4 Tips To Reduce Your Social Security Tax Bill in 2026

2 days ago 5

Caitlyn Moorhead

Fri, January 9, 2026 astatine 10:48 AM CST 5 min read

If you’re collecting Social Security benefits, there’s a bully accidental your taxation measure could beryllium higher than successful erstwhile years. With the expiration of cardinal taxation provisions and much retirees entering higher income brackets, knowing however to trim taxes connected Social Security is much important than ever.

Social Security benefits are taxed based connected your provisional income, oregon alternatively a operation of your adjusted gross income, tax-exempt interest, and fractional of your Social Security benefits. If your income exceeds definite thresholds, up to 85% of your benefits whitethorn beryllium taxable. Fortunately, determination are ineligible and strategical ways to little your taxable income and keep much of your status money.

Social Security taxes are a hot-button contented some economically and politically. Hopefully, 2026 brings achieved resolutions and amended economical conditions. For Social Security taxes, you’ll privation to adhd a fewer notes to your status readying erstwhile it comes to filing for the taxation twelvemonth 2025:

The Social Security taxation complaint volition stay 6.2% for employees, with employers paying a matching 6.2% (a full of 12.4%). Self-employed individuals wage the afloat 12.4%, though they tin deduct the employer-equivalent portion.
The maximum magnitude of gross net taxable to the Social Security taxation is $176,100. Earnings supra this bounds are not taxable to the Social Security information of the payroll tax. Also, the maximum Social Security taxation an worker volition wage successful 2025 is $10,918.20 (6.2% of $176,100).
The Medicare taxation complaint remains astatine 1.45% each for the worker and employer, and determination is nary wage basal bounds for Medicare tax; each covered wages are taxable to it.
Taking effect successful 2026, determination volition beryllium a caller tax-free deduction of up to $6,000 for those 65 and older.
Provisional income is determined by adding the combined full of fractional of your Social Security benefits, your tax-exempt interest, and different non-Social Security items (such arsenic jobs oregon investments) that marque up your adjusted gross income.
According to the Social Security Administration, starting this year, determination volition beryllium a taxation connected Social Security benefits akin to backstage pension income. There volition beryllium a phase-out of the lower-income thresholds betwixt 2025 and 2044.
Taxation of Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (OASDI) benefits volition besides summation to $50,000 for azygous filers and $100,000 for associated filers starting successful 2026.