Social Security Calculator — Claiming Age & Break-Even (2026)

See your monthly Social Security benefit at every claiming age from 62 to 70, and the break-even age where waiting longer pays off in total dollars.

$2,400

Your full retirement age: 67. Get your own benefit estimate at ssa.gov/myaccount.

Compare two claiming ages

Monthly benefit by claiming age

AgeMonthly benefit% of full benefit
62$1,68070%
63$1,80075%
64$1,92080%
65$2,08087%
66$2,24093%
67FRA$2,400100%
68$2,592108%
69$2,784116%
70$2,976124%

Age 62 vs. age 70

Claim at 62$1,680/mo
Claim at 70$2,976/mo

Waiting until 70 pays off if you live past age 81 — that's when its higher monthly checks catch up to the head start the earlier claim had. Live longer than that, and waiting wins in total dollars; live a shorter life, and claiming early wins.

There's no universally "right" age. This is a break-even comparison, not advice — your health, other income, whether you're still working (early benefits can be withheld above an earnings limit until FRA), and whether you have a spouse who could claim a spousal or survivor benefit off your record all matter and aren't modeled here.

Estimate only. Uses the monthly benefit you enter as your Primary Insurance Amount (PIA) — your benefit at full retirement age — and applies Social Security's published early-reduction and delayed-retirement-credit formulas exactly; it doesn't derive your PIA from an earnings history. Assumes no future cost-of-living adjustments (comparing in today's dollars — COLA would raise both an earlier and a later claim similarly, so it doesn't change which age comes out ahead). Doesn't model spousal or survivor benefits, benefit taxation, or the retirement earnings test. The Windfall Elimination Provision and Government Pension Offset, which used to reduce benefits for some pension recipients, were repealed in 2025 and aren't modeled since they no longer apply. Not financial or tax advice.

Sources