In 2022, the maximum Social Security benefit provides $4,194 in income per month, or $50,328 per year. That's a substantial amount of retirement income and would provide enough for many retirees to live comfortably on.
But will you actually get $4,194 in monthly checks from the Social Security Administration? Here's what you would need to do in order to be on track to earn so much.
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Count yourself among the top 6% of earners in the country
Social Security benefits are based on your earnings. Only the country's highest earners can earn the maximum benefit.
Specifically, you will need to earn income equal to or exceeding the "wage base limit" to get the highest possible check from the Social Security Administration. The wage base limit is the maximum income subject to Social Security tax (and thus the maximum income counted when benefits are calculated).
The wage base limit changes over time due to inflation. It's $147,000 in 2022. The Social Security Administration has indicated that only around 6% of workers earn above this amount each year. If you aren't one of them, you aren't on track to get the maximum $4,194 monthly benefit.
Earn your hefty salary for 35 years
It's not enough to earn the wage base limit, or above it, just for a short time.
When the Social Security determines benefits based on average wages, it calculates your average wage based on your 35 highest-earning years. To get the maximum benefit, you'd need a full 35 years of earning at least as much as the wage base limit. With fewer years of earnings at that level, your average wage wouldn't be maxed out, so the highest possible benefit would be out of your reach.
Wait until 70 to start your checks
Say you're among the top 6% of earners consistently for 35 or more years. There's one more thing that you'll have to do to be on track for the maximum benefit.
You'll have to max out delayed retirement credits. These increase the amount of the standard benefit that was calculated based on your career-average wages.
Delayed retirement credits are earned for each month you wait beyond full retirement age (FRA) for Social Security checks to start. They can be earned only until 70. Since your birth year determines your full retirement age -- and FRA is between 66 and four months and 67 -- you can earn between 36 and 44 delayed retirement credits, depending when you were born. You'll have to earn all of them to get Social Security's maximum possible check. Since benefits eligibility begins at age 62, you'll have to give up a full eight years of payments. Many people can't, or don't want to, make that sacrifice.
As you can see, it's really difficult to get the largest possible Social Security payment. You're probably not going to accomplish this, so you shouldn't plan on Social Security providing so much income. Instead, check your my Social Security account to see how much you're likely to receive, and be sure you have plenty of savings to supplement your retirement benefits, since they won't be high enough to serve as your sole support source.
