Do you have a strategy for maximizing your retirement income? You should. And, even though it was never intended to serve as the entirety of your income in retirement, your plan should include making the most of your Social Security retirement benefits.
To this end, how are some people cashing this year's maximum-possible monthly payment of $5,108 -- en route to next year's maximum of $5,251 -- with a benefits program that only dishes out an average monthly payment of $2,015? And more to the point, how can you do the same for yourself?
Here's how to maximize your Social Security retirement benefits.
1. Work for at least 35 years...
One of the three components of the Social Security Administration's calculation is how long you work a job that pays you taxable wages. When determining the size of your benefit, the program considers your 35 highest-earning years, adjusted for inflation.
That doesn't mean you must work a full 35 years to claim benefits, to be clear. In fact, most people don't. A 2024 survey performed by insurer Mass Mutual indicates the average retirement age in the U.S. is only 62, implying a typical career length in the ballpark of 30 years. The Social Security Administration simply assigns you an income of $0 for any years less than 35 that you worked when determining your benefits, ultimately lowering the size of your monthly payment.
Image source: Getty Images.
There is some flexibility in this regard though. See, the 35 years don't have to be consecutive years, allowing you to work part-time or even leave the workforce altogether for a while without undermining your benefits potential.
And to be clear, if you work more than 35 years, the SSA makes a point of picking your very best 35 years in an effort to provide you with the best-possible payment.
2 ...and earn a high income for all of them
It's not just a matter of working a minimum of 35 years, however.
You probably already know that Social Security payments are also largely determined by the amount of taxable income someone earned during your working years -- the more you pay in FICA taxes, the more you get back in benefits once you begin collecting, up to a limit. But this is fair. Since the program caps the amount of money it's willing to pay you in retirement, it also limits the amount of your income that it taxes.
Most people never actually reach this limit, though. For perspective, the maximum taxable income for Social Security's purposes in 2026 will be a hefty $184,500. That's roughly three times the typical annual work-based wages of $63,000 (according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics) in the U.S.
This wasn't always the number, of course. The 2026 figure is adjusted for inflation from 2025's ceiling of $176,100, which was up from 2024's threshold of $168,600. Indeed, you'll need to have earned or exceeded the inflation-adjusted amounts listed on the table below for each of these years for a minimum of 35 of them to collect the maximum possible payments once you begin your benefits.
| Year | Taxable Income | Year | Taxable Income |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | $43,800 | 2007 | $97,500 |
| 1988 | $45,000 | 2008 | $102,000 |
| 1989 | $48,000 | 2009 | $106,800 |
| 1990 | $51,300 | 2010 | $106,800 |
| 1991 | $53,400 | 2011 | $106,800 |
| 1992 | $55,500 | 2012 | $110,100 |
| 1993 | $57,600 | 2013 | $113,700 |
| 1994 | $60,600 | 2014 | $117,000 |
| 1995 | $61,200 | 2015 | $118,500 |
| 1996 | $62,700 | 2016 | $118,500 |
| 1997 | $65,400 | 2017 | $127,200 |
| 1998 | $68,400 | 2018 | $128,400 |
| 1999 | $72,600 | 2019 | $132,900 |
| 2000 | $76,200 | 2020 | $137,700 |
| 2001 | $80,400 | 2021 | $142,800 |
| 2002 | $84,900 | 2022 | $147,000 |
| 2003 | $87,000 | 2023 | $160,200 |
| 2004 | $87,900 | 2024 | $168,600 |
| 2005 | $90,000 | 2025 | $176,100 |
| 2006 | $94,200 | 2026 | $184,500 |
Data source: Social Security Administration.
3. Wait until you turn 70 to claim benefits
Finally, although you can claim Social Security retirement benefits as soon as you turn 62, doing so will dramatically reduce the size of your payment. For most people, this will lower your payments by as much as 30% of what you would have received every month by waiting to file until you reach your official full retirement age of between 66 and 67 (depending on when you were born).
But even waiting until then doesn't leave you with your biggest-possible payment. If you want to collect your maximum monthly amount, you will need to wait until you're 70 years of age before you start taking your benefits. For anyone born in 1960 or later, this will add 24% to your monthly benefit you would be due if starting your payments at your particular full retirement age.
Of course, you can claim at any point in time you want to between the ages of 62 and 70; the Social Security Administration will adjust your payment accordingly. Each month you claim earlier or later subtracts or adds 2/3 of 1% to your monthly benefit. Just don't wait too long after you turn 70 to claim. The program stops giving you credit for waiting beyond that point. In fact, Social Security only offers beneficiaries a maximum of six months' worth of backpay you may have missed by not filing once you reach 70 years of age.
