🎯 In 30 seconds: You qualify for a retirement benefit after 40 work credits (about 10 years of work). For anyone born in 1960 or later, full retirement age is 67. Claiming at 62 cuts the monthly check by 30% for life; waiting to 70 raises it to 124%. The right age depends on health, other income and whether a spouse will rely on your benefit.
How you earn benefits
- You earn up to 4 credits a year. In 2026 you get one credit for each $1,890 of covered earnings.
- 40 credits qualify you for a retirement benefit. Credits only decide whether you qualify; the amount depends on your earnings history.
- Your benefit is based on your highest 35 years of indexed earnings. Years with no earnings count as zeros, so a few extra working years can raise it.
- In 2026, earnings up to $184,500 are subject to Social Security tax and count toward benefits.
Open a free my Social Security account to see your earnings record and estimates at different claiming ages. Check the record for missing years; mistakes are easier to fix with W-2s still in hand.
62, 67 or 70: what each costs and pays
Example: a worker born in 1962 whose full benefit at 67 (the primary insurance amount) is $2,000 a month, in today’s dollars.
| Claim at | Share of full benefit | Monthly | Yearly |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62 | 70% | $1,400 | $16,800 |
| 67 (full retirement age) | 100% | $2,000 | $24,000 |
| 70 | 124% | $2,480 | $29,760 |
Waiting past full retirement age adds 8% a year (2/3 of 1% a month) up to 70; there is no gain from waiting beyond 70. Ignoring cost-of-living raises, taxes and investment returns, total benefits from claiming at 70 catch up with claiming at 62 at about age 80, and with claiming at 67 at about age 82½.
- Reasons people claim early: poor health or shorter family life expectancy, no other income, or job loss.
- Reasons people wait: good health, other savings to live on, and especially being the higher earner in a married couple, because the larger check becomes the survivor’s check.
Spouses and survivors
- Spousal benefit: up to 50% of the worker’s full-retirement-age benefit if claimed at the spouse’s own full retirement age. It is reduced if claimed earlier, and it does not grow past full retirement age.
- Divorced spouses can claim on an ex-spouse’s record if the marriage lasted at least 10 years and they have not remarried, among other conditions.
- Survivor benefit: a widow or widower can receive up to 100% of what the deceased was receiving, as early as age 60 (50 if disabled) at a reduced rate.
Working while you collect: the 2026 earnings test
If you claim before full retirement age and keep working, Social Security withholds some benefits:
| Under full retirement age all of 2026 | $1 withheld for every $2 earned above $24,480 |
| The year you reach full retirement age | $1 withheld for every $3 above $65,160, counting only months before your birthday month |
| From full retirement age on | No limit |
Withheld benefits are not simply lost: at full retirement age, Social Security recalculates your benefit to credit the months it withheld.
Taxes on benefits
Up to 85% of benefits can be federally taxable. It depends on combined income: adjusted gross income, plus tax-exempt interest, plus half of your benefits.
| Combined income | Single | Married filing jointly |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 50% taxable | $25,000 to $34,000 | $32,000 to $44,000 |
| Up to 85% taxable | Over $34,000 | Over $44,000 |
These thresholds are not indexed for inflation. You can ask Social Security to withhold federal tax from benefits (Form W-4V). Some states also tax benefits.