{
  "id": "social-security-tax",
  "version": "2798844e51d6",
  "status": "published",
  "name": "Taxable Social Security Calculator",
  "question": "My taxable Social Security benefits?",
  "summary": "Works out how much of your Social Security benefits is taxable income, with the IRS Publication 915 worksheet: 0%, up to 50%, or up to 85%.",
  "category": "finance",
  "subcategory": "tax-and-pay",
  "url": "https://www.acalculator.org/finance/social-security-tax-calculator",
  "markdown": "https://www.acalculator.org/finance/social-security-tax-calculator.md",
  "kind": "function",
  "method": "Provisional income = ½ benefits + other income + tax-exempt interest + exclusions − adjustments; taxable = the smaller of ½ × min(over base, second step) capped at ½ benefits plus 85% × (over base − second step), and 85% of benefits (IRS Pub 915 Worksheet 1).",
  "assumptions": [
    "Follows IRS Publication 915 Worksheet 1. The base amounts ($25,000 and $32,000) and the second step ($9,000 and $12,000) are set by law (IRC section 86) and do not change with inflation.",
    "Single also covers head of household, qualifying surviving spouse, and married filing separately when you lived apart from your spouse all year.",
    "No lump-sum payment for an earlier year (Pub 915 Worksheets 2 to 4 can lower the taxable amount) and no repayments larger than the benefits.",
    "Enter other income as it appears on Form 1040; for the savings bond or employer adoption exclusions, add the excluded amounts back as Pub 915 says."
  ],
  "inputs": {
    "$schema": "https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema",
    "type": "object",
    "properties": {
      "status": {
        "title": "Filing status",
        "description": "Single, head of household, qualifying surviving spouse, or married filing separately and living apart all year; married filing jointly; or married filing separately and living together at any time in the year.",
        "type": "string",
        "enum": [
          "single",
          "joint",
          "separate"
        ]
      },
      "benefits": {
        "title": "Social Security benefits",
        "description": "Net benefits for the year: box 5 of all Forms SSA-1099 and RRB-1099 (both spouses on a joint return).",
        "type": "number",
        "x-unit": "USD",
        "minimum": 0,
        "maximum": 10000000
      },
      "income": {
        "title": "Other taxable income",
        "description": "All other income on your return: wages, taxable pensions and IRA withdrawals, taxable interest, dividends, capital gains (Worksheet 1 line 3).",
        "type": "number",
        "x-unit": "USD",
        "minimum": 0,
        "maximum": 100000000
      },
      "exempt": {
        "title": "Tax-exempt interest",
        "description": "Tax-exempt interest, such as municipal bond interest (Form 1040 line 2a; Worksheet 1 line 4).",
        "type": "number",
        "x-unit": "USD",
        "minimum": 0,
        "maximum": 100000000
      },
      "excluded": {
        "title": "Excluded income",
        "description": "Excluded adoption benefits, foreign earned income or housing, and income of bona fide residents of American Samoa or Puerto Rico (Worksheet 1 line 5).",
        "type": "number",
        "x-unit": "USD",
        "minimum": 0,
        "maximum": 100000000
      },
      "adjust": {
        "title": "Adjustments to income",
        "description": "Schedule 1 adjustments such as a deductible IRA contribution, HSA deduction, or half of self-employment tax (Worksheet 1 line 7; student loan interest does not count).",
        "type": "number",
        "x-unit": "USD",
        "minimum": 0,
        "maximum": 100000000
      }
    }
  },
  "outputs": {
    "taxable": {
      "label": "Taxable benefits",
      "description": "The part of your benefits that is taxable income (Worksheet 1 line 19; Form 1040 line 6b).",
      "format": "money"
    },
    "share": {
      "label": "Share of benefits taxable",
      "description": "Taxable benefits divided by the benefits: 0 to 85%.",
      "format": "percent"
    },
    "provisional": {
      "label": "Provisional income",
      "description": "Half of the benefits plus other income, tax-exempt interest and excluded income, minus adjustments (Worksheet 1 line 8).",
      "format": "money"
    },
    "baseAmount": {
      "label": "Base amount",
      "description": "$25,000, or $32,000 for a joint return; 0 for a separate return while living together.",
      "format": "money"
    },
    "maxTaxable": {
      "label": "Most that can be taxable",
      "description": "85% of the benefits (Worksheet 1 line 18).",
      "format": "money"
    }
  },
  "defaultAnswer": {
    "inputs": {
      "status": "single",
      "benefits": 24000,
      "income": 30000,
      "exempt": 0,
      "excluded": 0,
      "adjust": 0
    },
    "outputs": {
      "taxable": 11300,
      "share": 47.083333333333336,
      "provisional": 42000,
      "baseAmount": 25000,
      "maxTaxable": 20400
    },
    "text": "Of $24,000.00 in Social Security benefits with $30,000.00 of other income, $11,300.00 is taxable (47.08% of the benefits)."
  },
  "examples": [
    {
      "given": {
        "status": "single",
        "benefits": 5980,
        "income": 28990,
        "exempt": 0,
        "excluded": 0,
        "adjust": 0
      },
      "expect": {
        "provisional": 31980,
        "taxable": 2990
      },
      "source": "IRS Publication 915 (2025), Example 1 and filled-in Worksheet 1: taxable benefits $2,990"
    },
    {
      "given": {
        "status": "joint",
        "benefits": 5600,
        "income": 29750,
        "exempt": 0,
        "excluded": 0,
        "adjust": 1000
      },
      "expect": {
        "provisional": 31550,
        "taxable": 0
      },
      "source": "IRS Publication 915 (2025), Example 2 (Casey and Pat Hopkins): none of the benefits are taxable"
    },
    {
      "given": {
        "status": "joint",
        "benefits": 10000,
        "income": 40500,
        "exempt": 0,
        "excluded": 0,
        "adjust": 0
      },
      "expect": {
        "provisional": 45500,
        "taxable": 6275,
        "share": 62.75
      },
      "source": "IRS Publication 915 (2025), Example 3 (Jamie and Jessie Johnson): taxable benefits $6,275"
    },
    {
      "given": {
        "status": "separate",
        "benefits": 4000,
        "income": 8000,
        "exempt": 0,
        "excluded": 0,
        "adjust": 0
      },
      "expect": {
        "provisional": 10000,
        "taxable": 3400
      },
      "source": "IRS Publication 915 (2025), Example 4 (Kris Jones, married filing separately, lived together): $3,400"
    }
  ],
  "sources": [
    "Internal Revenue Service, Publication 915 (2025), Social Security and Equivalent Railroad Retirement Benefits, Worksheet 1 and Examples 1 to 4: https://www.irs.gov/publications/p915",
    "Internal Revenue Code section 86, Social security and tier 1 railroad retirement benefits: https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/26/86"
  ],
  "related": [
    "social-security",
    "rmd",
    "401k-withdrawal-tax"
  ],
  "changelog": []
}