You know you'll need Social Security in retirement, but estimating how much you'll get isn't always easy. This can make it tough to work out how much you'll need to save on your own to cover your remaining costs.
Fortunately, you can leverage some factors within the Social Security benefit formula to maximize your monthly checks. One of the biggest is your claiming age. To get an idea of how this works, let's look at the average monthly benefits for 62-, 65-, and 70-year-olds.
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How your claiming age affects your Social Security benefits
You can claim Social Security as soon as you turn 62, but if you want the full benefit you qualify for based on your work history, you have to wait until your full retirement age (FRA) to apply. Your FRA depends on your birth year, as shown in the table:
|
Birth Year |
Full Retirement Age (FRA) |
|---|---|
|
1943 to 1954 |
66 |
|
1955 |
66 and 2 months |
|
1956 |
66 and 4 months |
|
1957 |
66 and 6 months |
|
1958 |
66 and 8 months |
|
1959 |
66 and 10 months |
|
1960 and later |
67 |
Data source: Social Security Administration.
The Social Security Administration reduces your checks for each month you claim under your FRA. You lose five-ninths of 1% per month (6.67% per year) for the first 36 months. If you sign up more than three years before your FRA, you lose five-twelfths of 1% per month (5% per year) for each additional month of early claiming.
So someone with an FRA of 67 who applies as soon as they turn 62 could shrink their checks by up to 30%. Contrary to what some believe, this drop is typically permanent, although you will see small increases each year due to cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs).
You also have the option to delay Social Security beyond your FRA. Doing so will grow your checks by two-thirds of 1% per month (8% per year) until you qualify for your maximum benefit at 70. This could add up to 24% to your checks if your FRA is 67.
The average benefit at 62, 65, and 70
You can see the difference your claiming age makes by comparing average benefits at different ages. The average monthly benefit for all Social Security beneficiaries as of December 2024 was $1,975 per month. But early claimers got a lot less.
The typical 62-year-old claimer took home just $1,342 per month, while the typical 65-year-old got $1,611 per month. We see the trend of older claimers getting larger benefits continue right up to the 70-year-olds, who took home an average of $2,148 per month.
If we assume a life expectancy of 85, then the typical 62-year-old claimer would wind up with a lifetime benefit of $370,392, while the 65-year-old claimer and the 70-year-old claimer would both get about $386,640.
This doesn't mean that delaying your Social Security claim is always your best option, though. You have to consider your financial situation. If you're unable to work and you don't have a lot of personal savings, delaying Social Security might not be an option for you. If claiming Social Security early helps you pay your bills and maintain your financial security, it's worth it, even if it means settling for a smaller lifetime benefit.
Life expectancy also matters too. If you have a terminal illness, you might actually get a larger lifetime benefit by signing up for Social Security earlier. In our example, if life expectancy were 75 instead of 85, the 62-year-old claimer would get $209,352 over their lifetime, while the 70-year-old claimer would end up with just $128,880.
Generally speaking, if you can afford to delay and you expect to live into your 80s or beyond, you would benefit the most from signing up for Social Security at your FRA or later. But if that's not feasible for you or you have a shorter life expectancy, early claiming could be your best move.
