Social Security Disability income limits with irregular art sales - will selling an $8K piece affect my SSDI?

The SSA uses a threshold called Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA) to determine if your earnings affect your SSDI. In 2025, this amount is $1,550 per month for non-blind individuals. What's tricky is how they count irregular income like art sales. For self-employment (which is how they'd classify your art business), they look at both your income AND the time you spend working. Even if you make $8,000 in one month but nothing for several months, they might average it out or they might count it for just that month - it depends on how you report it and whether you're in what's called a Trial Work Period. If you haven't used up your Trial Work Period months yet, you could earn above SGA for 9 months (don't have to be consecutive) without affecting benefits. After that, any month above SGA could affect your benefits.

be careful!!! i lost my disability for 6 months becuz i sold some crafts at a farmers market!!! SSA doesn't care if u make money one month and nothing the next they will CUT YOU OFF!! better to sell ur art for cash if u know what i mean

I'm in almost the same situation! I'm on SSDI and sell pottery occasionally. What my benefits counselor told me is that the money counts when you RECEIVE it, not when you made the art. So if you get $8k from a gallery in March, that's March income even if you made the piece last year. The other thing to consider - are you on SSDI only or do you also get SSI? Because SSI has much stricter income rules than SSDI. With SSDI, you get that 9-month Trial Work Period where you can earn over the limit without losing benefits. With SSI, they reduce your payment right away based on any income.

As someone who worked with many artists on SSDI, here's the most accurate information: 1. The 2025 SGA amount is $1,550/month for non-blind individuals 2. For SSDI (not SSI), you have access to a Trial Work Period (TWP) - during this period, you can earn ANY amount without losing benefits for 9 months (don't need to be consecutive) 3. Any month you earn over $1,040 (2025 figure) counts as a TWP month 4. After your 9 TWP months are used up, you enter your Extended Period of Eligibility for 36 months where any month above SGA ($1,550) could cause benefits to be suspended that month 5. For irregular income like art sales, SSA may average your earnings over the period you worked on the art, but this requires documentation and advocacy I'd recommend speaking with a Work Incentives Planning and Assistance (WIPA) counselor - they offer free benefits counseling specifically for situations like yours.

My brother's on SSDI and he started doing woodworking last year. His case worker told him to keep track of all his expenses for making the art (materials, studio space, marketing, etc) because you can deduct those from your gross sales to figure out your actual earnings that count toward SGA. So if you sell a piece for $8k but spent $2k on canvas, paint, studio rental, and gallery commission, only $6k would count. At least that's what they told him.

Have u tried calling SSA directly to get a straight answer? Good luck with that lol. I spent 4 HOURS on hold last month trying to ask a similar question about my benefits and never got through to an actual person. So frustrating!!!! 😡

Something else to consider is setting up an Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) account if you qualified for disability before age 26. This lets you save money without affecting resource limits for benefits. If your disability began after 26, unfortunately this won't help. Regarding your artwork: I'd recommend you: 1. Track ALL hours spent on each piece (creation, marketing, sales) 2. Document ALL expenses 3. Keep separate business records 4. Report income correctly on Schedule C for self-employment 5. Consider if incorporating as an LLC might help (complex topic) Irregular income is always tricky with SSDI, but proper documentation is your best protection.

My cousin has MS and sells jewelry sometimes while on disability. She says the TWP isn't your friend!! Once you use those 9 months up (which happens FAST if ur not careful), any month over the SGA limit can mess up your benefits. And disability doesn't care if it was just a one time sale - ur either over or under for the month. It's completely unfair for artists who might sell nothing for months and then have one good sale.

Just wondering - have you looked into the Ticket to Work program? Since you're viewing your art as potential income, it might qualify under their self-employment track. The program gives you some protection while trying to work, and they provide free employment services. My SSDI counselor recommended it to me when I was in a similar situation with my small business.