The Social Security Administration (SSA) just released its January 2024 SSD benefits statistics report. This monthly report tracks how Social Security disability pay amounts and number of recipients changed during the last 30 days. If you’re unable to work, one of the two federal disability assistance programs can potentially help you make ends meet. Our analysis below includes the latest numbers from both Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) programs.
January 2024 SSD Benefits Statistics Report
Total Number of Social Security Disability Beneficiaries: 8,474,000
Disabled Workers: 7,330,000
Spouses of Disabled Workers: 87,000
Children of Disabled Workers: 1,057,000
Average Monthly Social Security Disability Benefit Amount: $1,395.33
Disabled Workers: $1,537.03
Spouses of Disabled Workers: $419.15
Children of Disabled Workers: $492.78
How the January 2024 SSD Benefits Statistics Report Affects Beneficiaries
The January 2024 SSD benefits statistics report shows 40,000 fewer people getting Social Security disability compared to last month. As you might expect, most losses come from the disabled workers category (down 36,000). Spouses lost 1,000 people on the active payment rolls since December’s report came out. Last but not least, 3,000 fewer disabled workers’ children get Social Security disability today vs. the end of last year:
Looking back, here’s what we noted about Social Security disability claims for 2023:
- 29.5% of people who applied got SSD benefits in 2023 (the lowest approval rate recorded since 1965)
- Attorneys filed 4 in 5 successful SSD claims last year
- 1.9 million people applied for Social Security disability last year
- 561,585 people got SSD payments for the first time in 2023
January 2024 SSD Benefits Statistics: Looking Deeper at the Monetary Stats
The January 2024 SSD benefits statistics report also shows average pay amounts to disabled workers, their spouses, and their children. Very little has changed since December – every group’s average SSD payment stayed within a dollar of last month’s amount. Disabled workers got 10 cents less in January, on average, while payments to spouses fell $.92 compared to last month. Average payments to children are the lone increase for January, going up $.79 during the last 30 days:
Newly approved claims can expect about $1,718 per month in Social Security disability benefits.
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) Numbers in the January 2024 Report
Supplemental Security Income program updates also appear in the January 2024 SSD benefits statistics report. We track how many people get SSI benefits each month and their average pay amounts as the year progresses. Since the end of 2023, only children and those aged 65 and older gained new SSI recipients:
Total SSI beneficiaries: 7,435,000 (+10,000)
Children younger than 18: 992,000 (+9,000)
People aged 18-64: 4,034,000 (-5,000)
SSI recipients aged 65+: 2,409,000 (+6,000)
The January 2024 SSD benefits report also shows these average Supplemental Security Income payments for each age category:
- $697.89 (averaged across the entire program)
- $814.45 for children
- $742.97 for those 18-64 years old
- $574.46 for those aged 65 and older (i.e., awards based on age alone)
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Lori Polemenakos is Director of Consumer Content and SEO strategist for LeadingResponse, a legal marketing company. An award-winning journalist, writer and editor based in Dallas, Texas, she's produced articles for major brands such as Match.com, Yahoo!, MSN, AOL, Xfinity, Mail.com, and edited several published books. Since 2016, she's published hundreds of articles about Social Security disability, workers' compensation, veterans' benefits, personal injury, mass tort, auto accident claims, bankruptcy, employment law and other related legal issues.