Why is my actual Social Security benefit payment different from the estimate? Numbers should match!

This happened to me too! The SSA estimate showed $2,478 but my first direct deposit was only $2,331. Turns out they were taking Medicare Part B premiums out automatically. Could that be what's happening in your case?

There are several reasons why your actual payment might be different from the estimate: 1. Medicare premiums (as mentioned) 2. Federal tax withholding (if you requested it) 3. The estimate includes delayed retirement credits that haven't been applied yet 4. The estimate didn't account for the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) or Government Pension Offset (GPO) if you have a pension from non-covered employment 5. The estimate included earnings that weren't actually covered by Social Security I'd recommend checking your benefit verification letter through your MySocialSecurity account - it will show exactly how your benefit was calculated and any deductions.

The WEP reduction depends on your years of "substantial earnings" under Social Security. If you have 30+ years of substantial covered earnings, WEP won't affect you. If you have 20-29 years, it's partially applied. Less than 20 years = full WEP reduction. For 2025, if your teaching pension is only $650/month and you worked there just 5 years, the WEP reduction would be roughly $120-150, which matches your missing amount. The online calculators don't always catch this unless you specifically tell them about non-covered employment. The SSA has a WEP calculator specifically for this situation.

my sister had same problem but hers was becuz of taxes, she didnt realize they take out like 12% for federal taxes if u ask for withholding. did u check ur bank statement to see if it says anything about withholding or deductions?

I've been trying to get through to SSA for 3 weeks about a similar issue! Their phone system is useless - disconnects after 2 hours of waiting. If you need to actually speak with someone at Social Security, I finally found a service called Claimyr that got me through to an agent in 20 minutes instead of waiting for hours. Their website is claimyr.com and they have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU Once I finally talked to someone, they explained my estimate vs. actual payment difference was due to WEP (like others mentioned here) AND an earnings test reduction since I'm still working part-time.

the SSA DELIBERATELY misleads people with their 'estimates'!!!! they KNOW many people have pensions from non-covered work but they HIDE the WEP reduction until after you file!!! I lost almost $400/month because of this and they claim 'you should have known' - HOW WHEN THEIR OWN CALCULATOR DOESN'T SHOW IT???? and good luck getting someone on the phone who can actually explain it. the whole system is DESIGNED to confuse us!!!

Just to clarify, you can report non-covered employment in the detailed calculators on SSA.gov, but it's not included in the quick calculators or MySocialSecurity estimates unless you specifically add that information. If you have around 27 years of substantial earnings under Social Security, your WEP reduction should be about 45% of the maximum possible reduction. As you work more years with substantial earnings under Social Security, the WEP reduction decreases. Also worth noting: if your combined benefits from both Social Security and your non-covered pension are low enough, the WEP guarantee provision might limit how much can be taken away.

Yes! Each additional year of substantial earnings (about $30,800 in 2025) will reduce your WEP penalty. At 27 years now, if you add 3 more years to reach 30 total years of substantial earnings, the WEP would no longer apply at all. Even one more year would reduce the penalty. SSA automatically recalculates your benefit each year if you continue working, so you don't need to request it. Just make sure those part-time earnings reach the substantial earnings threshold each year.