Social Security

• In 2021, 176.6 million workers had earnings taxable under the Social Security program. About 156.1 million had only wages, 12.0 million had only self-employment income, and 8.5 million had both.
• Social Security taxable earnings totaled $8.360 trillion, which includes earnings up to the taxable maximum of $142,800.
• Social Security taxes totaled about $1,037 billion.

Medicare

• In 2021, 180.4 million workers had earnings taxable under the Medicare program. About 158.8 million had only wages, 11.7 million had only self-employment income, and 9.8 million had both.
• Medicare taxable earnings totaled $10.664 trillion.
• Medicare taxes totaled about $309 billion.

This report presents 2021 earnings and employment data by state and county for persons covered under the Social Security and Medicare programs.

The data, shown by sex and age, include the number of wage and salary workers and self-employed persons, the amount of their taxable earnings, and the amount they paid in Social Security and Medicare contributions. The information in this publication is a rich data source for researchers and policymakers who are interested in studying the primary revenue source for the Social Security (Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance) and the Medicare Part A (Hospital Insurance) programs. When coupled with the Social Security Administration publication OASDI Beneficiaries by State and County, these data are valuable for studying the impact of the Social Security program and are used for this purpose in academia, private industry, and state governments.

Staff of the Office of Data Development and the Office of Statistical Analysis and Support designed, compiled, programmed, validated, and reviewed the data for this publication. Staff of the Office of Dissemination edited the report and prepared it for web publication.

Natalie T. Lu
Acting Associate Commissioner for Research, Evaluation, and Statistics
September 2023

COVID-19-related delays in processing the 2021 tax returns for self-employed individuals may result in underreporting.