Does SSDI Give Annual Raises in Baltimore, DC & Virginia?

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You Can Get Social Security Disability Cost-of-Living Adjustments (COLA)

When you’re approved for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits, you soon start receiving monthly checks in an amount determined by the government.

Is that the same amount you will always receive from Social Security Disability?

The good news is that it goes up over time.

Most years, Social Security makes a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) to your Social Security Disability payment. As prices in the economy increase, your SSDI increases, too. The U.S. Department of Labor calculates the amounts.

We’ve all lived through the fact that prices at stores never seem to go any direction but up. Once in a while prices might not move much, but people receiving SSDI usually get a raise each year.

Do you need to talk to someone about applying for disability benefits?

A disability advocate can guide you through the process and help you claim this life-changing financial assistance.

Mathis & Mathis Disability Advocates has helped thousands of people. We are advocates for people in Washington, D.C., Baltimore, Alexandria and Northern Virginia—and across Virginia, Maryland, West Virginia, Delaware and Pennsylvania.

How Much Do SSDI Increases Tend to Be?

With Social Security Disability Insurance, the government calculates each person’s monthly benefit separately, including factors such as how much you earned when you worked.

National averages will look different from your own Social Security Disability check, but here’s an example of how the average monthly SSDI payment for workers with disabilities has gone up year over year:

2020: $1,261

2021: $1,282

2022: $1,364

2023: $1,489

2024: $1,537

The size of the SSDI increase is different each year because prices go up by different amounts. You can see how it was a bigger increase in 2022 and 2023. That was because of the higher inflation after the COVID-19 pandemic. The Labor Department calculated a bigger COLA.

Another disability benefits program run by Social Security—Supplemental Security Income (SSI)—provides a set amount for everyone. It’s not adjusted based on your past earnings. SSI is for people without significant recent work history.

Here’s the same five-year span of SSI payment increases for individual benefits recipients:

2020: $783

2021: $794

2022: $841

2023: $914

2024: $943

If you’re seeking Social Security Disability benefits and have any questions about how they calculate benefits, or how to get benefits in the first place, it’s a free call to ask the disability advocates at Mathis & Mathis.

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The Amount You Can Work and Still Receive Disability Benefits Goes Up, Too

To qualify for Social Security Disability benefits, you must prove you’re unable to work a significant amount.

But the amount you can work and earn, and still get benefits, also typically goes up a little with SSDI increases each year.

Social Security calls this line “substantial gainful activity,” or SGA. If you earn less than the SGA limit, you can receive disability benefits. If you work and earn more, you’ll be denied for disability.

Just as SSDI payments get raises because the cost of living rises, SGA allows you to make more money over time and still qualify for benefits.

See how the monthly SGA amount for an individual have changed over time:

2020: $1,260

2021: $1,310

2022: $1,350

2023: $1,470

2024: $1,550

The SGA increasing makes it a bit easier to get benefits, but you still should be careful about working while seeking Social Security Disability.

Any sign that you’re able to work could be used against you in deciding your case.

Talk to an experienced Social Security Disability advocate to make sure you have the best chance of winning benefits you deserve—benefits that make life easier when you can’t work due to bad health.

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Applying or Appealing, We Can Help

Whether you’re in the initial stages of applying, appealing a denial of benefits, or wondering if you qualify, Mathis & Mathis can help.

Social Security Disability FAQs

Because applying for Social Security Disability benefits can be complicated, you likely have many questions about the process. Here are some answers to frequently asked questions.

Disability FAQs »

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