To understand how your Social Security benefits are taxed, you need to first determine your provisional income.  This is calculated by adding your adjusted gross income, along with half of your total benefits and tax-exempt income.  If your provisional income exceeds $25,000 (for singles) or $32,000 (for joint filing), then 50-85% of your Social Security benefits can be taxed.  We know that this can be a bit confusing, and invite you to contact Flower City Tax for more detail.