Social Security Payment of $4,873 Goes Out Today

Millions of Social Security recipients will receive payments of up to $4,873 today. Every month, the Social Security Administration (SSA) distributes benefits to retired Americans, individuals with disabilities, and surviving family members of deceased claimants. Read more: Compare the Best High-Yield Savings Accounts to Grow Your Savings Payments are made by the SSA multiple times per month, with approximately 72 million people receiving payments from the agency in April alone. But due to the vast numbers of people claiming the government benefit, not everyone is paid on the same day each month, with distribution dates set according to what type of Social Security payment they receive, their birthday, and in some cases where they live. Social Security retirees whose birthdays fall between the 11th and 20th of any month will receive their monthly amount directly from the SSA today, May 15. Payments to those with birthdays that fall in the latter days of a month will receive their money next week. The next payment is scheduled for May 22 and is for those who were born between the 21st and 31st of a given month. Those with birthdays between the 1st and 10th should have already been paid by the SSA last Wednesday. Read more: 7% Interest Rate Savings Accounts

Anyone who claims Supplemental Security Income (SSI), or lives abroad while claiming SSA retirement checks, or who have been claiming since before 1997, receive their monthly payment on the first day of the month. SSI payments differ from regular Social Security retirement checks, and are paid to individuals aged 65 or older with low or no income, or those under 65 with a lasting physical or mental disability. However, in a rare change, those who are usually paid at the beginning of the month will be paid a day earlier on May 31 instead of June 1. This is due to the usual payment date falling on a Saturday. "We do this to avoid putting you at a financial disadvantage and make sure that you don't have to wait beyond the first of the month to get your payment," the SSA has previously explained. "It does not mean that you are receiving a duplicate payment in the previous month, so you do not need to contact us to report the second payment." Read more: Compare Top CD Rates The date change does not mean beneficiaries will get double their money this month, it's simply an early payment for the following month. Unfortunately, not all recipients claiming pension payments will receive the maximum available amount of $4,873. According to the SSA, the estimated average monthly Social Security retirement benefit for January of this year was $1,907. In April, retirement checks were issued to 55 million American retirees aged 65 years and older.