Deciding when to claim Social Security can impact your finances throughout your entire retirement. Unfortunately, despite the importance of this choice, far too many people don't take the time to think about the best age to start their benefits.
If you're considering filing for your retirement checks in 2026, you don't want to be one of those people who just jump into making a claim. Before you file for benefits, it's worth taking the time to consider what the data says about whether you're really ready.
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Are you ready for a 2026 Social Security claim?
The best way to determine if you're ready for a 2026 Social Security claim is to consider your age and the impact of your age on your claiming choice.
Your age has a direct and permanent impact on the money you collect from Social Security monthly and during the entirety of your retirement. It even affects Social Security income after you have passed on, if you were the higher earner in your household, and your spouse is eligible for Social Security survivor benefits.
Eligibility for Social Security begins at age 62 if you're claiming retirement benefits. But the data is pretty clear that claiming benefits at 62 is not the best way to max out the lifetime income you'd receive. In fact, multiple studies over many years have shown that waiting until 70 is the right decision for the majority of seniors.
One older study from United Income in 2019 revealed that almost 60% of retirees ended up with more lifetime wealth by claiming at 70, compared with 6.5% who ended up wealthier if they claimed before turning 64. By starting checks earlier rather than waiting until 70, retirees were leaving an estimated $111,000 per household in benefits on the table.
More recent data has confirmed this, as 2023 research from the National Bureau of Economic Research revealed that while just 10.2% of American workers collect Social Security at 70, over 90% should wait until that time. By not waiting, retirees are racking up median losses of $182,370 in household lifetime discretionary spending. For as many as 25% of workers, lifetime gains from a delayed claim would exceed 17% in typical lifetime spending, while for 10% of retirees, the gains from waiting would be higher than 26%.
This data consistently makes it clear that the best time for the vast majority of people to claim benefits is at age 70.
So, if you're thinking about claiming Social Security in 2026 but you aren't 70 yet, you may want to think twice. Odds are very good you'd be giving up lifetime income -- and potentially a substantial amount of it -- by deciding to start your Social Security checks.
Does it make sense for everyone to wait until 70?
It's clear that on paper, you stand the best chance of having the maximum income in retirement if you delay your Social Security claim as long as possible -- even well beyond your full retirement age. There's no real disputing that fact. Even if you die early, if you have a surviving spouse, a delayed claim may still have been the better choice since you'll have maxed out available survivor benefits.
Now, there are limited exceptions when waiting absolutely would not make sense for your retirement planning. If you're claiming spousal benefits, you can't increase the amount you collect by waiting beyond FRA to start benefits, so claiming at your full retirement age would probably be the better choice.
If you're retired already and the money in your 401(k) or other retirement plans is starting to decline too fast, you may also be better off claiming benefits ASAP if you can't cut spending or go back to work. Otherwise, you risk ending up with too little in your investment accounts.
Outside of those situations, though, if you can make the math work, then a delay will be your best route to financial security as a senior. Social Security benefits are protected against inflation, and guaranteed to last -- you probably can't say that about any of your other income sources. In light of these huge advantages, maximizing your chances of bringing in the most retirement benefits makes good sense.
