Social Security wage base 2027 (projected): SSA's own Trustees Report estimate
SSA will not announce the real 2027 Social Security wage base until mid-October 2026. Until then, the best available figure is SSA's own projection — $190,200, from the intermediate-assumptions row of the 2026 OASDI Trustees Report. This page shows that projection, the maximum withholding it implies, and the low-cost/high-cost range around it — clearly labelled as a projection throughout.
Not yet official. The confirmed 2026 wage base is $184,500 — see the 2026 wage base reference. SSA announces the real 2027 figure in October 2026 alongside the 2027 cost-of-living adjustment.
The 2027 projection at a glance
2027 wage base (projected)
$190,200
+$5,700 vs confirmed 2026
Max withheld from you (projected)
$11,792.40
6.2% of the projected base
Employer pays too (projected)
$11,792.40
$23,584.80 combined
Self-employed maximum (projected)
$23,584.80
12.4% — both halves
Every figure in this section is derived from the projected $190,200 base — none of it is independently sourced, and none of it is official. The 3.09% projected increase over the confirmed 2026 base reflects SSA's intermediate assumption for national average wage growth, not a ustax.tools estimate.
Where the $190,200 figure comes from
This is not a ustax.tools trend estimate — it is SSA's own published projection. Every year, the Office of the Chief Actuary's Trustees Report includes Table V.C1, which projects the contribution and benefit base year by year under three sets of assumptions. The 2026 Trustees Report (published 2026-06-09) shows this for 2027:
| SSA assumption set | Projected 2027 contribution and benefit base |
|---|---|
| Low-cost | $189,900 |
| Intermediate (this page's figure) | $190,200 |
| High-cost | $190,500 |
Source: 2026 OASDI Trustees Report, Table V.C1 (Cost-of-Living Benefit Increases, Average Wage Index, Contribution and Benefit Bases, and Retirement Earnings Test Exempt Amounts, 1975-2035).
This page uses the intermediate row because that is the set SSA's own summary materials treat as the central estimate. The $600 spread between low-cost and high-cost is unusually narrow for a one-year-ahead projection, which is why this figure is more reliable than most forward-looking tax parameters — but it is still an assumption, not a determination, and the actual national average wage index for 2026 will not be finalized until after SSA collects a full year of wage data.
2025 to 2027: confirmed vs. projected
2025 and 2026 are SSA determinations. 2027 is a projection — the row is labelled accordingly.
| Year | Wage base | Max employee withholding | Max self-employed OASDI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 (confirmed) | $176,100 | $10,918.20 | $21,836.40 |
| 2026 (confirmed) | $184,500 | $11,439.00 | $22,878.00 |
| 2027 (projected) | $190,200 | $11,792.40 | $23,584.80 |
For the full confirmed history back to 1990, see the 2026 Social Security wage base reference, which is pinned to the confirmed figures only and carries no projection.
Medicare costs are moving too — CMS's own Trustees Report projects the 2027 Part A, B and D figures.
See Medicare costs 2027 (projected) →What does not change even as a projection
- The OASDI rate: 6.2% for employees and employers, 12.4% combined for the self-employed — statutory since 1990 and not something the Trustees Report projects differently by scenario.
- Medicare has no wage base at all: 1.45% continues on every dollar in 2027 exactly as it does today, with no ceiling of any kind.
- The Additional Medicare Tax thresholds: $200,000 single / $250,000 married filing jointly / $125,000 married filing separately are fixed dollar amounts, unchanged since 2013 and not indexed for inflation — they carry into 2027 unless Congress amends IRC §3101(b)(2).
- Nothing here changes federal income tax: use the federal income tax calculator for that side, and see the separately projected 2027 tax brackets (projected).
Frequently asked questions
What is the Social Security wage base for 2027?
It has not been determined yet — SSA announces the real 2027 base in mid-October 2026, alongside the cost-of-living adjustment. Until then, the best available figure is SSA's own projection: $190,200, from the intermediate-assumptions row of Table V.C1 in the 2026 OASDI Trustees Report. Anyone stating a firm 2027 number today is citing this projection (or a third-party forecast), not an SSA determination.
Where does the $190,200 figure come from?
SSA's own Office of the Chief Actuary. Every year the Trustees Report publishes explicit year-by-year projections of the contribution and benefit base under three sets of assumptions — low-cost, intermediate, and high-cost — out to 2035. This page uses the intermediate row, $190,200 for 2027, because that is the set SSA's own summary materials treat as the central estimate. It is not a ustax.tools trend estimate.
How confident is this projection?
More confident than most tax-parameter projections, because SSA's own three assumption sets barely disagree: low-cost projects $189,900, intermediate $190,200, and high-cost $190,500 — a $600 spread. The real number can still land outside that range if the underlying wage data surprises, which is exactly why SSA calls these assumptions rather than forecasts.
What would the maximum Social Security withholding be at the projected 2027 base?
$11,792.40 for an employee, at the unchanged 6.2% rate — up $353.40 from the confirmed 2026 maximum of $11,439.00. A self-employed worker would owe $23,584.80 at the combined 12.4% rate. These are projected figures derived from the projected base, not independent SSA estimates.
When will the real 2027 wage base be announced?
In mid-October 2026, in the same SSA release that announces the cost-of-living adjustment. Both numbers are computed from different inputs — the wage base tracks the national average wage index, the COLA tracks third-quarter CPI-W — but SSA has published them together since automatic adjustments began. Track the determination as it develops on the Social Security COLA 2027 tracker.
Will the Medicare tax rate or the Additional Medicare Tax threshold move in 2027?
The Medicare rate itself is statutory and has not changed since 1986 — it stays 1.45% on every dollar with no wage base, 2.9% self-employed. The 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax and its thresholds ($200,000 single / $250,000 married filing jointly / $125,000 married filing separately) are fixed dollar amounts written into IRC section 3101(b)(2) and are not indexed for inflation, so they carry forward unchanged into 2027 regardless of what the wage base does.
Sources
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Medicare Tax Rate 2026: 1.45% Base + 0.9% Additional Medicare
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Related Calculators
Social Security Wage Base 2026
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Medicare Costs 2027 (Projected)
Projected 2027 Part A, B and D costs from CMS's own Trustees Report, including a $209.50 Part B premium (not yet an official CMS determination)
Social Security COLA 2027
Track each CPI-W month of the 2027 determination, see every COLA since 1975, and price the increase against your own check
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Self-Employment Tax
15.3% on 92.35% net, 6.2% SS to wage base, deductible half