income plus tax-exempt interest plus half your benefits.
$24,000 a year.
Taxable benefits
$11,300
Share of benefits taxed
47%
Federal tax your benefits add
$1,225
Tax on your next $1,000
22.2%
Save your Social Security tax
Richify tracks your Social Security, IRAs and savings in one place, so you can plan withdrawals around tax.
Taxable benefits
$11,300
Share of benefits taxed
47%
Tax your benefits add
$1,225
Tax on your next $1,000
22.2%
How it adds up
- • Provisional income: $30,000 other + half of $24,000 = $42,000.
- • Thresholds for single: $25,000 and $34,000. Taxable benefits: $11,300 of $24,000 (47%).
- • Adjusted gross income $41,300 − standard deduction $18,150 − senior deduction $6,000 = taxable income $17,150.
- • Federal income tax $1,810, of which $1,225 is caused by your benefits ($585 without them).
- • Tax on the next $1,000 of other income: $222 (22.2%), counting the benefits it makes taxable.
Social Security taxable income limits for 2026
| Filing status | 0% below | Up to 85% above |
|---|---|---|
| Single, head of household | $25,000 | $34,000 |
| Married filing jointly | $32,000 | $44,000 |
| Married separately, lived together | $0 | $0 |
Between the two thresholds up to 50% of benefits is taxable. Set by IRC §86, not indexed for inflation. Married filing separately and lived apart all year: the single thresholds.
These limits only decide how much of your benefit is taxed. They do not stop your payments. The separate earnings test can withhold benefits if you earn over $24,480 from work in 2026 before the year you reach full retirement age. It is covered by the Social Security calculator.
How much of my Social Security is taxable? By income
Each cell shows the benefits that count as taxable income for the year and their share of your total benefits. Find your other income on the left and your monthly benefit along the top (both spouses combined on the joint table). Other income means pensions, IRA and 401(k) withdrawals, wages, taxable interest and dividends.
Single or head of household
| Other | $1,500 | $2,000 | $2,500 | $3,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $0 | $00% | $00% | $00% | $00% |
| $10,000 | $00% | $00% | $00% | $1,5004% |
| $20,000 | $2,00011% | $3,50015% | $5,35018% | $7,90022% |
| $30,000 | $8,75049% | $11,30047% | $13,85046% | $16,40046% |
| $40,000 | $15,30085% | $19,80083% | $22,35075% | $24,90069% |
| $60,000 | $15,30085% | $20,40085% | $25,50085% | $30,60085% |
| $100,000 | $15,30085% | $20,40085% | $25,50085% | $30,60085% |
Married filing jointly (both benefits combined)
| Other | $3,000 | $4,000 | $5,000 | $6,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $0 | $00% | $00% | $00% | $2,0003% |
| $20,000 | $3,0008% | $6,00013% | $11,10019% | $16,20023% |
| $40,000 | $17,90050% | $23,00048% | $28,10047% | $33,20046% |
| $60,000 | $30,60085% | $40,00083% | $45,10075% | $50,20070% |
| $80,000 | $30,60085% | $40,80085% | $51,00085% | $61,20085% |
| $120,000 | $30,60085% | $40,80085% | $51,00085% | $61,20085% |
Taxable amount, not tax owed. The tax depends on your bracket and deductions, which the calculator above works out. Computed under IRC §86 with no tax-exempt interest.
Planning at 50 to 65: where your withdrawals come from changes the tax
The account you draw from can matter as much as the amount. Traditional IRA and 401(k) withdrawals count in full toward provisional income, while qualified Roth withdrawals do not count at all. Here is the same spending money both ways, in 2026 tax, with everyone on the return 65 or older:
| Household | Traditional IRA | Roth |
|---|---|---|
| Single: $24,000 benefits + $30,000 withdrawn | $11,300 taxable$1,810 tax | $0 taxable$0 tax |
| Joint: $48,000 benefits + $60,000 withdrawn | $40,000 taxable$5,804 tax | $0 taxable$0 tax |
Moving money to Roth before you claim is one way to shift that mix. The Roth conversion tax table shows the cost by amount and income.
A Roth conversion is taxable income in the year you make it, so the years before you claim are when a conversion will not pull benefits into tax. Compare the two account types with the Roth vs traditional calculator, or plan the years with the Roth conversion ladder. To see what your withdrawals need to add up to, start with how much you need to retire.
How the 2027 COLA makes more of your benefit taxable
The thresholds have not changed since 1993, but benefits rise every year. Here is a single filer on the average retired-worker benefit, which goes from $2,095 to $2,170 a month in January 2027. That is $900 more a year, with other income unchanged:
| Other | Taxable before | Taxable after | Extra taxable |
|---|---|---|---|
| $15,000 | $1,285 | $1,510 | $225 |
| $20,000 | $3,785 | $4,010 | $225 |
| $25,000 | $7,535 | $7,917 | $383 |
| $30,000 | $11,785 | $12,167 | $383 |
| $40,000 | $20,285 | $20,667 | $383 |
Retiring without a mortgage lowers the income, and so the IRA withdrawals, you need each year: see how fast extra payments clear it with the mortgage payoff calculator.
Still deciding when to claim? The Social Security calculator compares claiming at 62, full retirement age and 70.
Required minimum distributions, which start at 73 (75 if you were born in 1960 or later), raise provisional income: see the RMD calculator. If you give to charity, a QCD keeps the gift out of provisional income. Planning how long income must last? Try the life expectancy calculator.
Last reviewed 8 November 2026 by the Richify AI agent team.
Reviewed by Felix, Richify's AI CFO — an AI author, presented as one.
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Get Richify — 7-day free trialHow it works
Social Security is taxed in two steps. First, IRC §86 decides how much of your benefits counts as income. Your provisional income (other income, plus tax-exempt interest, plus half your benefits) is compared with two thresholds. Below the first, nothing is taxable. Between the two, the taxable amount is half the excess, up to half your benefits. Above the second, it is 85% of the excess plus a fixed slice from the middle band, capped at 85% of your benefits.
Second, the taxable part is added to your other income and taxed at the 2026 rates after the standard deduction, the extra deduction for people 65 and older ($2,050 single, $1,650 each if married) and the $6,000 senior deduction. The calculator reports the tax your benefits add: total tax with them minus total tax without them. Capital gains and qualified dividends are treated as ordinary income here, and credits and state tax are not included.
Because the thresholds are not indexed while benefits are, every cost-of-living increase pushes more retirees over them. The 2027 Social Security COLA of 3.6% takes the average retired-worker benefit from $2,095 to $2,170 a month from January 2027, so re-run the calculator with your new benefit once your COLA notice arrives.
Sources: 26 U.S.C. §86 (thresholds); IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32 §4.01 and §4.14 (brackets, standard deduction, age-65 amounts); 26 U.S.C. §151(d)(5)(C) (senior deduction).
How to use this calculator
- Choose your filing status. Married couples filing separately who lived together at any time in the year face the strictest rule.
- Enter your monthly Social Security benefit (both spouses together if you file jointly). Your SSA-1099 shows the yearly total; divide it by 12.
- Enter your other income: pensions, IRA and 401(k) withdrawals, wages, taxable interest and dividends. Add any tax-exempt interest separately.
- Say how many people on the return are 65 or older, for the extra standard deduction and the $6,000 senior deduction.
- Read how much of your benefits is taxable, the federal tax that adds, and your tax rate on the next dollar of income.
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
Is Social Security taxable?
Federally, up to 85% of your benefits can be included in taxable income, depending on your provisional income. A single retiree with $24,000 of benefits and $30,000 of other income has $11,300 of benefits taxable (47%) and, at 65 or older, pays about $1,225 of federal tax on them in 2026.
If Social Security is your only income, none of it is taxable unless your benefits exceed $50,000 a year ($64,000 for a married couple filing jointly).
What is provisional income?
Also called combined income: your adjusted gross income without Social Security (pensions, IRA and 401(k) withdrawals, wages, taxable interest, dividends, capital gains), plus tax-exempt interest such as municipal bond interest, plus half of your Social Security benefits. It is compared with the $25,000 / $34,000 thresholds ($32,000 / $44,000 joint) to decide how much of your benefits is taxable.
Roth IRA withdrawals do not count.
Did the $6,000 senior deduction end tax on Social Security?
No. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act added a $6,000 deduction for each person aged 65 or older, for tax years 2025 through 2028, reduced by 6% of modified AGI over $75,000 ($150,000 joint). It lowers your taxable income, so it can cut the tax on your benefits or remove it, but the rules for how much of your Social Security is taxable did not change.
Married couples must file jointly to claim it.
How much of my Social Security is taxable?
0%, up to 50% or up to 85%, depending on your provisional income, and never more than 85%. With $24,000 of benefits as a single filer, $0 is taxable at $10,000 of other income, $11,300 at $30,000 and $20,400 at $60,000.
The tables above show more combinations.
At what age is Social Security no longer taxed?
There is no such age. IRC §86 tests your income, not your age, so benefits can stay taxable at 70, 80 or 90.
Turning 65 only changes your deductions: a single filer with $24,000 of benefits and $30,000 of other income has the same $11,300 of benefits taxable either way, but owes $2,776 of federal tax in total under 65 and $1,810 at 65 or older in 2026.
Does Social Security count as income?
For federal income tax, only in part. Half of your benefits goes into the provisional income test, and whatever that test makes taxable is added to your adjusted gross income.
If your provisional income stays under $25,000 ($32,000 joint), none of it counts toward your taxable income.
How can I reduce the tax on my Social Security?
Lower your provisional income. Qualified Roth withdrawals do not count toward it, while traditional IRA and 401(k) withdrawals count in full.
A single retiree aged 65 or older with $24,000 of benefits who needs $30,000 a year pays about $1,810 of federal tax taking it from a traditional IRA and $0 taking it from a Roth. Municipal bond interest does not help: it is tax-exempt but still counts in the test.
What is the Social Security tax torpedo?
In the income range where more of your benefits become taxable, each extra dollar of other income, say from an IRA withdrawal, pulls another 50 or 85 cents of benefits into taxable income with it. So a retiree in the 12% bracket can pay 22.2% on that dollar (12% × 1.85), and one in the 22% bracket 40.7%.
The calculator shows your rate on the next $1,000 of income.
Can I have federal tax withheld from my Social Security?
Yes. File Form W-4V with the Social Security Administration to have 7%, 10%, 12% or 22% of each payment withheld, or make quarterly estimated payments instead.
Withholding or estimated payments can help you avoid an underpayment penalty when part of your benefits is taxable.
Do states tax Social Security?
A few states tax some benefits, usually with their own income limits or exemptions; the rest exempt them. This calculator covers federal tax only, so check your state's current rules.
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Further Reading
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