Is Social Security Included in a Tax Bracket?

Whether your Social Security benefits are subject to federal income tax depends on the total income you receive from all sources. If your total income is below certain thresholds, your benefits are not taxed. For those with other income streams, such as retirement account withdrawals or wages, a portion of their benefits may be considered taxable by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

Determining if Your Benefits are Taxable

To determine if your benefits are taxable, you must first calculate your “combined income.” This figure is the sum of your Adjusted Gross Income (AGI), any nontaxable interest you received, and one-half of your total Social Security benefits for the year. Your AGI includes most of your retirement income, such as withdrawals from a 401(k) or traditional IRA, pension payments, wages from any part-time work, and capital gains. Nontaxable interest, often from municipal bonds, must also be included for this calculation.

You then compare your combined income to federal thresholds, which vary by filing status. For an individual filing as single, head of household, or a qualifying widow(er), a portion of your benefits may be taxable if your combined income is between $25,000 and $34,000. For married couples filing a joint return, this range is $32,000 to $44,000.

If your income exceeds these ranges—over $34,000 for single filers or $44,000 for joint filers—a larger portion of your benefits is taxed. The rules are stricter for those who are married and file separate tax returns, as you will likely have to pay taxes on your benefits. These income thresholds have not been adjusted for inflation, meaning more beneficiaries become subject to this tax over time.

Calculating the Taxable Portion of Your Benefits

After determining that your benefits are taxable, the next step is to calculate the specific dollar amount to include in your taxable income. The annual Social Security benefit totals needed for this calculation are provided on Form SSA-1099, which you receive each January. The calculation method depends on which income tier you fall into.

For those in the first income tier, the taxable portion of your benefits is the lesser of two amounts: 50% of your total Social Security benefits, or 50% of the amount by which your combined income exceeds the first income threshold. For instance, if a single filer has $20,000 in Social Security benefits and a combined income of $30,000, their income exceeds the first threshold by $5,000. Half of that excess is $2,500, which is less than 50% of their benefits ($10,000), so $2,500 is the taxable amount.

For those in the second, higher-income tier, up to 85% of benefits can be taxed. The taxable amount is the lesser of two figures: 85% of your total Social Security benefits, or a more complex formula. This formula is 85% of your combined income over the second income threshold, plus the smaller of either the amount calculated under the 50% rule or a fixed amount ($4,500 for single filers, $6,000 for joint filers).

To illustrate, consider a married couple with $30,000 in Social Security benefits and a combined income of $50,000. Their income is $6,000 over the second threshold. 85% of this excess is $5,100. You would then add the fixed amount of $6,000, for a total of $11,100. Because $11,100 is less than 85% of their benefits ($25,500), $11,100 is their taxable Social Security amount.

How Taxable Benefits Affect Your Tax Bracket

Your Social Security benefits are not placed into a tax bracket on their own. Instead, the taxable portion of your benefits—the dollar amount calculated previously—is added to your other taxable income sources, such as your AGI. This new, higher total taxable income is what is then subjected to the standard federal income tax brackets and their corresponding rates.

The inclusion of taxable Social Security benefits increases your overall taxable income, which can push some of your other earnings into a higher marginal tax bracket. The marginal tax rate is the rate you pay on your last dollar of income. For example, without taxable benefits, your total income might fall within the 12% tax bracket.

However, after adding the taxable portion of your Social Security, your total income might cross the threshold into the 22% bracket. This does not mean all your income is taxed at 22%. It means that the dollars falling into that higher bracket will be taxed at that rate, increasing your overall tax liability.

State Income Taxes on Social Security

The tax treatment of Social Security benefits at the state level is separate from federal rules, and each state establishes its own regulations. Most states do not impose a tax on Social Security benefits. This group includes states that have a broad state income tax but specifically exempt Social Security income.

A separate category includes states that have no state-level income tax at all. As of 2025, this list includes:

• Alaska
• Florida
• Nevada
• New Hampshire
• South Dakota
• Tennessee
• Texas
• Washington
• Wyoming

For 2025, the following nine states tax Social Security benefits to some extent. The rules in these states vary widely, with most offering their own income-based exemptions or credits that differ from federal thresholds.

• Colorado
• Connecticut
• Minnesota
• Montana
• New Mexico
• Rhode Island
• Utah
• Vermont
• West Virginia

While West Virginia is on this list for 2025, it is in the process of phasing out the tax, which is scheduled to be fully eliminated in 2026.