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Social Security claiming calculator: your benefit at 62, full retirement age and 70
Work out how claiming early or late changes your Social Security benefit, using the official reduction and delayed credit rules, plus the break-even age.
Education, not advice. This page explains general rules with invented examples. It isn't financial, tax or legal advice for your situation. Tax figures are for 2026 and come from published IRS, SSA and CMS sources. Rules change, so check current figures before you act.
Your Social Security benefit depends on when you claim. Claim before your full retirement age and it's permanently reduced. Wait past it and it grows, up to age 70. This page shows how to work out your benefit at any claiming age, and when waiting pays off.
The formula
- Find your benefit at full retirement age. It's called your primary insurance amount (PIA). Your Social Security statement shows it.
- Find your full retirement age. For anyone born in 1960 or later, it's 67.
- Count the months between your claiming age and full retirement age.
- Apply the adjustment:
- Claiming early: subtract 5/9 of 1 percent for each of the first 36 months early, and 5/12 of 1 percent for each month beyond 36.
- Claiming late: add 2/3 of 1 percent per month after full retirement age, which is 8% a year, until 70.
The earliest age you can claim retirement benefits is 62.
A worked example
Carmen was born in 1962, so her full retirement age is 67. Her statement shows a benefit of $2,400 a month at that age.
| Claim at | Months early or late | Adjustment | Monthly benefit | Yearly benefit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 62 | 60 early | −30% | $1,680 | $20,160 |
| 67 | 0 | none | $2,400 | $28,800 |
| 70 | 36 late | +24% | $2,976 | $35,712 |
At 62, the first 36 months cost 20% and the other 24 months cost 10%, so she receives 70% of her full benefit. At 70, three years of delayed credits add 24%. All three amounts also rise each year with cost-of-living adjustments.
The break-even age
Waiting means giving up years of checks for larger ones later. The break-even age is when the total received from waiting catches up.
- 62 against 70: by 70, claiming at 62 has paid $161,280. Waiting pays $15,552 a year more after that. It catches up after about 10.4 years, near age 80.
- 67 against 70: claiming at 67 has paid $86,400 by 70. Waiting pays $6,912 a year more. It catches up near age 82 and a half.
If Carmen expects to live past those ages, waiting tends to pay more over her lifetime. The larger check also lasts as long as she does, which helps if she lives a long time.
What a simple calculation leaves out
The break-even age is a useful first look, but it isn't the whole decision:
- Your spouse. A higher earner's benefit becomes the survivor benefit. Delaying can protect a widow or widower for decades.
- Taxes. Up to 85% of benefits can be taxable, depending on your other income. Delaying Social Security can open low-income years for Roth conversions.
- The earnings test. If you claim before full retirement age and keep working, some benefits may be withheld for a while.
- Your savings. Waiting means drawing more from savings in the meantime, which depends on markets.
- Investment returns. Money you'd invest from early checks could grow, which pushes the break-even later.
The Social Security explorer in the app compares every pair of claiming ages from 62 to 70 for you and your spouse. It counts lifetime benefits to your life expectancy, and can discount them. Your projection then shows how a claiming age changes taxes, withdrawals and your chance of success.
Frequently asked questions
Do cost-of-living adjustments change the break-even age?
Not much. Every claiming age gets the same yearly percentage increases. In today's dollars, the break-even ages above stay about the same.
Can I change my mind after claiming?
Within 12 months of claiming, you can withdraw your application once, by repaying what you received. After full retirement age, you can also suspend benefits to earn delayed credits.