For Social Security Disability Insurance recipients, that also means a bigger monthly check going forward. Monthly checks begin on the third of the month for certain beneficiaries, and three additional rounds of payments are sent out throughout the month.

January's Social Security payments are worth up to $4,873 for the highest-income earners who retire at age 70.

Social Security's 2025 cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) took effect in January. Benefits will increase 2.5% this year, the smallest pay bump for seniors since 2021. Indeed, more than half of retired workers surveyed by The Motley Fool in October said the COLA was insufficient.