As long as he lived with you more than 1/2 the year (no penalty for being away at school temporarily), did not pay more than 1/2 his own support, and no one else is claiming him, Yes, you can.

Note that he must file his own return for his income and must check the box that asks whether someone else can claim him as a dependent.  With that amount of income, it is likely that he will not get all his withheld tax back.  He may even owe Federal income tax.

my son lives with me and made over 16,000 last year! can i claim him or would it be better if i didnt and had him file by his self??

It depends. 

You can only claim his as a dependent if he meets the requirements as outlined in the following link.

Dependent qualifications

If he does meet the qualifications and you choose to claim him, be sure he marks that he can be claimed as a dependent by somebody else to ensure his tax return is computed correctly.  

Please see the link below to determine if he has a filing requirement.  It will depend on his filing status so the income amount varies.

Do I need to file a federal return this year?