This is typically between 66 and 67, depending on your birth year.
Understanding When to Claim Social Security
Deciding when to start receiving your Social Security retirement benefits is one of the most significant financial decisions you'll make in retirement planning. Your choice impacts the amount of your monthly benefit for the rest of your life, as well as potential survivor benefits for a spouse.
Key Concepts:
Early Retirement Age (ERA): The earliest you can start receiving benefits is age 62. However, claiming before your Full Retirement Age (FRA) results in a permanently reduced monthly benefit.
Full Retirement Age (FRA): This is the age at which you are eligible to receive 100% of your earned Social Security benefit. FRA varies based on your birth year. For those born in 1960 or later, FRA is 67.
Delayed Retirement Credits (DRC): If you delay claiming benefits beyond your FRA, you earn Delayed Retirement Credits. For each month you wait beyond your FRA up to age 70, your benefit increases by a small percentage (about 0.667% per month, or 8% per year).
Maximum Benefit Age: The maximum age to earn delayed retirement credits is 70. There is no financial advantage to waiting longer than age 70 to claim benefits.
How the Calculator Works:
This calculator helps you visualize the financial implications of claiming Social Security at different ages. It takes into account:
Your Date of Birth: This is used to determine your eligibility for early and full retirement ages based on Social Security Administration (SSA) guidelines.
Your Full Retirement Age (FRA): You provide this directly, as it's a key factor in calculating reductions and increases.
Desired Monthly Benefit at FRA: This serves as the baseline for calculating adjusted benefits at earlier or later claiming ages.
The calculator then estimates the monthly benefit amount if you claim at:
Age 62 (Earliest): Calculates the reduced benefit based on the number of months before FRA.
Your FRA: Assumes you receive 100% of your desired benefit.
Age 70 (Latest): Calculates the increased benefit by adding delayed retirement credits for each month past FRA up to age 70.
Factors to Consider When Deciding:
Health and Life Expectancy: If you expect to live a long life, delaying benefits can lead to significantly higher total lifetime payments. If your health is poor or your family history suggests a shorter lifespan, claiming earlier might be more beneficial.
Financial Needs: Do you need the income sooner to cover living expenses, or can you afford to wait?
Other Income Sources: Consider pensions, investments, and part-time work. If you have substantial other income, you might be able to delay Social Security.
Spousal Benefits: If you are married, your claiming decision can affect your spouse's potential survivor benefit. Generally, delaying benefits maximizes the survivor benefit.
Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO): If you receive a pension from non-Social Security-covered employment, these provisions might reduce your Social Security benefit.
This calculator provides a starting point. It's highly recommended to consult with a financial advisor and review your personalized Social Security statement from the SSA.gov website for the most accurate information.
function calculateSocialSecurityOptions() {
var birthDateInput = document.getElementById('birthDate');
var fullRetirementAgeInput = document.getElementById('fullRetirementAge');
var desiredBenefitAmountInput = document.getElementById('desiredBenefitAmount');
var resultDiv = document.getElementById('result');
resultDiv.innerHTML = "; // Clear previous results
var birthDate = birthDateInput.value;
var fullRetirementAge = parseInt(fullRetirementAgeInput.value);
var desiredBenefitAmount = parseFloat(desiredBenefitAmountInput.value);
if (!birthDate || isNaN(fullRetirementAge) || isNaN(desiredBenefitAmount) || fullRetirementAge 70 || desiredBenefitAmount <= 0) {
resultDiv.innerHTML = 'Please enter valid information. Ensure you select a birth date, a full retirement age between 62 and 70, and a positive desired benefit amount.';
return;
}
// Calculate age based on birth date
var today = new Date();
var birthDateObj = new Date(birthDate);
var age = today.getFullYear() – birthDateObj.getFullYear();
var monthDiff = today.getMonth() – birthDateObj.getMonth();
if (monthDiff < 0 || (monthDiff === 0 && today.getDate() < birthDateObj.getDate())) {
age–;
}
var monthsToFRA = (fullRetirementAge – age) * 12;
if (monthsToFRA < 0) monthsToFRA = 0; // If already past FRA
var benefitAt62 = desiredBenefitAmount;
var benefitAtFRA = desiredBenefitAmount;
var benefitAt70 = desiredBenefitAmount;
var reductionFactor62 = 0;
var reductionPerMonth = 0.0556; // Approximately 5/9 of 1% for first 36 months
// Calculate reduction for claiming at 62
if (age 0) {
reductionFactor62 = Math.min(monthsBeforeFRA, 36) * reductionPerMonth + Math.max(0, monthsBeforeFRA – 36) * 0.05; // 5/12 of 1% for months after 36
benefitAt62 = desiredBenefitAmount * (1 – reductionFactor62);
}
} else {
benefitAt62 = desiredBenefitAmount; // If already 62 or older and past FRA, no reduction
}
// Calculate increase for claiming at 70
var monthsPastFRA = 0;
if (age < 70) {
monthsPastFRA = (70 – age) * 12;
if (monthsPastFRA < 0) monthsPastFRA = 0;
}
var increaseFactor70 = monthsPastFRA * 0.0667; // Approximately 2/3 of 1% per month
benefitAt70 = desiredBenefitAmount * (1 + increaseFactor70);
// Ensure benefits are not negative and round to two decimal places
benefitAt62 = Math.max(0, benefitAt62).toFixed(2);
benefitAtFRA = desiredBenefitAmount.toFixed(2);
benefitAt70 = benefitAt70.toFixed(2);
var outputHtml = `
Your Estimated Monthly Benefits
Based on your input, here are estimated monthly benefits:
Claiming at age 62: $${benefitAt62} (Reduced Benefit)
Claiming at your Full Retirement Age (${fullRetirementAge}): $${benefitAtFRA} (100% of Benefit)
Claiming at age 70: $${benefitAt70} (Maximum Possible Benefit)
Note: These are estimates. Actual amounts depend on your earnings record and claiming date.
`;
resultDiv.innerHTML = outputHtml;
}