- Social Security
- What is Social Security?
- Who Pays for Social Security?
- Who Gets Social Security?
- What is the Social Security Retirement Age?
- How Do Benefits Compare to Earnings?
- The Role of Benefits in Income and Poverty
- Where Do Social Security Taxes Go?
- Social Security's Future Finances
- Public Opinions on Social Security
- How Will Boomers Affect Social Security?
- Social Security as a Share of the Economy
- Options to Balance Social Security Finances
- Proposals for Private Accounts
- Children's Stake in Social Security
- Social Security and People of Color
- Women's Stake in Social Security
- Social Security, Marriage, and Divorce
- Social Security for Widowed Spouses in Retirement
- What is Social Security Disability Insurance?
- Key Dates in the History of Social Security
- Social Security: Just the Facts on Finances, Benefits, and Public Opinion
- About the Social Security Section of this Sourcebook
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Social Security: Just the Facts Video
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Who Gets Social Security?
About 56 million people collect Social Security benefits each month, and they account for about one in six people in the United States. In about one household in four, someone is receiving Social Security benefits.
About 36 million retired workers receive benefits and another 2.9 million individuals receive benefits as spouses or children of retired workers. A total of 6.3 million people receive benefits as survivors of deceased workers, and these beneficiaries include 4.0 million aged widows and widowers and 1.9 million children. Another 8.7 million people receive benefits as disabled workers, and 2.1 million people receive benefits as the child or spouse of a disabled worker. A total of 3.3 million children under age 18 receive Social Security and another 1.0 million adults who have been disabled since childhood get benefits as dependents of a retired, disabled or deceased parent.
Total Beneficiaries: 56,174,638
| Beneficiaries | Number of Beneficiaries | Average Monthly Benefit |
|---|---|---|
| Retired Workers and their Families | 39,096,606 | |
| Retired workers | 36,202,371 | $1,234 |
| Wives and husbands of retired workers | 2,284,752 | $610 |
| Children of retired workers | 609,483 | $605 |
| Survivors of Deceased Workers | 6,279,346 | |
| Widows and widowers and parents aged 60 and older | 3,960,341 | $1,190 |
| Children of deceased workers | 1,911,337 | $786 |
| Young widows and widowers | 152,091 | $880 |
| Disabled widows and widowers | 254,110 | $702 |
| Disabled Workers and their Families | 10,798,686 | |
| Disabled workers | 8,733,461 | $1,111 |
| Wives and husbands of disabled workers | 165,469 | $299 |
| Children of disabled workers | 1,899,756 | $330 |
Source link: http://www.ssa.gov/cgi-bin/currentpay.cgi
In 2011, Social Security paid $725 billion in benefits to retired workers, disabled persons, and dependents of retired, disabled or deceased workers. Of the total benefit payments, 67 percent was paid to retirees and their families, 15 percent was paid to survivors of deceased workers, and 18 percent was paid to disabled workers and their families.
For more information, see:
- Social Security Benefits, Finances, and Policy Options: A Primer
- Social Security Across Generations: Benefit Cuts Will Fall on Today's Children and Grandchildren, Social Security Fact Sheet No. 1
- Strengthening Social Security for the Long Run, Social Security Brief No. 35
- The Effects of Reducing Eligibility Requirements for Social Security Retirement Benefits
- Crediting Care in Social Security: A Proposal for an Income Tested Care Credit
- Retirement Security for Family Elder Care Givers with Labor Force Employment
- Children's Stake in Social Security, Social Security Brief No. 27
- Survivor Benefits for Families of Deceased Service members and Overseas Contract Workers, Social Security Brief No. 23
Read what some NASI members think:*
- Elisa Walker: "Social Security: It’s for young people, too” (2012)
- Jasmine Tucker: "Thankful for Three Key Social Insurance Programs That Kept More Than 24.0 Million Americans Out of Poverty in 2010” (2011)
- Anna Rappaport: "Women are the majority of older Americans and many of them are alone" (2005)
* The views of NASI members are their own and not an official position of the National Academy of Social Insurance or its funders.
