SSDI or SSI — which one applies to you

These two programs get confused constantly, partly because Social Security runs both and partly because the medical test is identical. Everything else about them is different.

SSDI: based on what you paid in

SSDI works like insurance. Through payroll taxes you accumulate work credits, and if you have enough of them — generally meaning you worked recently enough and long enough — you are covered. What you would receive is calculated from your earnings record, so it varies enormously from person to person.

There is a waiting period before SSDI payments begin, and after a period on SSDI you become eligible for Medicare regardless of your age.

SSI: based on need

SSI requires no work credits at all, which makes it the route for people who have not worked recently, who worked informally, or who have been out of the workforce raising a family or caring for someone.

In its place, SSI applies limits on income and on countable assets. Some things are excluded from that calculation — typically the home you live in and usually one vehicle. In most states an SSI award also brings Medicaid.

The medical test is the same for both

This surprises people. Whichever program you apply under, the question of whether you are disabled is decided identically: can you do substantial work, consistently, and has that lasted or will it last at least twelve months?

Getting both at once

It is possible to receive both, usually when an SSDI payment is small enough that SSI tops it up. People in that position are sometimes described as having a concurrent claim.

The amounts change every year

SSI's federal rate, the earnings limits, and the asset limits are all adjusted annually. Rather than print figures here that would be out of date within months, check ssa.gov, which is always current.