Spousal Social Security benefits are a crucial source of income for married couples looking to supplement their personal savings. Some divorced spouses can claim them as well. But the difference these checks make to your lifestyle depends on their size.
Here, we'll take a closer look at how the government calculates spousal Social Security benefits, along with average spousal Social Security benefits at some of the most popular claiming ages.
Image source: Getty Images.
How the government calculates Social Security benefits
Spousal Social Security benefits are based on the qualifying worker's benefit, so it helps to understand how the government calculates these first. The short version is it looks at the worker's average monthly earnings, adjusted for inflation, over their 35 highest-earning years. It takes this figure and plugs it into the Social Security benefit formula. The result is known as the primary insurance amount (PIA).
The PIA is the amount the worker qualifies for at their full retirement age (FRA). This table can help you identify yours:
|
Birth Year |
Full Retirement Age (FRA) |
|---|---|
|
1943 to 1954 |
66 |
|
1955 |
66 and two months |
|
1956 |
66 and four months |
|
1957 |
66 and six months |
|
1958 |
66 and eight months |
|
1959 |
66 and 10 months |
|
1960 and later |
67 |
Data source: Social Security Administration.
Claiming under their FRA reduces a worker's checks by five-ninths of 1% per month for up to 36 months of early claiming. Those who sign up even earlier lose five-twelfths of 1% per month beyond 36 months. This results in a benefit reduction of up to 30% for those who apply right at 62.
Workers can also choose to delay Social Security past their FRA. If they do this, their checks grow by two-thirds of 1% per month until they qualify for their maximum benefit at 70. This is 124% to 132% of their PIA.
How the government calculates spousal Social Security benefits
The maximum spousal benefit is up to one half of the worker's PIA. But you may not get this much. There are even steeper penalties for early claiming. You lose 25/36th of 1% per month for your first 36 months of early claiming, plus another five-twelfths of 1% per month if you apply more than 36 months before your FRA. But unlike workers' benefits, spousal benefits max out at your FRA. So there's no point to delaying beyond 66 or 67.
This table shows the average spousal Social Security benefit at ages 62, 66, and 67 as of December 2022, along with estimates for what individuals earning this amount would receive in 2024 after applying the 2023 and 2024 cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs):
|
Age |
Average Monthly Benefit as of December 2022 |
Estimated Monthly Benefit in 2024 |
|---|---|---|
|
62 |
$546.35 |
$612.89 |
|
66 |
$745.41 |
$836.19 |
|
67 |
$816.81 |
$916.28 |
Data source: Social Security Administration and author's calculations.
As you can see, delaying spousal Social Security leads to larger benefits, but there are a few things to keep in mind.
First, delaying benefits isn't always your best decision. If you have a short life expectancy or you're struggling to pay your bills, you're often better off applying early, even if it means settling for a smaller lifetime benefit.
Second, you cannot claim a spousal benefit until the worker applies for Social Security. This might prohibit you from claiming early unless you also qualify for Social Security retirement benefits in your own right. In this case, you could sign up for those as soon as you're ready. Then, when your spouse applies, the Social Security Administration will automatically increase your checks if your spousal benefit is worth more than what you're already receiving.
It's best to play out a few claiming scenarios and talk with your spouse to determine the best time for each of you to claim. You can always adjust your approach as you get closer to retirement.
