Ah, 1975. You may or may not remember much from that year, but it was when Gerald Ford was U.S. president, Saturday Night Live premiered on TV, and the Vietnam War ended. People were wearing bell-bottom pants and dancing to disco music, and a new home cost around $40,000, on average. The median family income back then was only $13,720.
And how about Social Security for those who were retired back then? Well, the average retirement benefit was just $207 — roughly $2,500 annually.
Image source: Getty Images.
That’s not quite as terrible as it sounds, because a half gallon of milk cost $0.79 and coffee cost $1.33 per pound. Still, the disconnect between the incomes of working people and retirees was stark — and it still is. Check out the table below, showing how average Social Security benefits have changed over time:
Year | Average Monthly Social Security Benefit for Retirees |
|---|---|
1975 | $207 |
1980 | $341 |
1985 | $479 |
1990 | $603 |
1995 | $720 |
2000 | $844 |
2005 | $1,002 |
2010 | $1,176 |
2015 | $1,342 |
2020 | $1,544 |
2025 | $1,975* |
Source: Data source: Social Security Administration, 2023 Annual Statistical Supplement.
*As of December 2024.
The most recent average monthly benefit of $1,975 amounts to around $23,700 — which is a hard sum to live off of. If that’s way less than you were expecting, know these things:
For best results, aim to have multiple income streams in retirement.
