More than 70 million people receive Social Security benefits in the United States, and California concentrates the largest number of beneficiaries in the country, with 6,814 million registered in December 2025.
Program payments mainly go to retired workers and people with disabilities, but also include surviving relatives of deceased workers. The figures were published by the Social Security Administration (SSA) in August and allow to know how beneficiaries are distributed across the country.
California ranks first with 6,814 million beneficiaries, a figure representing 17.3% of its population.
The result is not surprising at all, as California is by far the most populous state in the United States, with almost 40 million inhabitants. Its enormous population also concentrates the largest number of people receiving Social Security payments.
However, the weight of the program within its population is greater than in California: beneficiaries represent 22.6% of the state's inhabitants.
Texas ranks third, with 4,997 million people receiving benefits, equivalent to 15.8% of its population.
New York is in fourth place, with 3,925 million beneficiaries, while Pennsylvania completes the top five places with 3,036 million.
In the case of Pennsylvania, Social Security has a significant weight within the population, with beneficiaries representing 23.2% of the population.
The list continues with states that also have a considerable number of people receiving benefits.
Ohio has 2,612 million beneficiaries, equivalent to 21.9% of its population, while Illinois has 2,454 million, representing 19.3%.
Michigan has 2,381 million beneficiaries, and 23.5% of its population receives some Social Security benefits.
North Carolina has 2,386 million beneficiaries, equivalent to 21.3% of its inhabitants, while Georgia records 2,082 million, or 18.4% of its population.
From that point on, the number of beneficiaries begins to decline, although several states still exceed the million people receiving payments.
After the states leading the list, New Jersey records 1.78 million beneficiaries, while Virginia has 1.736 million.
Tennessee has 1.593 million, followed by Arizona, with 1.576 million, and Washington, with 1.526 million.
Indiana records 1,474 million beneficiaries, while Missouri has 1,416 million, Massachusetts has 1,409 million and Wisconsin reaches 1,399 million.
South Carolina records 1.334 million people receiving benefits, while Alabama has 1.207 million and Minnesota 1.187 million.
Maryland has 1.133 million beneficiaries, Kentucky with 1.060 million and Colorado with 1.035 million.
The total number of beneficiaries does not tell the whole story.When compared with the population of each state, significant differences appear.
Maine records that 27.4% of its population receives Social Security benefits, while in West Virginia the proportion reaches 27.3%.
Vermont also presents a high figure, with 26.1%, followed by New Hampshire, where beneficiaries represent 25.0% of the population.
Mississippi records 24.0%, while Delaware reaches 24.2%.South Carolina has 23.9%, and Arkansas and Montana record 23.7% each.
Also highlights Michigan, with 23.5%, Wisconsin, with 23.4%, Alabama, with 23.3%, and Pennsylvania, with 23.2%.
These differences show that a state may have fewer beneficiaries in absolute terms, but a much larger proportion of its population may depend on Social Security.
At the other end are the states where Social Security represents a smaller proportion of the population.
Utah records 488,000 beneficiaries, equivalent to 13.8% of its inhabitants, the lowest proportion among the states included in the data.
Colorado has 1,035 million beneficiaries, but these represent only 17.2% of its population.California is very close, with 17.3%, despite having the largest absolute number of beneficiaries in the country.
Maryland records 18.1%, Georgia 18.4%, New Jersey 18.6% and Illinois 19.3%.
SSA data shows that Louisiana has 992,000 beneficiaries, equivalent to 21.5% of its population, while Oregon records 964,000, 22.6%.
Oklahoma has 867,000 beneficiaries and Connecticut 765,000. In both cases, they represent around a fifth of the population: 21.1% and 20.8%, respectively.
Arkansas totaled 737,000 beneficiaries, Iowa 718,000 and Mississippi 710,000.Their proportions are 23.7%, 22.2% and 24.0%.
Nevada records 629,000 people receiving benefits, Kansas 613,000 and Utah 488,000.
New Mexico has 486,000 beneficiaries, equivalent to 22.9% of its population, while West Virginia records 482,000 and reaches one of the highest proportions in the country, with 27.3%.
Idaho has 421,000 beneficiaries and Nebraska 388,000. Maine also records 388,000, although in this case the figure represents 27.4% of its population.
New Hampshire has 354,000 beneficiaries, Hawaii with 311,000 and Montana with 271,000.
Delaware records 257,000 people, Rhode Island 249,000 and South Dakota 206,000.
Wyoming records 133,000 beneficiaries and Alaska 123,000, while the District of Columbia has 88,000.
In general, the most populous states are also those that concentrate the largest number of Social Security beneficiaries. California, Florida, Texas, New York and Pennsylvania occupy the top places both by population and by number of people receiving these benefits.
However, when you look at the percentage of inhabitants receiving payments, the picture changes. States with smaller populations, such as Maine, West Virginia and Vermont, present some of the highest proportions.
This reflects the demographic differences between states and, especially, the weight that older adults have within each population. In much of the country, around a fifth of the population receives some social security benefits, although the proportion may be much higher in certain states.
