Social Security's 'round down' policy costing us money - anyone else noticed this?

It's actually in the Social Security Act itself - benefits must be rounded down to the next lower dollar. Been that way since the beginning. I've worked with SS benefit calculations for years and while it seems unfair, it's literally written into the law. The actual calculation of your Primary Insurance Amount (PIA) involves several rounding steps, and this final one is just part of the process.

omg i never noticed this!! just checked my direct deposit and yep they rounded down my 65 cents too!! how is this legal???

This happened to me too! I think they do it because its easier for their accounting or something. Probably some outdated system from when they started SS in the 1930s and couldn't handle pennies lol

I understand your frustration, but there's actually a historical reason for this policy. When Social Security began, all calculations were done manually, and rounding down simplified the process. The law was written this way to make administration easier in a pre-computer era. Even though we now have computers that could easily calculate to the penny, changing this would require Congress to amend the Social Security Act. Given how carefully they guard every dollar in the trust fund, I doubt they'll change a policy that saves them money, even if it's technically our money. For what it's worth, when they calculate COLAs (Cost of Living Adjustments), those calculations are done on the full unrounded amount before the final rounded-down figure is determined. So at least the cents aren't completely ignored in future calculations.

Has anyone tried ASKING for the full amount including cents?? Ive been on SSDI for 3 years and never even noticed this. im going to call tommorow and demand my 67 cents!!

I had the same frustration when trying to reach SSA about my own benefit calculation issue. After countless failed attempts and hours on hold, I found a service called Claimyr that got me through to an agent in about 20 minutes. They basically wait on hold for you and call you back when an agent is ready. Saved me so much frustration! If you want to see how it works, they have a video at https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU and their site is claimyr.com Though honestly, even when you do get through, they'll just tell you the rounding down is required by law. I tried arguing about it but got nowhere. The agent explained it's actually written into the Social Security Act itself.

My uncle worked for the SSA for 30 years and he always said its just easier for their computer systems to not deal with change. Probably saves them millions in programming costs lol

To clarify some misconceptions in this thread: 1. The rounding policy isn't about computer limitations or accounting simplicity - it's explicitly required by Section 215(g) of the Social Security Act 2. This policy predates computers and was implemented in 1939 3. The funds aren't "skimmed" in the sense of being separately collected - they simply remain in the Social Security Trust Fund 4. Changing this would require Congressional action to amend the Social Security Act 5. While it does add up to millions across all beneficiaries, it represents a tiny fraction of the total fund disbursements (less than 0.01%) While it may seem unfair that rounding always goes down, remember that many other government programs round to the nearest dollar (up or down). Social Security is somewhat unique in consistently rounding down.

this reminds me of that office space movie where they took all the fractions of cents that got rounded off lol 😂 except this is the government doing it to us

While the rounding down is frustrating, I'd suggest focusing on more significant aspects of your benefits. For example, make sure you've explored all possible benefits you're entitled to (spousal, survivor, etc.), and that your earnings record is accurate. Those factors can make a difference of hundreds of dollars monthly, compared to the cents lost to rounding. Also, ensure you understand how working affects benefits if you're still working, and how taxation of benefits works if you have other income. These factors have a much bigger impact on what you actually receive than the rounding issue.

I completely understand your frustration! This is one of those "death by a thousand cuts" situations where individually it seems small, but collectively it's millions of dollars that could be going to beneficiaries who need every penny. What really gets me is that in today's digital age, there's absolutely no technical reason they couldn't pay to the exact cent. Banks handle fractional cents in interest calculations all the time. The fact that Congress would need to act to change this tells you everything - they're not going to voluntarily give up a source of extra funds for the trust fund, even if it's technically our money. Have you considered reaching out to your representatives about this? If enough people complained, maybe someone would introduce legislation to require rounding to the nearest dollar instead of always down.

This is exactly the kind of thing that makes people lose trust in government programs. I've been following Social Security policy for years, and while everyone's focused on the big debates about solvency and retirement age, these "small" systematic deductions add up to real money. What bothers me most is the lack of transparency - how many beneficiaries even know this is happening? I bet if you surveyed people receiving benefits, 90% wouldn't know their payments are being rounded down every month. It's one thing if it was rounding to the nearest dollar (some up, some down), but ALWAYS rounding down feels deliberately designed to shortchange beneficiaries. The fact that this policy hasn't been updated since 1939 while everything else about the program has been modernized multiple times tells you where the priorities are.

I never realized this was happening either until I read your post! Just checked my own statement and sure enough, they rounded down 47 cents from my monthly payment. It's infuriating that this has been going on since 1939 and nobody talks about it. You're right that if we tried to "round down" our tax payments, the IRS would be all over us immediately. The double standard is incredible - they demand every penny from us but feel free to keep our change. I'm definitely going to contact my representatives about this. Even if the individual amounts seem small, when you multiply it across millions of beneficiaries over decades, we're talking about billions of dollars that should have gone to retirees who earned those benefits. Thanks for bringing this to light!

This is exactly why I've always been skeptical of how government programs handle our money. I'm 62 and considering when to claim my benefits, but stories like this make me wonder what other "small" policies are quietly reducing what we actually receive. The fact that they've been doing this since 1939 and it's buried in legal code that most people never read is pretty telling. I bet if you asked 100 people on the street if they knew Social Security rounds DOWN their benefits every month, maybe 2 would know. It's one of those things that seems designed to fly under the radar while systematically keeping money that rightfully belongs to beneficiaries. Thanks for sharing this - I'll be sure to look closely at my own statement when I start receiving benefits and will definitely be contacting my representatives about updating this outdated policy.

This is really eye-opening! I'm still a few years away from claiming my benefits, but had no idea this was happening. It's wild that they've been doing this for over 80 years and most people have no clue. The fact that it's written into law from 1939 just shows how outdated some of these policies are - like, we can calculate interest to the penny on bank accounts but somehow can't pay exact Social Security benefits? What really gets me is that this affects the people who can least afford to lose money. Retirees on fixed incomes need every cent, and here the government is systematically keeping millions in "change" every month. I'm definitely going to remember this when I start receiving benefits and will be watching my statements carefully. Thanks for bringing this to everyone's attention - it's exactly the kind of thing that should be talked about more openly instead of being buried in legal code that nobody reads!

This is absolutely infuriating! I'm a newcomer to this community and just found out about this through your post. I had NO IDEA they were doing this! Just checked my mom's Social Security statement (she's been receiving benefits for 2 years) and sure enough, they rounded down 78 cents from her monthly payment. That's over $18 a year they're just keeping from a woman living on a fixed income! What makes this even worse is that nowhere in the paperwork they sent her when she applied did they clearly explain this policy. It's like they're counting on people not noticing or not doing the math. The fact that this has been going on since 1939 and affects tens of millions of people but somehow isn't common knowledge is really telling. I'm going to share this with everyone I know who's receiving or about to receive Social Security. People deserve to know that the government is systematically keeping their change every month, even if it's "technically legal." Thanks for bringing this to light - it's exactly the kind of information that should be more widely known!

This is absolutely shocking! I'm new to this community and had never heard about this rounding down policy until I saw your post. I just went through my grandmother's Social Security paperwork (she started receiving benefits last year) and you're completely right - they rounded down 62 cents from her monthly payment! What really bothers me is how this information is basically hidden from beneficiaries. When she applied, nobody at the Social Security office mentioned that they would be keeping her "change" every month. It feels like they're counting on people not noticing or just accepting it as "the way things are done." The fact that this policy dates back to 1939 and has never been updated despite all the technological advances we've made is ridiculous. Banks can calculate interest to fractions of pennies, but somehow the government can't pay Social Security benefits to the exact cent? It's clearly a choice, not a technical limitation. I'm definitely going to contact my representatives about this. Even if individual amounts seem small, when you multiply 50+ cents times 70+ million beneficiaries times 12 months a year, we're talking about hundreds of millions of dollars annually that should be going to people who earned these benefits. Thanks for opening my eyes to this!

Welcome to the community! Your post really opened my eyes to something I had no idea was happening. I'm relatively new to Social Security myself and just started receiving benefits a few months ago. After reading your post, I went back and checked my own statements - sure enough, they rounded down 41 cents from my monthly payment! What's particularly frustrating is that this feels like such an outdated policy that hasn't kept up with modern times. Like others have mentioned, we live in an age where banks calculate interest to fractions of pennies, online payments handle exact amounts down to the cent, but somehow our government can't manage to pay Social Security benefits to the exact calculated amount? The lack of transparency around this is what really gets me. When I went through the application process, there was SO much paperwork and information, but nowhere did anyone clearly explain "Oh, and by the way, we'll be rounding down your payment every month and keeping the difference." It feels deliberately buried in legal language that most people won't read or understand. Thanks for bringing this to everyone's attention. I'm definitely going to look into contacting my representatives about this. Even if the law is hard to change, at minimum people deserve clear, upfront disclosure about policies that affect their benefits. Knowledge is power, and threads like this help spread awareness about things that impact all of us!

I'm completely new to this community and had never heard about this rounding down policy until I stumbled across your post! This is absolutely mind-blowing - I just checked my father's Social Security statement (he started receiving benefits 6 months ago) and they rounded down 73 cents from his monthly payment. That's almost $9 a year they're keeping from him! What really bothers me is how secretive this seems to be. During his entire application process, not once did anyone from Social Security mention "By the way, we're going to round down your payment every month and keep the difference." It feels like they're deliberately hoping people won't notice or question it. The fact that this policy has been in place since 1939 but uses the excuse of "computer limitations" or "administrative simplicity" is laughable in 2025. My bank calculates interest on my savings account to the tenth of a cent, but somehow the federal government can't manage to pay exact Social Security benefits? It's clearly a choice to keep this outdated policy because it benefits their bottom line. Reading through all these comments and seeing how many people are discovering this for the first time really highlights how little transparency there is around these "minor" policies that actually add up to major money when applied to millions of beneficiaries. Thanks for bringing this important issue to light - I'm definitely sharing this information with other family members and friends who receive benefits!

I'm new to this community and just discovered this rounding policy through your post - I had absolutely no idea this was happening! Just checked my own Social Security statement and they rounded down 39 cents from my monthly benefit. While that might not seem like much, you're absolutely right that it adds up to significant money when applied to millions of beneficiaries. What really frustrates me is the lack of transparency around this policy. When I applied for benefits last year, nobody mentioned that they would be systematically rounding down payments and keeping the difference. It feels like information that should be clearly disclosed upfront, not buried in 80-year-old legal code that most people will never read. The fact that this policy hasn't been updated since 1939 despite all our technological advances really shows where the priorities lie. We can process payments to the exact penny in every other aspect of modern finance, but somehow Social Security is stuck with an antiquated system that always benefits the government at our expense. Thanks for bringing this to everyone's attention - I'm definitely going to contact my representatives about this and share this information with other people I know who receive benefits. Even if the individual amounts seem small, the principle matters, and people deserve to know what's happening with their earned benefits!