If 2026 is the year you're planning to retire, you may have started the official countdown to that milestone already. But before you retire, it's important to take a close look at your financial picture and make sure you're truly ready.
You may also want to reconsider a 2026 retirement if your only expected source of income once you stop working is Social Security. Let's review what the average monthly benefit looks like today, and why you might need to supplement it.
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Can you live on roughly $24,000 a year?
In November 2025, the average monthly Social Security benefit among retired workers was $2,013.32. Now that average benefit should increase once 2026 arrives, since Social Security is getting a 2.8% cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA.
But the cost of Medicare Part B is also increasing. Seniors who are enrolled in Medicare and Social Security at the same time pay their Part B premiums out of their monthly benefits.
If you’re new to Medicare, you’ll have to account for a monthly premium of $202.90 in 2026, which is what you’ll pay if you don’t have any non-Social Security income. If you’re not used to paying as much for healthcare now, that’s yet another cost you’ll have to factor in, and it could leave you with less Social Security than expected.
So all told, you may not get much more out of Social Security in 2026 than $2,013.32 a month, or a little over $24,000 per year. That's not a particularly generous income. So if you don't have any savings, you may want to come up with another plan.
Figure out a way to supplement your monthly benefits
If you're looking at just Social Security for income once you stop working, one potential solution could be to delay retirement. Building up even a small IRA or 401(k) balance could give you more financial breathing room in retirement.
Let’s say you manage to work an extra two years, during which time you’re able to put $12,000 into an IRA. That’s not going to leave you with a ton of extra money for retirement. But it’s still money you can dip into to deal with emergency or one-off expenses that your monthly Social Security checks may not be able to cover.
For example, let’s say you own your home but it’s on the older side. You might have a year with a $3,000 repair. That small IRA could come to your rescue by covering the cost of that bill so you don’t have to worry about finding the room in your regular retirement budget.
If you're no longer able to keep working full-time, consider retiring in 2026 but shifting into part-time or gig work for extra income. The good news is that you're allowed to work while collecting Social Security. And as long as you've reached full retirement age, you can earn any amount of wages without being subject to Social Security's earnings test.
If you haven't reached full retirement age, you may have some benefits withheld if you earn too much. Those withheld benefits will then be paid to you later.
In 2026, you can earn $24,480, or $65,160 if you'll be reaching full retirement age within the year, without having any portion of your Social Security checks held back. So if you'll only be working part-time, chances are, you'll be able to stay below the threshold that applies to you.
Retiring on just Social Security could mean setting yourself up to struggle financially for many years. If you're able to delay retirement to build a small nest egg, it's worth doing. If not, plan to keep working in some capacity to supplement those monthly checks.
