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Why Average Social Security Retirement Benefits Differ by About $419 a Month Across States

In December 2025, Connecticut’s average retired-worker benefit was $418.64 higher than Mississippi’s. The state averages reflect different beneficiary groups, not different state benefit rates.
From TheFinanceBase Team3 min to read
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In December 2025, the average monthly Social Security retired-worker benefit was $2,308.36 in Connecticut and $1,889.72 in Mississippi—a difference of $418.64, or about $419. The figures are from the Social Security Administration’s state-by-state table of people currently receiving retired-worker benefits. They describe different groups of beneficiaries, not different state benefit rates or a prediction of what any one person will receive.

What the state averages measure

The figures come from Table 5.J6 of the Social Security Administration’s Annual Statistical Supplement, 2026. It covers retired-worker beneficiaries in current-payment status in December 2025 and reports, for each state or other area, recipient counts, benefit distributions, average benefits and median benefits. SSA says the data are drawn from its Master Beneficiary Record and U.S. Postal Service geographic data. See SSA Table 5.J6.

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“Retired-worker” is a specific category. These figures are not averages for everyone receiving Social Security: they exclude separate categories such as spouses, survivors and people receiving disability benefits, and they are not Supplemental Security Income figures. They also describe current recipients, not only people whose benefits began in 2025.

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How large is the difference?

Measure December 2025 amount What it represents
Connecticut average $2,308.36 a month Highest state average in SSA Table 5.J6
Mississippi average $1,889.72 a month Lowest state average in SSA Table 5.J6
Difference $418.64 a month Calculated by subtracting Mississippi’s published average from Connecticut’s; not a separate SSA statistic
U.S. average $2,071.30 a month Average for retired-worker beneficiaries nationwide
U.S. median $1,991.90 a month Middle benefit amount nationally

Connecticut and Mississippi are the highest and lowest state averages in the December 2025 table. SSA labels the full geography “state or other area,” so comparisons that include territories or other areas should check those rows rather than assume the state extrema are the overall extrema. Use the same reporting month, beneficiary category, statistic and geographic scope when comparing figures.

Why do the averages vary by state?

The averages reflect the mix of retired-worker beneficiaries living in each state. Their benefits can differ with their covered earnings over their working lives and their claiming histories. The state table documents the variation, but it does not analyze its causes or calculate how much any one factor contributes to the $418.64 difference.

Accordingly, the figures do not establish that state policy, local cost of living or a single labor-market factor caused the gap. Nor do they show that moving to a higher-average state would raise a person’s benefit. The averages describe groups of recipients, not state-specific benefit rates.

Why the average is not a personal estimate

An average is one summary of a broad range of individual benefit amounts. In December 2025, the national average of $2,071.30 was higher than the national median of $1,991.90. The mean is pulled upward when some benefits are relatively high; the median is the midpoint, with half of benefits above it and half below. Neither number tells an individual what their own check will be, and state averages do not imply that every recipient in a higher-average state receives more than every recipient in a lower-average state.

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For a personal estimate, use the Social Security Administration’s online retirement benefit calculator and planning resources. Your estimate is more relevant than a state average because it is based on your own record and expected claiming choices.

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Why other Social Security averages may not match

Different SSA tables can report different averages because they cover different people or time periods. For example, the SSA’s 2025 supplement reports a national average monthly benefit of $2,036.02 for retired-worker awards in 2024. That figure concerns people newly awarded benefits during 2024; it is not the December 2025 average for all current retired-worker beneficiaries. Comparing the two as if they measured the same population would be misleading. See SSA Table 6.A6 on 2024 awards.

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