The largest Social Security check available in 2023 would provide $4,555 in monthly income. While getting this much retirement money sounds great, it isn't going to happen for most people.
Anticipating you'll receive such a large Social Security benefit is nothing more than a fantasy in the majority of situations. Here's why.
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The income needed to max out benefits is out of reach for most people
If you want the maximum monthly Social Security benefit, you'll need to earn an income equal to or above the inflation-adjusted equivalent of $160,200 for at least 35 years of your career. If you aren't doing that now and don't see any prospects of that happening in the near future, getting a $4,555 monthly Social Security benefit isn't going to be possible for you.
Benefits equal a percentage of average income earned over 35 years. Each year, you pay Social Security taxes on income up to a "wage base limit." A person who earns an income equal to or above the wage base limit for 35 years will have the maximum possible average wage, and thus be on track for the highest possible benefit.
As mentioned above, the wage base limit changes over time, but in 2023, it's $160,200 -- the inflation-adjusted equivalent of that amount each year. If you earn even $1 less than the wage base limit during your 35 highest earning years (the ones counted when your benefit is calculated), the $4,555 benefit is off the table. You won't have the highest possible average wage needed to get it.
Ask yourself how close you are to that amount when determining if the max benefit is reality or fantasy.
Another hurdle to clear
Chances are good that you've already determined that the maximum possible Social Security benefit is out of reach for you if you don't anticipate being among the country's top 6% of earners each year for 35 years. But even if you do earn a very high salary and max out your average wage, there's one more thing you must do: You'll have to wait until age 70 to claim your first Social Security check.
That's because Social Security benefits increase for each month you delay claiming them until your 70th birthday. So, to max out your benefits, you must have the highest possible standard benefit (determined based on average wages) and then must earn the maximum amount of delayed retirement credits to increase that standard benefit as much as possible.
Delaying retirement until 70 just isn't possible for a lot of people due to family issues, health concerns, lack of job opportunities, or simply a lack of desire to keep working so long. While you could retire without claiming Social Security benefits, you'd need lots of savings to act as your sole source of support -- which many people don't have.
Since you need to earn a ton of money for a long time and delay claiming Social Security far longer than most people to get a $4,555 monthly benefit, you can safely assume that getting this much retirement money probably isn't going to happen. To find out how much you will get, you can sign into your mySocialSecurity account online.
Once you have a realistic idea of the amount of money your Social Security benefits will actually provide, you can make plans to supplement this with enough savings to live a comfortable life as a retiree.
