Working While Collecting Social Security, the 2026 Earnings Test
If you claim Social Security before full retirement age and keep working, the SSA withholds $1 of benefits for every $2 you earn above $24,480 in 2026 (as of October 2026). The withheld money is not lost: your monthly benefit is increased at full retirement age to credit those months. The rest of this post covers the limits and examples.
1. Who the earnings test applies to
The SSA says the retirement earnings test applies only to people below full retirement age. Once you reach full retirement age, your earnings no longer reduce your benefits, no matter how much you earn.
The SSA also notes that when you begin receiving retirement benefits, you are considered retired for its purposes, and you can get retirement or survivors benefits and work at the same time.
2. The 2026 limits
There are two exempt amounts, and which one applies depends on whether you reach full retirement age this year.
| Your situation in 2026 | Annual earnings limit | Benefits withheld above the limit |
|---|---|---|
| Under full retirement age for all of 2026 | $24,480 | $1 for every $2 over |
| Reaching full retirement age during 2026 | $65,160 | $1 for every $3 over |
| From the month you reach full retirement age | No limit | None |
For the higher limit, the SSA counts only earnings in the months before the month you reach full retirement age, not the whole year.
According to the SSA, these exempt amounts generally increase each year with the national average wage index. The 2025 amounts were $23,400 and $62,160.
3. Worked examples
3.1. Under full retirement age all year
Assume a benefit of $1,500 a month ($18,000 for the year) and wages of $40,000 in 2026.
- Earnings over the limit: $40,000 minus $24,480 = $15,520
- Benefits withheld: $15,520 / 2 = $7,760
- Benefits received for the year: $18,000 minus $7,760 = $10,240
At $30,000 of wages instead, the excess is $5,520, and $2,760 would be withheld.
The SSA's own example on its site: an $800 monthly benefit ($9,600 a year) with $33,400 of earnings is $8,920 over the limit, so $4,460 is withheld and $5,140 is paid.
3.2. Reaching full retirement age in 2026
Assume you reach full retirement age in October 2026 and earn $70,000 in January through September.
- Earnings over the higher limit: $70,000 minus $65,160 = $4,840
- Benefits withheld: $4,840 / 3 = about $1,613
Starting in October, there is no limit at all.
4. Withheld benefits are not lost
This is the part most people miss. The SSA states that benefits withheld while you work are not "lost." Once you reach full retirement age, your monthly benefit is increased permanently to account for the months in which benefits were withheld.
The SSA's planner page says the same thing in different words: at full retirement age, it recalculates your benefit to give you credit for the months it reduced or withheld benefits because of excess earnings.
So the earnings test changes when you receive the money more than whether you receive it. The real cost depends on your situation: you give up cash now in exchange for a higher monthly check later.
5. Work can raise your benefit, too
The SSA reviews the records of all beneficiaries with reported wages each year. If your latest year of earnings is one of your highest, it recalculates your benefit and pays any increase, retroactive to January of the year after you earned the money. Continued work while collecting can therefore lift your benefit even apart from the earnings test credit.
6. The first-year special rule
The SSA has a special rule for one year that applies when your earnings will be more than the limit for the year and you will receive retirement benefits for only part of that year. Under it, the SSA can pay a full benefit for any whole month it considers you retired, regardless of your yearly earnings. That matters if you stop working partway through a year after already earning more than the annual limit.
7. Survivors benefits
If you receive survivors benefits, the SSA says it uses your full retirement age for retirement benefits when applying the annual earnings test, even though the full retirement age for survivors benefits may be earlier.
8. Questions to work through before claiming early
- What is your full retirement age, and which earnings limit applies in each year until then?
- How much do you expect to earn from work in each of those years?
- How much would be withheld under the $1-for-$2 or $1-for-$3 rule?
- Would you rather have that cash now, or the higher monthly benefit later once withheld months are credited back?
- Are you in your first year of retirement, where the special monthly rule may apply?
9. Key takeaways
- The earnings test applies only before full retirement age; from that month on, earnings do not reduce benefits.
- For 2026, the limit is $24,480 if you are under full retirement age all year, with $1 withheld for every $2 above it.
- In the year you reach full retirement age, the limit is $65,160 for months before that birthday, with $1 withheld for every $3 above it.
- On $40,000 of wages and an $18,000 annual benefit, about $7,760 would be withheld in 2026.
- Withheld benefits are not lost; your monthly benefit is increased at full retirement age to credit those months.