The Social Security Administration (SSA) is a welfare program run by the United States government aimed at providing monthly benefits to those who are unable to earn an income for themselves for an array of reasons. A beneficiary’s birth date is used to determine the date on which they will receive their benefit check each month. These benefit checks are rolled out on the second, third, and fourth Wednesdays of each month.
The SSA uploads its payment schedule for the entire year at the beginning of the year since payment dates can sometimes fluctuate and as such, with a preview of the complete payment schedule, beneficiaries are able to plan their budgets accordingly.
Social Security benefit payments
According to the official schedule for 2025 released by the Social Security Administration, for the month of May, some beneficiaries could be receiving not one, but three checks.
First, it is important to note that the SSA makes two types of benefit payments each month. One of the payments is the regular Social Security check that is rolled out on Wednesdays throughout the month. Beneficiaries born between the 1st and the 10th of the month will receive their benefit check on the second Wednesday of each month. For May 2025, this will be the 14th.
Beneficiaries born between the 11th and the 20th will receive their benefit payment on the third Wednesday of each month, and lastly, those born between the 21st and the 31st of the month will receive their benefit check on the fourth Wednesday of the month. Whilst these are the stipulated dates of payment beneficiaries can expect to receive their money on, the SSA does note that, “if you don’t receive your payment on the expected date, please allow three additional mailing days before contacting Social Security.”
The second payment made by the SSA each month is that of the Supplemental Security Income, or SSI. This SSI payment is made to older adults or individuals with disabilities who have little to no other resources or income. According to the SSA, adults or children with the following are eligible to receive a monthly SSI:
- Little or no income, and
- Little or no resources, and
- A disability, blindness, or are age 65 or older.
The SSI payment generally goes out on the first of the month. For this month, the payment was made on May 1.
No SSI for June 2025
According to the benefit payment schedule from the SSA, for this May, three benefit checks will be going out to beneficiaries. The first check that should have already been received by eligible beneficiaries is the SSI benefit payment for May that rolled out on the first of the month.
The next payment will be the regular Social Security benefit check that will be going out every Wednesday for the remainder of the month in relation to the date of birth of the beneficiary. The exact dates of these payments are May 14, May 21, and May 28.
The schedule additionally has a second SSI payment blocked off for May 30. It is absolutely crucial for beneficiaries of the monthly SSI to note that this May 30 payment is the SSI benefit payment for the month of June. This means that no SSI payments will be made for the entirety of June and as such, beneficiaries should plan their budgets accordingly. After the May 30 SSI payment, the next SSI payment will only be made on July 1.
For beneficiaries who receive the SSI benefit in addition to the regular Social Security benefit, payment dates may differ slightly. The schedule has marked off May 2 for these beneficiaries and the SSA states that “If you received Social Security before May 1997 or if receiving both Social Security & SSI, Social Security is paid on the 3rd and SSI on the 1st.”