The 2017 average SSDI payment and how it was set

In 2017, the average SSDI payment was $1,171 per month. This figure came from a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) that Social Security applies each year based on inflation. The 2017 COLA was 2 percent, which meant payments rose by roughly 2 percent from what they had been in 2016.

The actual payment you would have received in 2017 depended on your work history and the age at which you started receiving benefits. Someone who had worked longer or earned more during their working years would have received a higher payment. Someone who started benefits at a younger age would have received less than the average, because Social Security spreads the same lifetime benefit across more years.

Social Security calculates your payment using a formula based on your Primary Insurance Amount (PIA) — a number derived from your 35 highest-earning years. The 2017 COLA affected everyone's PIA equally, raising it by 2 percent across the board.

Key Takeaways

  • The average SSDI payment in 2017 was $1,171 per month, based on a 2 percent cost-of-living adjustment.
  • Your individual 2017 payment depended on your work history and earnings record, not on the year you applied.
  • Social Security recalculates your payment each January using the prior year's COLA, so 2017 payments were higher than 2016 payments for everyone already receiving benefits.
  • The maximum SSDI payment in 2017 was $2,687 per month for someone at full retirement age, though most recipients received less.

Why 2017 payments were different from 2016

The 2 percent COLA in 2017 was the first meaningful increase after three years with no adjustment at all. From 2010 to 2016, inflation had been low enough that Social Security did not raise payments — the COLA was zero in 2011, 2016, and several years in between. This meant someone receiving SSDI in 2016 saw their first real payment increase in years when January 2017 arrived.

The COLA is tied to the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W), a measure of inflation published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Social Security announces the COLA in October of the prior year, so the 2 percent figure for 2017 was public knowledge by October 2016. This gave people time to plan, though the actual payment change did not take effect until January 2017.

How your 2017 payment compared to other years

If you were receiving SSDI in 2017, your payment that year was higher than 2016 but lower than 2018 (which had a 2 percent COLA). If you had started benefits in 2017 itself, your first payment would have been calculated using the 2017 bend points — the dollar thresholds Social Security uses to compute your PIA. These bend points also rose by roughly 2 percent from 2016 to 2017.

Someone who started SSDI in 2017 would not have received the same payment as someone who had been receiving it since 2016 and then got the COLA increase. The person starting in 2017 would have had their payment calculated fresh, based on their own earnings record and the 2017 bend points. The person already receiving benefits would have had their existing payment raised by 2 percent.

Maximum and minimum payments in 2017

The maximum SSDI payment in 2017 was $2,687 per month for a worker at full retirement age. This applied only to people who had earned the maximum taxable wage throughout their working years — a very small group. Most people received far less because they had not earned at the maximum level every year.

There was no official minimum payment for SSDI itself, but someone with a very short work history or very low earnings might have received as little as $30 to $50 per month. However, if you were receiving SSDI and your payment fell below a certain threshold, you might have also been receiving Supplemental Security Income (SSI), a separate needs-based program that topped up low SSDI payments. SSI had its own payment amounts and rules.

How to find what you received in 2017

If you were receiving SSDI in 2017, your Social Security statement from that year shows exactly what you received each month. You can view your statement online at ssa.gov by creating a my Social Security account, or you can call Social Security at 1-800-772-1213 to request a paper copy of your earnings record and benefit history.

Your statement will show your monthly benefit amount for 2017, any adjustments made that year, and a record of payments received. If you believe there was an error — for example, if you did not receive the 2 percent increase you expected — your statement will help you document what actually happened so you can contact Social Security to investigate.

What changed between 2017 and today

SSDI payments have continued to rise each year based on the COLA, though the size of the increase varies. Some years have had larger adjustments than 2017's 2 percent, and some years have had smaller ones. The formula for calculating your payment has remained the same: it is based on your work history, your age when you started benefits, and the bend points in effect that year.

If you are looking at 2017 payments now because you are trying to understand what you might receive today, remember that your actual payment depends on your own earnings record. The average payment has risen since 2017, but so have the bend points and the maximum taxable wage. Your payment would be calculated using current rules, not 2017 rules.

Frequently Asked Questions

Was the 2017 COLA the same for everyone?

Yes, the 2 percent COLA applied to everyone already receiving SSDI in January 2017. However, people who started benefits during 2017 had their payments calculated using the 2017 bend points, which were different from what someone already receiving benefits got after the COLA increase.

Did SSDI payments go up in 2017 if you were already receiving benefits?

Yes, if you were receiving SSDI on January 1, 2017, your payment increased by 2 percent that month. This was the first increase in several years because there had been no COLA from 2010 to 2016.

What if I started SSDI in 2017 — did I get the 2 percent increase?

No. Your payment was calculated based on your earnings record and the 2017 bend points. You did not receive a separate COLA increase because you had not been receiving benefits in 2016. Your payment would have been set when your claim was approved.

How do I know if my 2017 payment was correct?

Check your Social Security statement, which shows your monthly benefit amount for 2017. You can view it online at ssa.gov or call 1-800-772-1213 to request a paper copy. If your payment did not increase by 2 percent from 2016, contact Social Security to ask why.