Although not getting an increased benefit from the United States Social Security in March 2025 may be bad news, it may actually be the opposite. Each year, retirement benefits increase according to inflation. It is the COLA that makes the checks reach higher levels.
However, this increase only happens once a year, as pensions do not increase their benefits every month. And although it is true that in the month of March we will not get an increase with respect to February, we can say that we do have an increase with respect to the year 2024. Thus, the payment for 2025 is higher than for 2024 but not higher than for the previous months of this same year.
What is the maximum Social Security payment in March 2025?
The maximum Social Security benefit payment in 2025 will be $5,180, but only for retirees aged 70. In the case of having a Disability payment or requesting the payment at the age of 67, the check cannot reach that figure. In that case, the payment can be a maximum of $4,018.
In any case, it is true that in March 2025 we will have that new maximum check, just as it happened in February and January of this year. Therefore, we will not have an increase in these checks, although if we have not yet applied for retirement it is important to know all the details to maximize the monthly payment.
How can Social Security be maximized?
The Social Security retirement payment is based on three elements. On the one hand, the retirement age. On the other hand, the salary as a worker together with the years worked. These last two elements determine our contribution to the monthly check, while the retirement age determines the final benefit percentage we will obtain.
Thus, to obtain the highest possible payment from Social Security we will have to bear in mind that:
- We must delay the retirement age as much as possible.
- We must work for a minimum of 35 years.
- We must have a good salary during all those years.
If we have a good salary and we work for 35 years we can contribute a good benefit, but retiring at 62, the minimum age, will mean that our check will be reduced by 30%. For that reason, the full retirement age is 67, but waiting until 70 can make a big difference, since it is the only way to reach 5,180 dollars a month.
If we don’t get the maximum benefit of $5,180, we can still get a good monthly check, since we can get $3,000 or $3,500 without having to apply for Social Security at the age of 70. In that case, everything will depend on our work history and how many years we have worked.
