What's the maximum Social Security Benefit in 2017?

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Inflation ticked higher this year, and as a result, the Social Security Administration is increasing Social Security payments by 0.3% in 2017. The slight increase in Social Security income means that the maximum monthly Social Security benefit at full retirement age next year will be $2,687 per month. However, the chance that someone would get that amount depends on their past earnings and when they claim their Social Security benefits.

Read on to learn how the government decides how much you'll receive in Social Security benefits — and what you can do to boost your take.

How is my Social Security calculated?

It takes most Americans about 10 years of working to accumulate enough Social Security credits (40) to qualify for Social Security benefits. If you qualify for Social Security, then the Social Security Administration will calculate your monthly benefit by adjusting your income — up to specific limits — into current dollars. Your highest 35 years of adjusted income are then totaled and divided by 420 (the number of months in 35 years) to arrive at your average indexed monthly earnings (AIME).

Your AIME is then adjusted by multipliers at specific earnings thresholds to determine your maximum monthly Social Security benefit at full retirement age, or FRA. For instance, if you become eligible for Social Security in 2017, then you'd multiply the first $885 in AIME by 90%. Any amount earned between $885 and $5,336 would be multiplied by 32%, and any amount above $5,336 would be multiplied by 15%. The resulting amounts are added together and rounded down to the nearest dime to determine your monthly FRA benefit

Although this calculation is complicated, you don't need to run the numbers yourself to find out how much you'll get in benefits. The Social Security Administration provides two ways for you to learn how much you're likely to receive in monthly benefits. You can either use their calculator to estimate your benefit or you can set up an account so that you can log in to view your projected benefit.
 
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