These 5 States Have An Average Monthly Social Security Benefit Above $2,100

In September 2025, the average monthly Social Security benefit for retirees was $2,009.50, according to the Social Security Administration (SSA). The amount of each person's retirement benefit varies based upon multiple factors, including earnings during their working years, how long a person worked, and the age at which they retired. This means that state averages also vary, depending upon collective Social Security income from retirees and the number of them living there. A retiree's current home could exist in a state that's different from where they worked, potentially skewing averages. Using U.S. Census data, SmartAsset reported that nearly one million people aged 60 and up changed the state where they lived in 2023.

Based on the SSA's Annual Statistical Supplement for 2024 benefits, per-state averages have been extrapolated by The Hill. Results show that five states have an average Social Security retirement benefit amount above $2,100: Maryland ($2,139.54), Delaware ($2,170.63), New Hampshire ($2,183.82), New Jersey ($2,190.05), and Connecticut ($2,196.15). What else they have in common: they're all New England states. Connecticut and New Jersey also had a reasonably high number of retirees receiving checks of more than $3,000: 19.5% of them. The only place that beat this percentage was Washington, D.C., at 20.8%. None of the figures provided included the 2.5% cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for that year. (Note: The Social Security COLA increase for 2026 is 2.8%.) As a review of states with higher benefits will demonstrate, these states are also ones that come with higher costs of living.

Although ranked fifth in the average size of a retiree's Social Security benefits at $2,139.54, its cities aren't ones where someone could live on Social Security alone. According to Salary.com, a single person would need to earn $2,896 to cover typical housing, food, healthcare, transportation, and energy costs in the Old Line State; that's 17% more than the national average. When drilling down into citywide costs, they range from being slightly more than 12% above the national average (Baltimore, Columbia, Elliot City, Glen Burnie, Dundalk, and Townson) to above 40% (Silver Springs, Waldorf, Gaithersburg, Rockville, Bethesda, Bowie, and Potomac). The majority of the costs center on housing, which, statewide, is 46% above the average in the United States. Food costs are 14% above average, energy expenses are 11% more, and transportation costs hit 3%.

That said, a couple each receiving a Social Security check, those also receiving pensions, retirees with large retirement savings, and those who could sell their current home and buy one in Maryland with cash might find the state to be quite hospitable. Healthcare costs are 2% below average, with Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore ranked the best in the nation by U.S. News & World Report. Although Maryland does tax IRA withdrawals, there's no tax on Social Security benefits. Although its 6% state tax rate is middling, there are no local taxes, and Maryland offers a homestead property tax program for people who qualify. 

Delaware is an exception to the pattern being described. It comes with cost-of-living expenses that match the average in the United States, according to Salary.com. This puts the average cost for a single person at $2,475. Housing costs are 7% less than the U.S. average, with energy costs being 8% less. Areas where costs are higher include the following: food (2% more), transportation (3% more), and healthcare (7% more). The same caveat, however, exists for Delaware as with Maryland. A single person earning the average Social Security benefit of $2,170.63 would need additional resources like a pension, retirement savings, and so forth.

Life in any one of the 13 Delaware cities highlighted at Salary.com ranges anywhere from 10.6% higher than the national average (Harrington, Lewes, and Milford) to 14.5% higher in Rehoboth Beach. Smaller towns in Delaware, as is true across the states, often have more affordable costs of living than bigger cities — and HOMEiA named Georgetown as the Southern Delaware value hub with costs of living 18% below the national average with plenty of homes costing less than $250,000 and affordable energy and transportation costs. Seaford comes in second in affordability with costs of living 15% less than the national average and a choice of homes under $200,000. Delaware doesn't tax Social Security retirement benefits with only partial IRA withdrawal taxes, has no state or local sales tax, has low property tax rates, and doesn't have an estate/inheritance tax. 

Next up: New Hampshire, with an average Social Security retirement benefit of $2,183.82. The average cost of living is 15% higher than national figures, per Salary.com, with a single person needing $2,846 per month. Costs are higher across the five categories considered: housing (26% more), food (10% more), energy (18% more), transportation (1% more), and healthcare (7%). The 11 cities highlighted come with costs of living that are anywhere from 12.3% more than the national average (Manchester and Bedford) to Salem at 22.8%. 

If retirees are looking for affordable towns in the Granite State, Berlin has a population under 10,000, with Houzeo listing median house values of just under $190,000, with overall costs of living 21.4% under the national average. Healthcare costs are 14.7% less than the U.S. median. Another option is Claremont. With a population around 13,000, median home values are a bit more than $250,000, and overall costs of living are 10.9% under the nation's average. Benefits of living in New Hampshire include how there are no taxes on Social Security, pensions, or 401(k) and IRA distributions. Retirees also appreciate New Hampshire's low crime rate, making it the safest state in the nation, according to U.S. News & World Report. Plus, The Commonwealth Fund (an independent healthcare research foundation and grant-making body) ranks New Hampshire as having the third-best healthcare in the nation based on a review of 50 measures relating to access, affordability, prevention, treatment, outcomes, and more. 

New Jersey is also more expensive to live in than the typical state. With average Social Security benefits of $2,190.05, the cost of living comes in at 12% higher than what's typical in the United States, according to Salary.com. A single person in the Garden State would need $2,772 to cover costs of living. Housing costs are 32% higher in New Jersey than what's average in the country, with others also being higher: food (8% more), energy (7% more), transportation (5% more), and healthcare (2% more). Some cities in New Jersey come with exceptionally high costs of living, with four of them – Jersey City, Union City, Hoboken, and West New York — being a whopping 75% more expensive than what's average in the country. Out of the 33 cities broken out by Salary.com, Vineland came with the lowest cost of living, being 11.1% higher than the national average. You can also expect to pay higher property taxes in New Jersey than in many places.

For (slightly) more affordable living, Phillipsburg is a locale with a population of around 15,000, where the cost of living is only 7% above national averages. Housing expenses fall 9.5% below the average, with food 27.1% below, energy 7.5% lower, transportation 10.5% beneath, and healthcare at 1.2% below. New Jersey doesn't tax Social Security, although the Garden State does tax inheritances and many pension incomes and IRA/401(k) withdrawals. State taxes are in the middle with no local taxes. 

Connecticut comes in at #1 with the highest average Social Security retirement benefits at $2,196.15. However, a look at Salary.com shows that costs of living in the Constitution State come in at 12% higher than the national average, with a single person needing $2,772. Breaking costs down, housing expenses are 16% higher than the national average, food goes over by 3%, energy is a whopping 20% more expensive, transportation exceeds by 10%, and healthcare is 12% more expensive. When Salary.com breaks out costs in 21 cities, they range from two cities with costs 17.4% higher than national averages (New London and Norwich) to three with costs 55.3% higher (Stamford, Norwalk, and Greenwich). Although even smaller locales in Connecticut can come with higher costs of living than national averages, towns may be more affordable than cities. People sometimes need to pay Social Security taxes in the state, depending upon their adjusted gross incomes, although it caps at 25% of what you receive. There is a state income tax, too, but it's progressive. So, people earning a higher income would pay a higher rate. No local sales taxes exist.

Benefits of living in Connecticut during retirement years include its healthcare system. US News & World Report rated the state as having the third-best system in the nation, only behind Massachusetts and Hawaii, ranking Connecticut #2 in healthcare access, #5 in public health, and #14 in healthcare quality. The site also rated the state as the 15th best, overall in the country.