The fourth-Wednesday deposit covers birth dates from the 21st to the 31st, and after it the calendar goes quiet until SSI on Tuesday, September 1 and the pre-May-1997 group on Thursday, September 3.
The final Social Security payment of August 2026 arrives tomorrow, Wednesday, August 26, and it belongs to retirement and disability beneficiaries born between the 21st and the 31st of any month. According to the Social Security Administration (SSA) payment calendar, that deposit closes out the month entirely. The next money to move is Supplemental Security Income (SSI) on Tuesday, September 1, followed by the pre-May-1997 group on Thursday, September 3.
Who is paid on August 26
SSA pays retirement and Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits according to the beneficiary’s date of birth. Birth dates from the 1st to the 10th are paid on the second Wednesday of the month, the 11th to the 20th on the third Wednesday, and the 21st to the 31st on the fourth Wednesday.
August’s earlier rounds have already gone out: August 12 for the first group and August 19 for the second, preceded by the August 3 payment that goes to people who began receiving benefits before May 1997 and to those who receive both Social Security and SSI. The complete schedule is published in SSA’s 2026 payment calendar.
Why no SSI payment is dated in August
SSI is normally paid on the 1st of each month. August 1, 2026 fell on a Saturday, so the August SSI payment was released early, on Friday, July 31. That is to say, there is no SSI deposit dated in August at all, which is why the gap after tomorrow looks longer than usual for households that receive both programs.
September 1 is a Tuesday and an ordinary business day, so SSI returns to its normal date with no adjustment.
The weekend rule that governs the whole calendar
One line in SSA’s own guidance explains almost every irregularity in the payment year:
“If your regularly scheduled payment date falls on a Saturday, Sunday or legal public holiday, benefits will be paid the business day before your due date.”
The rule, set out in the agency’s payment date FAQ, only ever moves money earlier, never later. It applies again on Friday, October 2, because October 3 is a Saturday, and on Friday, October 30, when November’s SSI payment arrives early because November 1 is a Sunday. The consequence is that November, like August, will have no SSI payment dated inside it.
What arrives in September
- Tuesday, September 1 — SSI
- Thursday, September 3 — beneficiaries since before May 1997 and people who receive both Social Security and SSI
- Wednesday, September 9 — birth dates 1st to 10th
- Wednesday, September 16 — birth dates 11th to 20th
- Wednesday, September 23 — birth dates 21st to 31st
How much lands in each account
The amounts do not change with the calendar. On SSA’s July 2026 data, the average retired-worker benefit is $2,085.98 a month, the average SSDI disabled-worker benefit $1,635.27, and the average SSI payment $736.54. The maximum possible retirement benefit in 2026 is $2,969 for someone claiming at 62, $4,152 at full retirement age and $5,181 at 70.
Likewise, the 2.8% cost-of-living adjustment already built into these checks took effect in January 2026 and will not change again until January 2027. The SSA calendar page carries the dates for the rest of the year, and the next figure worth watching is the 2027 adjustment, expected on October 14 alongside the September inflation data.
