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Social Security Tax Now Applies to the First $192,300 of 2027 Wages
The taxable maximum rises from $184,500. The earnings limits for working beneficiaries rise too.
The maximum amount of earnings subject to Social Security tax will rise to $192,300 in 2027, from $184,500 in 2026, the Social Security Administration announced alongside the 3.6 percent cost-of-living adjustment.
Workers and employers each pay 6.2 percent on wages up to that amount, so the most an employee can owe in Social Security tax rises from $11,439 to $11,922.60, with the employer paying the same. Self-employed people pay both halves, 12.4 percent, up to the same cap. The separate Medicare tax has no cap.
The earnings test for people collecting benefits before full retirement age also rises. If you are under full retirement age all year, you can earn $25,560 in 2027 before Social Security withholds $1 for every $2 above that. In the year you reach full retirement age, the limit is $67,920, with $1 withheld for every $3 above it, counting only earnings before the month you reach that age. Once you are at full retirement age, there is no limit.
For payroll and budgeting, the new cap takes effect with wages paid in January 2027.
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