How to Set Up Your "my Social Security" Online Account

The Social Security Administration's free "my Social Security" account at ssa.gov is the official way to check your benefit amount, view your earnings history, get a benefit verification letter for a loan or apartment application, update your direct deposit bank account, and request a replacement Social Security card — all without visiting an office or waiting on hold. If you already receive benefits, this account is also where your annual cost-of-living increase notice and 1099 tax form for benefits show up every January.

Creating the account matters for another reason too: it is one of the best defenses against Social Security scams. Criminals sometimes try to create a fraudulent "my Social Security" account in someone else's name to redirect their benefit payments to a different bank account. If you create your own verified account first, a scammer generally cannot create a second one using your information — the system already recognizes you as taken.

Setting up the account requires identity verification, which can be done through Login.gov or ID.me — both are separate government-approved identity services, not part of Social Security itself, and neither one will ever call or text you asking to verify your identity over the phone. Source: ssa.gov/myaccount.