How to use this calculator
- Choose the year and enter your monthly Social Security benefit before deductions.
- Enter your birth year and month. They set your full retirement age and which limit applies.
- Enter your expected earnings from work for the year: gross wages and net self-employment income only.
- If you reach full retirement age that year, add your earnings before that month if you know them. Otherwise the calculator spreads your earnings evenly.
Calcvera’s earnings limit calculator uses Social Security’s published limits and withholding rules, and nothing you enter leaves your browser. To see your raise for next year, use the COLA calculator.
Social Security earnings limits for 2026 and 2027
| Your situation | 2026 limit | 2027 limit | Withheld above the limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under full retirement age all year | $24,480 ($2,040/mo) | $25,560 ($2,130/mo) | $1 for every $2 |
| Year you reach full retirement age (earnings before that month) | $65,160 ($5,430/mo) | $67,920 ($5,660/mo) | $1 for every $3 |
| From the month you reach full retirement age | No limit | Nothing | |
Social Security raises the limits each year with average wages. The 2027 figures come from its 2027 COLA fact sheet.
Full retirement age by year of birth
| Born | Full retirement age |
|---|---|
| 1943 to 1954 | 66 |
| 1955 | 66 and 2 months |
| 1956 | 66 and 4 months |
| 1957 | 66 and 6 months |
| 1958 | 66 and 8 months |
| 1959 | 66 and 10 months |
| 1960 or later | 67 |
If you were born on January 1, use the previous year. Learn the term in our glossary.
Worked examples
Under full retirement age all year. Someone born in June 1961 claimed early and gets $1,800 a month. In 2027 they turn 66, so they are under full retirement age all year. They expect to earn $40,000:
- Over the limit: $40,000 − $25,560 = $14,440.
- Withheld: $14,440 ÷ 2 = $7,220, so Social Security holds back the January to May checks (5 checks) and pays the $1,780 it held back too much in 2028.
- They still receive $14,380 in benefits for 2027, on top of their $40,000 of pay.
The year of full retirement age. Someone born in October 1960 reaches 67 in October 2027 and gets $2,000 a month. They earn $120,000 a year, so about $90,000 before October. Only that part counts, against the higher limit: ($90,000 − $67,920) ÷ 3 = $7,360 withheld, about 4 checks. From October on, nothing is withheld.
How much is withheld at different earnings
Benefits withheld for 2027, as long as your benefits for the year are at least this much:
| Earnings counted | Under full retirement age all year | Year you reach full retirement age |
|---|---|---|
| $30,000 | $2,220 | None |
| $40,000 | $7,220 | None |
| $50,000 | $12,220 | None |
| $60,000 | $17,220 | None |
| $75,000 | $24,720 | $2,360 |
| $90,000 | $32,220 | $7,360 |
| $120,000 | $47,220 | $17,360 |
In the year you reach full retirement age, “earnings counted” means only what you earn before that month, so most people in that year have nothing withheld.
What counts as earnings
- Counts: gross wages from a job (including what you put into a 401(k) from your pay) and net earnings from self-employment.
- Doesn’t count: pensions and annuities, IRA and 401(k) withdrawals, interest, dividends, capital gains, rental income and other government benefits.
Those other kinds of income don’t reduce your benefit, but they can make it taxable. Check with the Social Security tax calculator.
The monthly rule in your first year
In the first year you retire, Social Security can use a monthly test instead of the yearly one. For any month in which you earn $2,130 or less in 2027 ($5,660 in the year you reach full retirement age) and don’t do substantial self-employment work, you get your full benefit, whatever you earned earlier in the year. This helps people who retire partway through the year after earning a full salary.
You get the withheld benefits back
Withheld benefits aren’t lost. At full retirement age, Social Security recalculates your benefit as if you hadn’t claimed in the months it held back. Each of those months removes one month of the early-claiming reduction, which is 5/9 of 1% of your full benefit for each of the first 36 months early. So the withheld money comes back as a higher monthly payment for life.
Expecting to earn well over the limit? It can make sense to wait to claim. If you already claimed, tell Social Security your expected earnings so it can adjust your checks rather than ask for money back later.
Formulas used
The calculator doesn’t model the first-year monthly rule, family benefits on your record or earnings counted in a different year from when you were paid. Social Security has its own earnings test calculator for a second check.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Social Security earnings limit for 2027?
Is there an earnings limit after full retirement age?
Do I lose the benefits that are withheld?
Does a pension or 401(k) withdrawal count toward the earnings limit?
How does Social Security withhold the money?
Does the earnings limit apply to SSDI?
Sources
- Receiving benefits while working — Social Security Administration
- How work affects your benefits (Publication EN-05-10069) — Social Security Administration
- 2027 cost-of-living adjustment fact sheet — Social Security Administration
- Full retirement age by year of birth — Social Security Administration
- Retirement earnings test calculator — Social Security Administration