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As of Oct. 16, 2026
Sources: 26 U.S.C. 86 · IRS Pub. 915 · IRS FS-2025-03
Use yearly amounts. Your benefits are box 5 of Form SSA-1099. This follows IRS Pub. 915 Worksheet 1. Nothing you type leaves your phone.
Check your number before you file, then decide on withholding. If part of your benefit will be taxable, you can have 7%, 10%, 12% or 22% withheld from each payment (Form W-4V) instead of owing a lump sum at tax time. If none is taxable and Social Security is your only income, you may not have to file a return at all (IRS).
The math:
Sources: 26 U.S.C. 86 · IRS Pub. 915 · IRS Topic 423 · SSA: withholding
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| Filing status | 0% taxable up to | Up to 85% taxable above |
|---|---|---|
| Single, head of household, surviving spouse | $25,000 | $34,000 |
| Married filing jointly | $32,000 | $44,000 |
| Married filing separately, lived apart all year | $25,000 | $34,000 |
| Married filing separately, lived together | $0 | $0 (up to 85% taxable) |
Between the two amounts, up to 50% of benefits can be taxable. Sources: 26 U.S.C. 86 · IRS Pub. 915. The law has no inflation adjustment for these amounts, so they are the same for 2025 and 2026.
No. The 2025 law (Pub. L. 119-21) didn't change how Social Security is taxed. It added a $6,000 deduction for each person 65 or older (by the end of the tax year) for tax years 2025 through 2028, on top of the existing extra standard deduction for age 65. A married couple who are both 65+ can get $12,000. It works whether or not you itemize, but you must put the qualifying person's Social Security number on the return and file jointly if married. Each $6,000 shrinks by 6% of modified adjusted gross income over $75,000 ($150,000 joint), so it is gone at $175,000 single or $250,000 joint. Example: single, MAGI $85,000 → $6,000 − 6% × $10,000 = $5,400. Sources: 26 U.S.C. 151(d)(5)(C) · IRS FS-2025-03
Social Security lets you withhold 7%, 10%, 12% or 22% of each monthly payment for federal income tax. Start, change or stop it online in my Social Security, by phone at 1-800-772-1213, or with IRS Form W-4V. You can also pay quarterly estimated tax, or have more withheld from a pension or wages. Sources: SSA: withholding · IRS Form W-4V · IRS Topic 423
The person with the legal right to the benefit reports it. Benefits paid for a child are the child's, even if the check is in your name. On a joint return you combine both spouses' income and benefits, even if only one gets benefits. Source: IRS Topic 423
Why trust this: every number links to the statute or IRS/SSA page it comes from, with the date we checked it. The calculator reproduces IRS Pub. 915's own worked examples exactly.
Not tax advice. We republish federal rules with dates and do the IRS worksheet math on what you type.
Up to 85% of benefits can be taxable income, depending on your other income. Add half your benefits to your other income, including tax-exempt interest. If that's $25,000 or less ($32,000 married filing jointly), none is taxable; above $34,000 ($44,000 joint), up to 85% is (26 U.S.C. 86, IRS Pub. 915).
No. Pub. L. 119-21 added a $6,000 deduction for each person 65 or older for 2025 through 2028, reduced by 6% of MAGI over $75,000 ($150,000 joint). It lowers taxable income but doesn't change how much of your benefit is taxable.
Half of your Social Security benefits plus your other income, including tax-exempt interest, minus certain adjustments. IRS Pub. 915 Worksheet 1 calculates it.
No. The base amounts ($25,000 / $32,000) and the 85% thresholds ($34,000 / $44,000) are fixed in 26 U.S.C. 86, so they're the same every year.
Yes. You can withhold 7%, 10%, 12% or 22% of each payment, online in my Social Security, by calling 1-800-772-1213, or with IRS Form W-4V.
Often not. The IRS says if Social Security was your only income, your benefits may not be taxable and you may not have to file a return.
Facts, not financial advice, and not an SSA benefit estimate. Rules and amounts change yearly; check your own record and estimates at ssa.gov/myaccount.