If you claim Social Security at age 62 you will receive about 30 percent less each month than if you wait until your full retirement age of 67. Delay past full retirement age and your benefit grows by 8 percent a year up to age 70.
That adds up to real money over a retirement that can last 20 or 30 years. The average benefit in 2025 is 1,920 dollars a month at full retirement age. Claim at 62 and it drops to roughly 1,344 dollars.
Wait until 70 and it rises to about 2,586 dollars. The right choice depends on your health, your spouse's age, and whether you plan to keep working. Most people claim too early and lose tens of thousands of dollars they cannot get back.
This column gives you the plain numbers and the questions to ask so you protect your wallet for the long run.
Full Retirement Age and the Basic Reduction
Full retirement age is 67 for anyone born in 1960 or later. Claim at 62 and your monthly check is cut by 30 percent. That reduction stays in place for the rest of your life.
For example, a worker entitled to 2,000 dollars at full retirement age would receive only 1,400 dollars at 62. The Social Security Administration reports that 40 percent of retirees claim at 62.
Early claiming made sense when life expectancy was shorter. Today a 65 year old man can expect to live to 84 and a woman to 86 according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention life tables.
Claiming early costs you money every single month for decades. If you were born between 1943 and 1954 your full retirement age is 66. The reduction at 62 is still 25 percent in that case.
These percentages come straight from the Social Security benefit formula and cannot be changed by Congress without new legislation.
Delayed Retirement Credits
For each year you wait past full retirement age your benefit grows by 8 percent until you turn 70. That is two thirds of 1 percent per month. A worker with a 2,000 dollar full retirement age benefit who claims at 70 receives 2,640 dollars each month.
Over 20 years that extra 640 dollars a month totals 153,600 dollars before cost of living adjustments. The Social Security trustees report that only about 5 percent of retirees wait until 70.
If you are in good health and have other income sources waiting can be one of the best financial decisions you make. The credit stops at 70 so there is no reason to delay past that birthday.
These delayed credits also increase the survivor benefit your spouse would receive if you die first.
Spousal and Survivor Strategies
A spouse can claim up to 50 percent of your full retirement age benefit if he or she waits until their own full retirement age. At age 62 the spousal benefit is reduced to about 32.5 percent.
If you die first your widow or widower can step up to 100 percent of the amount you were receiving including any delayed credits. That makes delaying even more valuable for couples.
Divorced spouses married at least 10 years can also claim on your record without affecting your benefit. The Government Accountability Office studied these rules in 2022 and found that many couples leave money on the table by claiming too soon.
File and suspend is no longer allowed but you can still coordinate claims after full retirement age to maximize survivor protection.
Working While Claiming
If you claim before full retirement age and still work Social Security withholds 1 dollar for every 2 dollars you earn above 22,320 dollars in 2025. The withheld amount is not lost.
It is added back when you reach full retirement age. After full retirement age there is no earnings test. The average worker in their 60s earns about 55,000 dollars according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data.
That means early claimants often see temporary reductions. Those who keep working past 62 usually come out ahead by delaying their claim. The earnings test applies only until you reach full retirement age.
Break Even Math
受け取れなかった小切手の埋め合わせを待った場合、より高額の給付金が得られるまでには通常 12 ～ 15 年かかります。 70 歳ではなく 62 歳で請求すると、8 年間は少額の小切手を受け取りますが、その後はさらに高額な小切手を受け取ります。 |||9月||| 平均的な健康状態の独身者は、78 歳か 79 歳くらいで均衡します。カップルは、生き残った配偶者の平均余命が長いことを考慮する必要があります。社会保障局は、Web サイトで損益分岐点計算ツールを提供しています。 |||9月||| 独自の番号を使用してください。長寿の家族歴を持つ健康な非喫煙者は、待つことに傾くべきです。深刻な健康上の問題を抱えている人は、62 歳か 66 歳で申請したほうがよいかもしれません。 |||9月||| 税金とメディケア保険料 |||9月||| 他の収入に応じて、社会保障給付金の最大 85 パーセントが課税される可能性があります。遅延による月々の利益が増加すると、その利益の多くが課税対象となる可能性があります。 |||9月||| メディケア パート B およびパート D の保険料も、所得関連月次調整額を通じて所得に応じて増加します。 2025 年には、修正調整後の総所得が 106,000 ドルを超える個人は、より高いパート B 保険料を支払うことになります。 |||9月||| 社会保障を遅らせると、退職金口座から引き出している間、60代前半でより低い税額に留まることがあります。ボストン大学退職研究センターによる2023年の調査では、税金によって約4世帯に1世帯の最適請求年齢が変わることが判明した。 |||9月||| 請求年齢を決定する手順 |||9月||| まず、ssa.gov で私の社会保障アカウントを作成し、62 歳、完全退職年齢、70 歳時の正確な受給額を確認します。次に、年金、40 万 1,000 の引き出し、パートタイムの仕事を含むすべての収入源をリストします。 |||9月||| 3 番目に、社会保障の簡易計算ツールまたはスプレッドシートの数値を実行して、各選択肢の生涯所得総額を示します。 4 番目に、平均余命とキャッシュ フローのニーズについて配偶者と話し合います。 |||9月||| 5番目はインフレを考慮します。労働統計局によると、過去 20 年間の生活費の調整は平均して年 2.6% です。開始時の特典が高いほど、インフレに対する保護が強化されます。 |||9月||| 最終的には遅くとも 65 歳までに決定し、待つつもりであれば貯蓄額を調整する時間を確保しましょう。 |||9月||| 完全退職年齢が67歳の場合は62歳で軽減 |||9月||| 完全退職年齢から70歳までの年間遅延退職クレジット |||9月||| 2025 年の完全退職年齢における平均月額社会保障給付額 |||9月||| 62歳と70歳の保険請求額を比較した場合の典型的な損益分岐点年齢 |||9月||| 70歳まで保険請求を待つ退職者の割合 |||9月||| 所得税の課税対象となる給付金の上限額 |||9月||| さまざまな請求年齢における月額給付額 |||9月||| 62歳 |||9月||| 66歳 |||9月||| 完全退職年齢 67 歳 |||9月||| 68歳 |||9月||| 70歳 |||9月||| 出典: 社会保障局、2025 年の給付表 |||9月||| 2,000 ドルの生涯給付金 退職年齢給付金全額 |||9月||| 請求年齢 |||9月||| 月額給付金 |||9月||| 85歳別の合計 |||9月||| 申請に最適な年齢は各世帯によって異なります。健全な貯蓄のある健康な夫婦は、通常 70 歳まで待つことで最も多くの利益を得ることができます。健康状態の悪い独身者は 62 歳を選択する可能性があります。 |||9月||| ssa.gov の無料ツールを使用して独自の番号を実行します。パーティーで聞く損益分岐点神話に頼らないでください。自分の実際の平均余命、税金、生存者として配偶者が受け取る金額を考慮に入れてください。 |||9月||| 後で請求することは、生涯にわたってより大きなインフレ調整後の収入を保証するために残された数少ない方法の 1 つです。感情ではなく明確な数学に基づいて決定を下してください。将来の小切手はそれにかかっています。 |||9月||| 情報源 |||9月||| 社会保障局、「退職手当」、SSA.gov (2025) |||9月||| ボストン大学退職研究センター、「社会保障を請求する場合」、第 23-12 号概要 (2023 年) |||9月||| 米国会計検査院、「社会保障請求戦略」、GAO-22-104554 (2022) |||9月||| 労働統計局、「消費者物価指数履歴データ」、BLS.gov (2025) |||9月||| 疾病管理予防センター、「国家人口動態統計報告書、平均余命」、CDC.gov (2024) |||9月||| さらに深く進む |||9月||| 私の完全な退職年齢は何歳ですか? |||9月||| 1960 年以降に生まれた人の完全な退職年齢は 67 歳です。1943 年から 1954 年生まれの人の完全な退職年齢は 66 歳です。正確な年齢は社会保障明細書で確認できます。 |||9月||| 70歳まで待つのは常に意味があるのでしょうか？
A single person in average health breaks even around age 78 or 79. Couples should consider the longer life expectancy of the surviving spouse. The Social Security Administration provides a break even calculator on its website.
Use your own numbers. A healthy nonsmoker with family history of long life should lean toward waiting. Someone with serious health problems may do better claiming at 62 or 66.
Taxes and Medicare Premiums
Up to 85 percent of your Social Security benefit can be taxable depending on other income. Higher monthly benefits from delaying can push more of the benefit into taxable territory.
Medicare Part B and Part D premiums also rise with income through the Income Related Monthly Adjustment Amount. In 2025 individuals with modified adjusted gross income above 106,000 dollars pay higher Part B premiums.
Delaying Social Security can sometimes keep you in a lower tax bracket in your early 60s while you draw from retirement accounts. A 2023 study by the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College found that taxes change the optimal claiming age for about one in four households.
Steps to Decide Your Claiming Age
First create a my Social Security account at ssa.gov to see your exact benefit at 62, full retirement age, and 70. Second list all your income sources including pensions, 401k withdrawals, and part time work.
Third run the numbers in the Social Security quick calculator or a spreadsheet that shows total lifetime income under each choice. Fourth talk with your spouse about life expectancy and cash flow needs.
Fifth consider inflation. Cost of living adjustments average 2.6 percent a year over the past 20 years according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Higher starting benefits protect you better against inflation.
Finally decide by age 65 at the latest so you have time to adjust savings if you plan to wait.
Lifetime Benefits for $2,000 Full Retirement Age Benefit
| Claim Age | Monthly Benefit | Total by Age 85 |
|---|---|---|
| 62 | $1,400 | $386,400 |
| 67 | $2,000 | $432,000 |
| 70 | $2,640 | $475,200 |
The best claiming age is different for every household. Healthy couples with good savings usually gain the most by waiting until 70. Singles in poor health may choose 62.
Run your own numbers using the free tools at ssa.gov. Do not rely on the break even myth you hear at parties. Factor in your real life expectancy, taxes, and what your spouse would receive as a survivor.
Claiming later is one of the few ways left to buy yourself a larger guaranteed inflation adjusted income for life. Make the decision with clear math instead of emotion. Your future checks depend on it.
Sources
- Social Security Administration, 'Retirement Benefits,' SSA.gov (2025)
- Center for Retirement Research at Boston College, 'When to Claim Social Security,' Issue Brief 23-12 (2023)
- U.S. Government Accountability Office, 'Social Security Claiming Strategies,' GAO-22-104554 (2022)
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, 'Consumer Price Index Historical Data,' BLS.gov (2025)
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 'National Vital Statistics Reports, Life Expectancy,' CDC.gov (2024)