On October 10, 2024, the Social Security Administration announced a 2.5% benefit increase for 2025. This cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) is smaller than last year’s COLA which saw a benefit increase of 3.2%. Over the last decade, the COLA increase has averaged about 2.6%.
Beginning in January of 2025, approximately 68 million Social Security beneficiaries will see an increase in benefits. For the approximately 7.5 million SSI beneficiaries, the cost-of-living adjustment will begin on December 31, 2024.
The average Social Security benefit will increase by $50. For SSI recipients, the federal maximum will increase from $943 to $967 a month for individuals and from $1,415 to $1,450 for couples.
The threshold for substantial gainful activity (SGA) will also increase in 2025. In order to be eligible for disability benefits, a person must be unable to engage in substantial gainful activity. A person who is earning more than a certain monthly amount is ordinarily considered to be engaging in SGA. The threshold for SGA will increase from $1,550 a month for the non-blind and $2,590 for the blind to $1,620 for the non-blind and $2,700 for the blind.
To learn more about Social Security disability and SSI benefits, contact an experienced Social Security disability attorney at Gardberg & Kemmerly, P.C. today at 251-343-1111 for a free case evaluation. Gardberg & Kemmerly, P.C. represents Social Security disability claimants in Alabama, Mississippi, Florida, and Louisiana at all levels of the disability process from initial application to appeals to Federal Court.