Which states tax Social Security benefits?

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A portion of Social Security retirement, disability and other benefits are subject to federal income tax if your overall income exceeds a cap the U.S. government sets. Nine states also tax

some or all of their residents’ Social Security benefits: Colorado, Connecticut, Minnesota, Montana, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Utah, Vermont and West Virginia. 

Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska no longer tax benefits, effective this year (that is, for 2024 tax returns due by April 2025). West Virginia is phasing out the tax over the next two years.

State policies on taxing benefits vary widely. Some follow the federal rules for determining how much of a beneficiary’s Social Security income is taxable: none for people with provisional

income below $25,000 for a single filer and $32,000 for a couple filing jointly, up to 85 percent at higher income levels. (Provisional income is adjusted gross income, or AGI, plus

tax-exempt interest income, plus one-half of Social Security benefit income.) 

Other states offer their own deductions or exemptions based on age or income, and a few are reducing or eliminating taxation of benefits for most or all older residents. Here’s what to know

for the 2024 tax year if you live in a state that taxes Social Security.

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Coloradans ages 65 and older can fully deduct Social Security benefits from their state income. 

Younger beneficiaries may still owe state taxes on a portion of their benefits. Those ages 55 to 64 and receiving Social Security can deduct up to $20,000 in retirement income, including

Social Security payments. For this group, retirement income above that level is taxable at the state’s flat rate of 4.4 percent. 

Starting with the 2025 tax year, Coloradans in the 55-64 age group will be able to deduct all Social Security income from state taxes if their AGI is $75,000 or less for an individual and

$95,000 for a couple filing jointly. The $20,000 deduction cap for retirement income will remain in effect for those with AGIs above the thresholds.

For more information, contact the Colorado Department of Revenue.

State residents can deduct most or all of their benefit income, depending on their AGI, the figure on line 11 of the IRS 1040 form.

Single beneficiaries who report an AGI of less than $75,000 and married couples whose AGI is below $100,000 pay no state taxes on their benefits. If your income exceeds those thresholds, you

get a partial exemption, but no more than 25 percent of your Social Security benefits can be taxed. 

Connecticut’s income-tax rate ranges from 3 percent to 6.99 percent. For more information, contact the Connecticut Department of Revenue Services.