May Social Security Payments: When To Expect Your Money

If you’re one of the 68 million Americans relying on Social Security benefits to make monthly ends meet or use your benefits to supplement your retirement, you need to know exactly when you can expect that money to reach your wallet. 

Keep reading to learn when you can expect your Social Security check this May and what you should do if you don’t receive your payment within the timeframe listed here.

The Social Security Administration (SSA) uses your birthday to determine what day of the month you’ll receive your Social Security check. No matter when you were born or what month it is, you can expect the payment on a Wednesday — but exactly which Wednesday is up to your birth date:

• If your birth date falls on the 1st through 10th, you’ll be paid on the second Wednesday of every month.
• If your birth date falls on the 11th through the 20th, you’ll be paid on the third Wednesday of every month.
• If your birth date falls on the 21st through the 31st, you’ll be paid on the fourth Wednesday of every month.

Let’s say your birthday is September 1, 1960. If you’re retired and receive Social Security benefits, you can expect your monthly payment to arrive on the second Wednesday of every month.

Still not sure when you’ll receive your benefits? Check out the SSA’s 2024 payment schedule, which breaks down payment dates month by month, and see our next section for May’s deadlines.

For the month of May 2024, payment dates break down as follows:

• If you were born on the 1st through 10th of your birth month, you’ll get your check on May 8, 2024.
• If you were born between the 11th and 20th of your birth month, you’ll get your check on May 15, 2024.
• If you were born on the 21st through 31st of your birth month, you’ll get your check on May 22, 2024.

Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits are paid to individuals who are disabled, have an extremely limited income, and have extremely limited resources. SSI payments are sent out on the first of the month, so you should receive your next payment on Wednesday, May 1, 2024.

And, since June 1 falls on a Saturday this year, you’ll receive your June payment a day early on Friday, May 31, 2024.

Retirement, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (RSDI) benefits are a certain type of federal benefits paid to qualifying workers and their beneficiaries. They’re also known as SSA benefits. 

If you started receiving RSDI benefits after May 1997, you can expect those benefits to arrive on the same schedule as Social Security benefits — either the second, third, or fourth Wednesday of the month, depending on your birthday.

However, if you started receiving RSDI benefits before May 1997, you’ve likely been receiving benefits on the third of each month. That schedule will stay in place, so look forward to getting your RSDI check on May 3, 2024, which falls on a Friday this year.

Hopefully, your Social Security, RSDI, or SSI benefits will go through without a hitch this month. However, if your payment date arrives without a corresponding check, it’s important to take action immediately to resolve the issue.

Start by contacting your bank or financial institution, not the Social Security Administration. For one thing, your bank will likely be easier to reach. For another, there’s a good chance the holdup is happening on the bank’s end, not the SSA’s.

For instance, maybe the bank was closed for a state or local holiday, and payments are taking an extra day to process.

Next, ask yourself if you need to update any personal information with the SSA: If you changed addresses or banks recently without updating the SSA, that could explain the delay.

Finally, be aware that the SSA, like many government agencies, could be understaffed. The delay might be due to a personnel issue (though this issue is less likely in the age of direct deposit and automated payments).

If getting in touch with your bank didn’t resolve the issue, you can call the Social Security Administration at 1-800-772-1213 Monday through Friday. Deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals can call the SSA’s TTY line at 1-800-325-0778. 

You can also consider visiting your nearest Social Security field office, which you can find by entering your zip code on the SSA website.

Social Security payments can make all the difference when it comes to keeping your household afloat after retirement or helping you stretch your retirement savings. 

Staying on top of each month’s payment deadlines can help you act quickly if you don’t receive the payment on time. 

Hopefully, if a delay occurs, it won’t be long until the issue gets resolved and your retirement benefit is safely in hand.