Seven minutes was Social Security’s reported average speed of answer (ASA) in September 2025—not a promise that every caller would reach help within seven minutes. The Social Security Administration’s inspector general later found the agency’s published national 800-number metrics accurate and overall telephone service improved in fiscal year 2025. But the ASA leaves out important parts of the caller experience, including time waiting for an accepted callback and calls that end without service.
What the seven-minute figure measured
The seven-minute figure was SSA’s monthly ASA for September 2025. SSA’s December 22, 2025 release summarized the inspector general’s review and compared that result with a 30-minute ASA in January 2025. These are historical monthly figures, not estimates of what a caller will experience now. SSA’s announcement describes the January-to-September change.
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SSA defines ASA as the average number of minutes customers waited to reach a representative, reported by fiscal year and month. Its published measure includes time to select the callback option and the connection time once the callback is received, but excludes dropped calls and busy signals. See SSA’s 800-number performance page for its definition and service information.
Why ASA is not the same as total time to get help
The inspector general’s audit explains a consequential part of the calculation: when a caller accepts an initial callback offer, SSA counts that caller as having zero active hold wait for ASA. The metric does not include how long the caller then waits to receive the callback. As a result, ASA describes the active hold-and-answer measure SSA uses; it is not the elapsed time from a person’s first dial to human assistance.
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The measure also does not capture callers whose calls drop or encounter busy signals. The inspector general reported that about 25 million calls ended without service in FY 2025. The report lists caller disconnections, missed callbacks, SSA’s inability to call back, and all lines being busy among the reasons. That is a count of calls, not necessarily distinct people, and it does not establish how long each unsuccessful call took. The December 22, 2025 audit explains both the calculation and these outcomes.
What the inspector general concluded—and what it did not
The inspector general examined the accuracy of SSA’s telephone metrics and changes in FY 2025 performance. Its report states: “SSA’s publicly reported national 800-number telephone metrics were accurate and its overall telephone service performance improved in FY 2025.” It attributed improvement to a new telecommunications platform and staff realignments, with technology supporting greater capacity, self-service, and operational adjustments.
The audit also reported that SSA served 68 million callers in FY 2025, up 65% from FY 2024. “Served” includes service by an SSA employee or automation. These findings support the conclusion that service improved on the measures examined; they do not turn a monthly national average into a guarantee for an individual caller.
How to read the competing 102-minute claim
The Office of Senator Elizabeth Warren separately characterized its investigation as finding a 102-minute average and said most calls it examined did not reach a human. That is the senator’s office’s claim, not an inspector general finding or a like-for-like audited ASA figure. The cited materials do not establish that the two figures use the same reporting period, call population, callback accounting, or treatment of unsuccessful attempts. They should not be directly equated or averaged. Warren’s office describes its investigation here.
When comparing phone-wait claims, check who produced the number, what period and geography it covers, whether calls had to reach an agent, and how it handles callbacks, abandoned or failed calls, and busy signals. A live estimate, a monthly average, and an investigation’s call results can answer different questions even when each is described as a wait time.
What SSA’s latest displayed monthly result says
SSA’s performance page, last updated August 11, 2026, displayed July 2026 as its latest monthly result: an ASA of 0.6 minutes and an answer rate of nearly 99%. Those are dated monthly figures, not live estimates for a particular call. SSA’s performance page provides the reporting context.
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SSA says its National 800 Number is available weekdays from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time. The agency says waits are typically shorter in the morning, later in the week, and later in the month, while noting that live wait and call-volume data are estimates. Check SSA’s phone page for current estimates rather than relying on a historical monthly average.
If your task does not require a phone conversation, SSA says online services can handle several common requests, including checking a pending claim, changing an address, requesting a 1099, and requesting a replacement Social Security card in many cases. Choose the online option only if it fits your situation; actual phone waits vary.
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