Social Security beneficiaries can expect to get official notice of the size of their 2024 benefit checks from the Social Security Administration.
But if you want to know now about how much you are set to receive, you can calculate the figure on your own.
Social Security benefits will go up by 3.2% starting in January, thanks to an annual cost-of-living adjustment.
That will amount to an increase of more than $50 per month on average for retirement benefits, according to the Social Security Administration.
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The increase is much lower than the 8.7% COLA that was put in place in 2023. That prompted a benefit boost of more than $140 per month on average, the Social Security Administration said when that increase was announced.
How much individual beneficiaries receive in 2023 may vary based on certain factors. That includes how much you pay for Medicare Part B premiums, which are often taken directly from Social Security checks, as well as any tax withholdings you have elected from your benefits.
Standard monthly Part B premiums will go up by $9.80 per month to $174.40 in 2024 versus $164.90 in 2023.
How to calculate your Social Security COLA for 2024
There are two ways you can calculate how much your 2024 monthly Social Security check may be, according to Joe Elsasser, a certified financial planner and founder and president of Covisum, a provider of Social Security claiming software.
The best way is to take the amount of your current Social Security check and add back your monthly Medicare Part B premium, if it is deducted from your check. In 2023, the standard monthly Part B premium is $164.90. However, higher income beneficiaries pay more, including single individuals with more than $97,000 in income and married couples with more than $194,000.
Then, apply the COLA to the entire benefit, including what you are having withheld for taxes. Next, subtract the the new Medicare Part B premium for 2024, as well as taxes at the rate you have withheld. Next year, the standard monthly Part B premium will be $174.70. Higher income individuals with more than $103,000 in income, and married couples with over $206,000, will pay more.
That should give you the size of your benefit for next year, according to Elsasser.
Alternatively, you can do a rough calculation by taking the monthly benefit you’re getting today and multiplying by 1.032.
“It would be a rough calculation, but it’s a reasonable guess,” Elsasser said.
How your 2024 benefit compares to others’
The maximum benefit for a retired worker who claims at full retirement age will go up to $3,822 per month in 2024, up from $3,627 per month in 2023.
The average benefit for all retired workers will be $1,907 in 2024, up from $1,848 in 2023, according to the Social Security Administration.