Which States Tax Social Security in 2026? The Same 36 Retirees Priced in Every State

Published 2026-10-28. Tax year 2026 (the return filed in early 2027).

Which states tax Social Security in 2026, and how much do the benefits add to the state tax?

8 states have rules that tax Social Security benefits in 2026: Colorado, Connecticut, Minnesota, Montana, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Utah, Vermont, and most of them exempt the benefits below an income limit. For the 36 retirees priced here, the benefits added state tax in 8 of those 8, by up to $4,975 a year (Connecticut, Couple, $60,000 Social Security + $100,000 IRA). "Exempt" is not always the end of it: in 12 more states that exempt the benefits, they still raised the state tax for some households, because another exclusion, deduction or credit is reduced by the benefits received or shrinks as the income they make taxable rises (most in Maine, Maryland, Oregon). In Alabama, Oregon, the benefits lowered the state tax for some households, because the state lets you deduct federal income tax, which the benefits raise (and in Missouri by a few dollars). In 30 jurisdictions, including the 13 with no tax on this income, the benefits changed nothing.

Price your own benefits in your state: the 2026 state income tax calculator
Free: your 2026 state income tax with Social Security, IRA, pension and other income, any state.

The 36 retirees

The same households as the federal study: a single retiree at 67 and a married couple both 67 filing jointly, at three levels of Social Security and six levels of traditional IRA withdrawals (the couples' withdrawals split evenly between the spouses). Each is priced in every state twice, with the benefits and with the same withdrawals alone; the difference is the state tax the benefits add. Which states' rules reach the benefits, and their income limits, are in the State Social Security Tax 2026 dataset.

The 8 states whose rules tax the benefits

States that exempt the benefits, where they still change the tax

A state can exempt Social Security and still let it raise the tax: when an exclusion for IRA, pension or senior income is reduced by the benefits received, a retiree with both pays tax on IRA money a retiree without benefits would have excluded. The reverse happens where the state deducts federal income tax.

The smaller effects in Indiana, Missouri, Nebraska (under $250 a year for every retiree here) come through another rule that reads the benefits or the federal figures they change: federal AGI, federal taxable income or the federal tax. Each state's rules are on its guide.

Every state, six of the retirees

All 36 retirees in all 51 jurisdictions are in the data files below.

Related: Is Social Security taxable in 2026 (federal) · Ten retiree households priced in every state · State pension-exclusion map · State Social Security tax dataset

Download the data

Every case on this page, with its inputs: which-states-tax-social-security-2026.csv (the 1836 household-state cases) · which-states-tax-social-security-2026.json (CC0). Dollar amounts in USD a year; a negative amount means the benefits lower the state tax.

Questions

Which states tax Social Security in 2026?

8 states have rules that tax Social Security benefits in 2026: Colorado, Connecticut, Minnesota, Montana, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Utah, Vermont. Most exempt the benefits below an income limit; for the 36 retirees priced here the benefits added state tax in 8 of them, by up to $4,975 a year.

Which states do not tax Social Security?

The other 43 jurisdictions exempt the benefits, including the 13 with no tax on this income. But in 12 of the exempting states the benefits still raised the state tax for some retirees, because another exclusion is reduced by the Social Security received.

Does Colorado tax Social Security?

At 65 and older Colorado subtracts the benefits in full, but its pension and IRA subtraction is reduced by that Social Security subtraction. For the retirees here the benefits added Colorado tax for 17 of 36, by up to $2,381 a year.

Does Maine tax Social Security?

No, but Maine's pension income deduction, which covers IRA money, is reduced by all Social Security received. The benefits raised Maine tax for 13 of the 36 retirees, by up to $3,672 a year.

Does California tax Social Security?

No. California exempts Social Security; for all 36 retirees here the benefits changed California tax by nothing.

Do Pennsylvania, Virginia, North Carolina and Maryland tax Social Security?

No. All four exempt the benefits. For the retirees here the benefits changed the state tax in Pennsylvania for 0, Virginia for 0, North Carolina for 0 and Maryland for 9 of the 36.

Method and sources

Every figure was computed by QuantCalc's open tax engines (federal 2.5.1, state 1.21.2) through the household module the free state income tax calculator runs, then recomputed by the C engines behind the federal and state tax APIs from independently written requests, agreeing to the cent. The state engine receives the federal return's figures (the taxable benefits, the federal tax) as a state return reads them. "Added by the benefits" is the state tax on the household's year less the state tax on the same IRA withdrawals with no Social Security. Each state's rule is described from its own official source, linked in the tables; the sources of the federal rules:

• 26 U.S. Code § 86
• Publication 915, Social Security and Equivalent Railroad Retirement Benefits
• 26 U.S. Code § 151
• Rev. Proc. 2025-32: 2026 inflation-adjusted items (incl. One Big Beautiful Bill amendments)

What is not modelled

• The Indiana and Maryland figures include the county income tax every county there levies, on the state return, at a default county rate: Indiana at 1.75% (county rates); Maryland at 3.12% (county rates). A resident pays their own county's rate. Other local income taxes (city and school-district taxes, and county taxes in other states) are not included (see local income tax on retirement income).
• Everyone is 67, past full retirement age; several states treat filers under 65 (or under full retirement age) differently.
• IRA withdrawals only: a pension, 401(k) money or government pension meets other exclusions, some of which are also reduced by Social Security (Maryland's, for example). The pension-exclusion map covers them.
• Couples' IRA money is split evenly between the spouses; the benefits are not split.
• The households are illustrations, not averages.

An estimate, not tax advice. These are computed examples for the 2026 tax year from QuantCalc's open tax engines (federal 2.5.1, state 1.21.2). Your own return depends on facts these examples do not include. Check any decision with your tax preparer before acting.

@misc{quantcalc2026whichstatestaxsocialsecurityin2026thesta,
  title  = {Which States Tax Social Security in 2026? The State Tax the Same Benefits Add, in All 50 States and DC},
  author = {{QuantCalc Research}},
  year   = {2026},
  url    = {https://quantcalc.app/research/which-states-tax-social-security-2026/},
  note   = {Accessed <date>}
}