Social Security claiming age calculator

Compare your monthly benefit at 62, full retirement age and 70, with break-even ages.

  • ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ US federal & state rules
  • SSA reduction and delayed credit rules, 2026 earnings limits
  • See sources
$

From your Social Security statement at ssa.gov/myaccount. It is the amount at your full retirement age, not at 62 or 70.

years
months
Example

Monthly benefit if you claim at 62

$1,400.00

70% of your full benefit of $2,000.00. Full retirement age for 1964: 67.

At 62
$1,400.00
At 67
$2,000.00
At 70
$2,480.00
70 catches up by age
80 and 4 months

This is an example. Enter your numbers above and press the button to see your own result.

Benefit by claiming age

Age 62$1,400.00 (70%)
Age 63$1,500.00 (75%)
Age 64$1,600.00 (80%)
Age 65$1,733.33 (86.7%)
Age 66$1,866.67 (93.3%)
Age 67 (full retirement age)$2,000.00 (100%)
Age 68$2,160.00 (108%)
Age 69$2,320.00 (116%)
Age 70$2,480.00 (124%)

Break-even ages

62 vs 6778 and 8 months
67 vs 7082 and 6 months
62 vs 7080 and 4 months
  • Break-even compares only the sum of checks, with no interest, taxes or cost-of-living increases. Living past the break-even age favors claiming later.
  • If you work before full retirement age, benefits are reduced by $1 for every $2 earned over $24,480 in 2026 ($65,160 in the year you reach full retirement age). The reduction is credited back later.
  • Spousal and survivor benefits follow different reduction rules and are not shown.
Show the math
Full retirement age67 (born 1964)
Months early60
Reduction36 ร— 5/9% + 24 ร— 5/12% = 30%
Monthly benefit$2,000.00 ร— 70% = $1,400.00

What to do next

Medicare IRMAA

Higher income in retirement raises your Part B and D premiums two years later

RMD calculator

Required withdrawals from IRAs and 401(k)s starting at 73 or 75

SSA retirement benefits planner

Official pages on claiming early or late

How it works

Your full retirement age comes from your birth year. Claiming before it reduces the benefit by 5/9 of 1% per month for the first 36 months and 5/12 of 1% per month after that, up to 30% at 62 for a full retirement age of 67. Claiming after it adds 2/3 of 1% per month, or 8% a year, until 70.

Break-even ages are the points where the cumulative payments from two claiming ages are equal. The calculator shows 62 against full retirement age, full retirement age against 70, and your chosen age against 70.

Things to keep in mind

The benefit amount on your statement assumes you keep earning at your current level until you claim. Stopping work early can lower it.

If you claim before full retirement age and keep working, the earnings test can withhold benefits above the annual limit. Those months are credited back once you reach full retirement age, so it is a delay rather than a loss.

Cost-of-living adjustments apply whichever age you choose. The 2026 adjustment was 2.8%, and SSA announced 3.6% for 2027.

Sources

Rules applied as of 2026-01-01. See the sources below for details.

Frequently asked questions

What is my full retirement age?

66 if you were born 1943 through 1954, rising by two months per year for 1955 through 1959, and 67 for anyone born in 1960 or later.

How much is my benefit reduced at 62?

With a full retirement age of 67, claiming at 62 pays 70% of your full benefit. The reduction is 5/9 of 1% for each of the first 36 months early and 5/12 of 1% for each month beyond that.

How much more do I get by waiting until 70?

Delayed credits add 2/3 of 1% per month, which is 8% a year, from full retirement age up to 70. With a full retirement age of 67 that is 124% of your full benefit. Waiting past 70 adds nothing.

What does break-even mean?

The age at which the total of the larger, later checks catches up with the total of the smaller, earlier ones. If you expect to live past that age, waiting pays more in total. It ignores investment returns and taxes.

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