What income counts as earned versus unearned for SSDI in 2026?

1. What the SSA means by "earned income" in practice

Earned income for SSDI consists of wages and salaries, net earnings from self‑employment, certain royalties and honoraria, and comparable payments that reflect active work effort; these are the amounts SSA considers when deciding if someone is engaging in SGA and therefore no longer disabled ^{[1] [6]}. For 2026 SSA’s SGA nominal thresholds are tied to active work: the monthly SGA amount for non‑blind disabled workers is $1,690 and higher for blind beneficiaries, and earnings above those amounts typically signal SGA ^[2]. For work‑reentry protections, SSA counts months as trial work months when earned income exceeds the 2026 monthly trial work threshold ($1,210), during which beneficiaries can test working without immediate loss of benefits ^{[2] [7]}.

2. What falls under "unearned income" and why it usually doesn’t stop SSDI

Unearned income is defined broadly as income not produced by active work — for example Social Security payments, pensions, interest, dividends, unemployment benefits, annuities, rental income, gifts, and inheritances — and these types of receipts generally do not count toward SSDI’s SGA calculation or cause SSDI payments to be suspended ^{[1] [3] [6]}. Multiple practitioner and government summaries stress that SSDI is an earnings‑based entitlement and, unlike SSI, it has no asset test and does not impose a blanket limit on unearned income such as investment returns or gifts ^{[2] [8] [4]}. That distinction explains why someone could receive substantial passive income yet still remain eligible for SSDI so long as their work‑related earnings stay below SGA ^{[6] [8]}.

3. Important exceptions and interactions to watch for

There are important exceptions: some non‑SSA government payments (certain state disability payments, workers’ compensation, or government pensions) can reduce or offset SSDI benefits under offset rules or coordination provisions, and those cases are treated differently than routine investment income ^{[5] [9]}. Additionally, SSDI beneficiaries must report earnings and remain subject to program reviews; SSA’s regulatory framework (and exclusions like the $20 general exclusion that SSA applies in SSI contexts) shows the agency differentiates classes of income and applies exclusions in specific orders, so case‑level details matter ^{[10] [11]}.

4. Common confusions: SSDI versus SSI and how reporting can mislead

Many public explanations conflate SSI rules (which tightly count both earned and unearned income, in‑kind support, and have asset limits) with SSDI; that conflation fuels mistaken fears that interest, dividends or gifts will cut SSDI checks, when in fact those are unearned and typically irrelevant to SSDI eligibility ^{[1] [9] [8]}. Advocacy websites, law blogs and forum answers often emphasize the safe‑harbor that unearned income provides for SSDI recipients, but they sometimes underplay the offset exceptions and the need to report certain state or employer payments — a nuance stressed by attorneys and SSA guidance ^{[5] [10]}.

5. Practical takeaways for 2026

For 2026, treat wages, net business earnings and comparable pay as "earned" and therefore counted toward the $1,690 SGA test and the $1,210 trial work month threshold, while treating interest, dividends, most pensions, gifts and investment returns as "unearned" that generally do not count against SSDI — but verify any workers’ compensation, state disability or similar payments because they may be handled as offsets ^{[2] [7] [1] [5]}. If documentation or a borderline situation exists, consult SSA publications or an advocate because SSA’s case‑level application of exclusions and offsets can change outcomes ^{[10] [11]}.