It’s always intriguing to see how much money other people are making. And that goes for Social Security benefit checks, too.
The Social Security Administration publishes a variety of statistics about the benefits it pays out. We checked their latest data (from December 2022) to highlight the states where people get the highest and lowest average benefits. Specifically, we wanted to know:
- A state’s average and median monthly benefit paid to retired workers
- Its number of retired workers receiving Social Security
- The total the state pays out annually in Social Security retirement benefits
Following is a look at states where retired Social Security recipients’ monthly benefits are, on average, the biggest in the nation. After that, we have the states where such recipients receive the smallest average benefit amount.
10. Utah
For retired workers in this state:
- Average monthly Social Security benefit: $1,901
- Median monthly benefit: $1,859
- Number of beneficiaries: 330,823
- Total annual benefits paid: $6.76 billion
9. Massachusetts
For retired workers in this state:
- Average monthly Social Security benefit: $1,910
- Median monthly benefit: $1,860
- Number of beneficiaries: 966,118
- Total annual benefits paid: $19.64 billion
8. Michigan
For retired workers in this state:
- Average monthly Social Security benefit: $1,918
- Median monthly benefit: $1,931
- Number of beneficiaries: 1,638,924
- Total annual benefits paid: $33.62 billion
7. Minnesota
For retired workers in this state:
- Average monthly Social Security benefit: $1,924
- Median monthly benefit: $1,898
- Number of beneficiaries: 856,950
- Total annual benefits paid: $17.44 billion
6. Washington
For retired workers in this state:
- Average monthly Social Security benefit: $1,933
- Median monthly benefit: $1,910
- Number of beneficiaries: 1,098,757
- Total annual benefits paid: $22.67 billion
5. Maryland
For retired workers in this state:
- Average monthly Social Security benefit: $1,960
- Median monthly benefit: $1,922
- Number of beneficiaries: 798,028
- Total annual benefits paid: $16.62 billion
4. New Hampshire
For retired workers in this state:
- Average monthly Social Security benefit: $1,994
- Median monthly benefit: $1,946
- Number of beneficiaries: 245,379
- Total annual benefits paid: $5.15 billion
3. Delaware
For retired workers in this state:
- Average monthly Social Security benefit: $1,998
- Median monthly benefit: $1,979
- Number of beneficiaries: 182,497
- Total annual benefits paid: $3.83 billion
2. New Jersey
For retired workers in this state:
- Average monthly Social Security benefit: $2,020.14
- Median monthly benefit: $2,016
- Number of beneficiaries: 1,274,772
- Total annual benefits paid: $27.50 billion
1. Connecticut
For retired workers in this state:
- Average monthly Social Security benefit: $2,020.41
- Median monthly benefit: $1,996
- Number of beneficiaries: 546,322
- Total annual benefits paid: $11.74 billion
Where retirees have the smallest Social Security benefits
In the following states, Social Security beneficiaries earn the smallest average monthly benefit. The last state is the one where beneficiaries’ average checks are the smallest in the nation.
10. West Virginia
For retired workers in this state:
- Average monthly Social Security benefit: $1,770
- Median monthly benefit: $1,744
- Number of beneficiaries: 306,268
- Total annual benefits paid: $5.90 billion
9. South Dakota
For retired workers in this state:
- Average monthly Social Security benefit: $1,767
- Median monthly benefit: $1,706
- Number of beneficiaries: 151,144
- Total annual benefits paid: $2.82 billion
8. Alaska
For retired workers in this state:
- Average monthly Social Security benefit: $1,759
- Median monthly benefit: $1,660
- Number of beneficiaries: 84,579
- Total annual benefits paid: $1.58 billion
7. Montana
For retired workers in this state:
- Average monthly Social Security benefit: $1,739
- Median monthly benefit: $1,680
- Number of beneficiaries: 196,144
- Total annual benefits paid: $3.61 billion
6. Maine
For retired workers in this state:
- Average monthly Social Security benefit: $1,734
- Median monthly benefit: $1,666
- Number of beneficiaries: 266,516
- Total annual benefits paid: $4.90 billion
5. Kentucky
For retired workers in this state:
- Average monthly Social Security benefit: $1,730
- Median monthly benefit: $1,682
- Number of beneficiaries: 661,892
- Total annual benefits paid: $12.28 billion
4. New Mexico
For retired workers in this state:
- Average monthly Social Security benefit: $1,724
- Median monthly benefit: $1,630
- Number of beneficiaries: 335,665
- Total annual benefits paid: $6.17 billion
3. Arkansas
For retired workers in this state:
- Average monthly Social Security benefit: $1,719
- Median monthly benefit: $1,652
- Number of beneficiaries: 477,621
- Total annual benefits paid: $8.76 billion
2. Louisiana
For retired workers in this state:
- Average monthly Social Security benefit: $1,690
- Median monthly benefit: $1,611
- Number of beneficiaries: 600,241
- Total annual benefits paid: $10.99 billion
1. Mississippi
For retired workers in this state:
- Average monthly Social Security benefit: $1,689
- Median monthly benefit: $1,611
- Number of beneficiaries: 456,819
- Total annual benefits paid: $8.25 billion
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