Social Security Tax — Payroll Definition
The 6.2% payroll tax that funds federal retirement and disability benefits (OASDI).
The 6.2% payroll tax that funds federal retirement and disability benefits (OASDI).
Social Security tax, officially called OASDI (Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance), is a 6.2% tax on your gross wages up to the annual wage base limit ($184,500 in 2026). This tax funds monthly benefits for retirees, disabled individuals, and survivors of deceased workers. Once you earn above the wage base, you stop paying Social Security tax for the rest of the year — which is why high earners may notice their paychecks getting slightly bigger late in the year.
Example: $2,000 biweekly gross × 6.2% = $124.00 Social Security tax withheld
Common pay stub code: OASDI / SS
Social Security Rate and Wage Base for 2026
The employee rate is 6.2% and the employer pays a matching 6.2%, for a combined 12.4%. The tax applies only to the first $184,500 of wages in 2026 — the Social Security wage base — so the most an employee can pay in a single year is $11,439.00 and the most an employer can match is the same amount. Self-employed workers owe the full 12.4% themselves through self-employment tax, on net earnings up to the same wage base, and deduct the employer-equivalent half on their income tax return.
What Happens When You Reach the Wage Base
Social Security withholding stops for the rest of the calendar year the moment your year-to-date wages with one employer pass $184,500, and it restarts on the first paycheck of January. A worker at $250,000 therefore sees the OASDI line disappear from late-year stubs and take-home pay rise by 6.2% of gross until the new year. The cap is per employer, not per person: if you change jobs or hold two jobs, each employer withholds up to the full wage base on the wages it pays, and you claim the excess Social Security withheld as a credit on your federal return.
Reading the Social Security Line on Your Pay Stub
The deduction is labeled OASDI, SS, SOC SEC, SSEE, or FICA-SS depending on the payroll provider — they are all the same 6.2% tax. Check it by multiplying your Social Security wages, not necessarily your total gross, by 0.062. Pre-tax Section 125 deductions such as medical, dental, HSA, and FSA lower the wages the tax is computed on; traditional 401(k) contributions do not, which is why the 401(k) reduces your federal income tax but not your Social Security tax.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What percentage is Social Security tax?
- Employees pay 6.2% of gross wages and employers match it with another 6.2%, for a combined 12.4%. Self-employed workers pay the full 12.4% themselves as part of the 15.3% self-employment tax.
- What is the Social Security wage base for 2026?
- The 2026 Social Security wage base is $184,500. Wages above that amount are not subject to the 6.2% tax, so the maximum an employee can pay for the year is $11,439.00. Medicare tax has no equivalent cap.
- Is OASDI the same as Social Security tax?
- Yes. OASDI stands for Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance, the formal name of the Social Security program. A pay stub line reading OASDI, SS, or SOC SEC is the same 6.2% Social Security tax.
- Why did Social Security stop coming out of my paycheck?
- Your year-to-date wages with that employer passed the $184,500 wage base for 2026, so no further Social Security tax is due for the rest of the calendar year. Withholding resumes with the first paycheck of the new year. Medicare tax keeps coming out because it is uncapped.