SSI Payment Calculator 2027

How this calculator works

Supplemental Security Income (SSI) is a needs-based federal payment for people who are 65 or older, blind or disabled and have limited income and resources. Unlike Social Security, it does not depend on your work record. Your SSI check is the federal benefit rate minus your "countable" income, and this calculator walks through that subtraction for 2027.

The inputs. Choose individual or couple (both spouses eligible). Enter your monthly unearned income, which includes Social Security, pensions and other non-work income, and your monthly earned income from a job or self-employment. Tell the tool whether someone else provides your housing for free or at reduced cost, and enter your countable resources, such as bank balances (your home and usually one car are not counted).

The formula.

1. Start with the 2027 federal benefit rate (FBR): $1,029 a month for an individual or $1,544 for a couple.
2. Subtract the $20 general exclusion from unearned income. If unearned income is under $20, the unused part carries over to earned income.
3. From earned income, subtract any remaining part of the $20, then $65, then divide what is left by 2.
4. Countable income = countable unearned income + countable earned income.
5. Subtract an in-kind support reduction if it applies: up to $363 a month (the presumed maximum value rule) if you receive some free or reduced-cost shelter, or exactly one-third of the FBR ($343 for an individual) if you live in another person's household and they provide your shelter.
6. SSI = FBR − countable income − in-kind reduction, but not less than zero.

The tool also warns you if your countable resources are above $2,000 for an individual or $3,000 for a couple, because SSI is generally not payable above those limits.

Worked example. Dorothy is 67 and lives alone in her own apartment. She receives $400 a month in Social Security and earns $485 a month from a part-time job. Her savings are $1,500.

Dorothy's total monthly income would be $400 + $485 + $439 = $1,324. Notice how work is treated more generously than Social Security: each extra dollar of benefit reduces SSI by a dollar, but each extra dollar of wages reduces it by only about 50 cents. Her $1,500 in savings is under the $2,000 limit, so she passes the resource test. If you are not sure whether you should be looking at SSI or disability benefits, our SSI vs SSDI guide explains the difference, and our SSDI calculator estimates the work-based benefit.

Limits of this estimate. Many states add a state supplement to the federal SSI payment, and this tool does not include it. It does not apply the special exclusions for students, impairment-related work expenses, plans to achieve self-support, or deeming of a spouse's or parent's income when only one person is eligible. SSA counts income month by month, often using income from two months earlier, so real checks can vary. See our 2027 SSI payment amounts guide for more on the rates.