Among Social Security beneficiaries age 65 and older, 37% of men and 42% of women

The FINANCIAL — Social Security is the major source of income for most people over age 65.
Nearly nine out of ten people age 65 and older were receiving a Social Security benefit as of June 30, 2023.

Social Security benefits represent about 30% of the income of people over age 65, according to U.S. Government
Among Social Security beneficiaries age 65 and older, 37% of men and 42% of women receive 50% or more of their income from Social Security.
Among Social Security beneficiaries age 65 and older, 12% of men and 15% of women rely on Social Security for 90% or more of their income.

Social Security provides more than just retirement benefits.

Retired workers and their dependents accounted for 76.9% of total benefits paid in 2022. ο Disabled workers and their dependents accounted for 11.6% of total benefits paid in
2022.
– About 90 percent of workers aged 21-64 in covered employment in 2022 and their families have protection in the event of a severe and prolonged disability.
– About 1 in 4 of today’s 20 year-olds will become disabled and entitled to Social Security disabled worker benefits before reaching age 67.
– 65% of the private sector workforce has no long-term disability insurance.
ο Survivors of deceased workers accounted for 11.5% of total benefits paid in 2022.

More than one in eight of today’s 20-year-olds will die before reaching age 67.

– About 96% of persons aged 20-49 who worked in covered employment in 2022 have survivor insurance protection for their children under age 18 (and surviving spouses caring for children under age 16).
An estimated 180 million workers will work in OASDI-covered employment in 2023.
– 31% of the workforce in private industry has no access to private pension coverage. ο About two-thirds (63%) of workers report they are currently saving for retirement.
Having an employer-sponsored retirement savings plan is a key factor in whether Americans save for retirement. Only 16% of those without access to an employer- sponsored plan said they have any retirement savings.
– In 1940, the life expectancy of a 65-year-old was almost 14 years; today, it is over 20 years.
– The number of Americans 65 and older will increase from about 58 million in 2022 to about 75 million by 2035. 1
– In 2023, there are an estimated 2.7 covered workers per each Social Security beneficiary. By 2035, the Trustees estimate there will be 2.3 covered workers for each beneficiary.

Did You Know That…

70.6 million people received benefits from programs administered by the Social Security Administration (SSA) in 2022.

5.6 million people were newly awarded Social Security benefits in 2022.

55% of adult Social Security beneficiaries in 2022 were women.

55.6 was the average age of disabled-worker beneficiaries in 2022.

85% of Supplemental Security Income (SSI) recipients received payments because of disability or blindness in 2022.

Earnings in Covered Employment, 1937–2022

People contribute to Social Security through payroll taxes or self-employment taxes, as required by the Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) and the Self-Employment Contributions Act (SECA). The maximum taxable amount is updated annually on the basis of increases in the average wage. Of the 181 million workers with earnings in Social Security–covered employment in 2022, about 7% had earnings that equaled or exceeded the maximum amount subject to taxes, compared with 3% when the program began and a peak of 36% in 1965. About 83% of earnings in covered employment were taxable in 2022, compared with 92% in 1937.

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Insured Status, 1970–2022

The percentage of persons aged 20 or older who are insured for benefits has changed very little in recent years. To be fully insured, a worker must have at least one work credit (quarter of coverage) for each year elapsed after age 21 (but no earlier than 1950) and before the year in which he or she attains age 62, becomes disabled, or dies. The maximum number of work credits needed to be fully insured is 40. An individual is said to be permanently insured if he or she has earned 40 work credits. To be insured for disability, the worker must be fully insured and have at least 20 work credits during the last 40 calendar quarters. (Requirements for disability-insured status are somewhat different for persons younger than age 31.) Disability benefits are available up to FRA.

Insured workers as a percentage of the corresponding Social Security area population, selected years

Year	Population aged 20 or older			Population aged 20 to FRA a
	Millions	Percentage permanently insured	Percentage fully insured	Millions	Percentage insured for disability
1970	135.1	50	77	113.9	63
1975	147.4	50	80	123.8	66
1980	161.8	53	83	135.2	70
1985	174.9	57	84	145.5	72
1990	186.0	63	86	153.7	75
1995	196.0	66	86	161.6	76
2000	206.9	68	87	171.3	78
2005	219.5	68	87	183.2	78
2010	230.6	69	87	191.8	76
2015	242.6	69	88	197.5	76
2020	251.1	70	89	198.7	77
2021	252.4	70	89	199.4	78
2022	254.3	70	89	200.4	78
SOURCE: SSA, Office of the Chief Actuary.
NOTES: The population in the Social Security area includes residents of the 50 states and the District of Columbia adjusted for net census undercount; civilian residents of American Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and U.S. Virgin Islands; federal civilian employees and persons in the U.S. armed forces abroad and their dependents; noncitizens living abroad who are insured for Social Security benefits; and all other U.S. citizens abroad.
Figures are subject to revision.   Insured Status, by Sex, 1970 and 2022 Although men historically were more likely than women to be insured, the gender gap is shrinking. The proportion of men who are insured declined slightly from 1970 to 2022, with 91% fully insured and 80% insured for disability in 2022. By contrast, the proportion of women who are insured increased dramatically—from 63% to 88% fully insured and from 41% to 76% insured for disability. Show as table SOURCE: SSA, Office of the Chief Actuary. NOTES: The population in the Social Security area includes residents of the 50 states and the District of Columbia adjusted for net census undercount; civilian residents of American Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and U.S. Virgin Islands; federal civilian employees and persons in the U.S. armed forces abroad and their dependents; noncitizens living abroad who are insured for Social Security benefits; and all other U.S. citizens abroad. Figures are subject to revision. a. Insured for disability excludes those who have reached FRA. New Benefit Awards, 2022 Benefits were awarded to about 5.6 million persons; of those, 61% were retired workers and 9% were disabled workers. The remaining 30% were survivors or the spouses and children of retired or disabled workers. These awards represent not only new entrants to the benefit rolls but also persons already on the rolls who become entitled to a different benefit, particularly conversions of disabled-worker benefits to retired-worker benefits at FRA. New awards, by type of beneficiary Beneficiary Number (thousands) Percent Total 5,609 100 Retired workers and dependents 3,895 69 Workers 3,413 61 Spouses and children 481 9 Disabled workers and dependents 732 13 Workers 509 9 Spouses and children 222 4 Survivors of deceased workers 982 18 SOURCE: SSA, Master Beneficiary Record, 100 percent data. NOTE: Totals do not necessarily equal the sum of rounded components. Beneficiaries, by Age, December 2022 More than four-fifths of all OASDI beneficiaries in current-payment status were aged 62 or older, including 26% aged 75–84 and 9% aged 85 or older. About 10% were persons aged 18–61 receiving benefits as disabled workers, survivors, or dependents. Another 4% were children under age 18. SOURCE: SSA, Master Beneficiary Record, 100 percent data. Beneficiaries, by Sex, December 2022 Of all adults receiving monthly Social Security benefits, 45% were men and 55% were women. Eighty-five percent of the men and 72% of the women received retired-worker benefits. Eleven percent of the women received survivor benefits. SOURCE: SSA, Master Beneficiary Record, 100 percent data. a. Less than 1 percent of men received benefits as survivors (widowers or fathers) or as spouses of retired and disabled workers.