In 2022, the average monthly benefit for all Social Security recipients will be $1,657 with the cost of living adjustment (COLA). There’s a lot of nuance that isn’t taken into account here, as is usually the case when using an average for the entire population. Accordingly, GO Banking Rates decided to examine the amount of Social Security benefits received by various populations and benefits rather than simply looking at an overall figure.
More than 65 million people receive these types of benefits. These include retirees’ spouses and children, as well as those receiving Old-Age and Survivor Insurance (OASI). Those with disability insurance make up a smaller portion of the population and may include their spouses and children.
GO Banking Rates used data from the most recent SSA Monthly Statistics Snapshot, which was released in November 2021, but the Social Security Administration is increasing benefits for 2022. The 2022 COLA is not included in the snapshot, so the figures are lower.
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Old-Age and Survivors Insurance
Old-Age and Survivors Insurance provides benefits to the vast majority of Social Security recipients. An estimated 56 million people in this group comprise nearly 86% of all Social Security recipients. Of course, with such a large group comes a large payout: Old-Age and Survivors Insurance recipients receive more than $83 billion each month. Monthly benefits total $1,490.85 on average.
Even so, it’s possible that this number isn’t specific enough. Since most of us will focus on retirees, this number represents only a subset of the total retirement benefits available. There were 47,248,000 retired workers receiving nearly $74 billion each month as of the November 2021 snapshot, according to the census. In total, each employee will receive an average monthly benefit of $1,563.82.
Even though it includes retired workers’ spouses and children, the overall average is lower because of this. The primary insurance amount of a retired worker’s spouse, who account for 3.3% of all recipients of retirement benefits, can be “as much as half” of that amount. In total, spouses receive $1.73 billion in monthly benefits, or an average of $793.59 per couple.
Those receiving survivor benefits are also included in this group, in addition to those receiving pensions. There are several distinct groups that receive this type of benefit, despite the fact that it is a smaller one with only 5.86 million recipients. Survivor benefits total $7.3 billion in payouts, with an average monthly benefit of $1,250.46.
A survivor’s benefit may be available to any of the following groups:
Children of workers who have perished. Those who have lost a parent. Widows who are not disabled. Widows who are unable to care for themselves because of illness or injury. The families of workers who have died.
Of these, the children of deceased workers and the non-disabled widow(er)s receive the majority of the survivor benefits. 3 percent of beneficiaries are children of deceased workers, and they receive an average of $923.05. Each month, the company receives an average of $1.8 billion in dividends. 5.5% of all Social Security recipients are non-disabled widows or widowers, and they receive an average of $1,467.14 per month. Every month, they pay out $5.2 billion in dividends.
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Insurance Of Disability
The Social Security Administration also handles payments for Disability Insurance. Despite the fact that it is a smaller group, it still includes more than 9 million recipients across the country. Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) are two types of disability insurance. There are two separate programmes in the Social Security Administration, but the medical requirements are the same for both of them.
The average monthly disability benefit is $1,154.07 when all benefits are taken into account. This group makes up 14.2 percent of Social Security recipients, compared to 85.8 percent of those who receive Old-Age and Survivors Insurance benefits.
There are disabled workers, their spouses, and their children in disability insurance. Disabled workers, of course, receive the most money each month, with an average of $1,282.39. They also make up the majority of those receiving disability insurance, making up 12.1% of all those receiving Social Security benefits. They receive $10.1 billion in monthly compensation.
Most of the rest goes to the children of disabled workers, who account for just 1.9 percent of all recipients. For a total monthly payout of $504 million, their average monthly benefit is $403.37. Only 0.1 percent of Social Security recipients are spouses. There is a total payout of $35 million, with a monthly benefit of $357.24.