Guides · Paying for care

When Should You Claim Social Security? Ages 62, 67 and 70 Explained

The claiming age sets the size of a parent's monthly check. Here are the three ages that matter, using the Social Security Administration's own rules.

By naveen · Updated October 13, 2026 · How we research our guides

When to claim Social Security comes down to three ages: benefits can start at 62, are paid unreduced at full retirement age (67 for anyone born in 1960 or later), and grow with each month of delay up to 70. Claiming at 62 with a full retirement age of 67 means a check 30% smaller (SSA).

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) adds that the benefit claimed at 62 "stays at this level for the rest of your life." This page explains how the ages work. It doesn't tell you when your parent should claim: that turns on their health, other income, marriage and plans, and it's a decision for them, ideally with a fee-only financial planner.

What are the three ages that matter?

• 62: earliest. The SSA's operations manual says "Retirement benefits can begin the first month a person is age 62 throughout the entire month," reduced for each month before full retirement age.
• Full retirement age. The age "at which unreduced retirement (old-age), spouse's, or widow(er)'s benefits may be paid": 67 for anyone born January 2, 1960 or later, earlier for older birth years.
• 70: when growth stops. Waiting past full retirement age earns delayed retirement credits, worth 8% a year for anyone born January 2, 1943 or later (SSA, POMS RS 00615.693). Credits stop with the month before age 70.

What is full retirement age, by year of birth?

From the SSA's own charts, with the reduction that applies if benefits start at 62. Anyone born on January 1 uses the previous year's row, because the SSA's ranges run from January 2 to January 1.

In dollars, using the SSA's reduction formula (POMS RS 00615.101): a benefit of $1,000 at a full retirement age of 67 becomes $700 if claimed at 62, which is 60 months early.

Is Social Security based on your last 10 years of work?

No. The benefit amount is computed from earnings across a working life: the SSA's manual says the computation averages "earnings over a fixed number of years after 1950," indexed to wage levels. The 10 years comes from qualifying, a separate test. A worker needs "no more than 40" quarters of coverage to be fully insured and can earn at most 4 a year, so 40 quarters takes 10 years of work.

It can help to ask the SSA to confirm your parent's earnings record has no missing years, since the amount depends on it.

How do spouses and survivors fit in?

A spouse's benefit works on its own terms. The SSA's manual says "The unreduced spouse's benefit is 50% of the NH's unreduced PIA" (the worker's full benefit), and it's reduced further if claimed early (POMS RS 00615.201).

Nobody collects two full benefits. Per the SSA, "a person's benefit amount can never exceed the highest single benefit to which that person is entitled." A worker's delayed retirement credits also carry over: the SSA says to "Use a deceased worker's DRCs to increase benefits to their widow(er)." That's why one spouse's claiming decision can matter for the other for years after.

What if your parent is still working?

Claiming before full retirement age while still working can mean some benefits are withheld under the annual earnings test. The SSA's manual says the exempt amounts "vary from year to year," and that if earnings for the year are at or below the exempt amount, "no work deductions apply." The work test no longer applies once someone reaches full retirement age. Check the SSA's current figures rather than relying on an old number.

What is the “break-even” idea?

Claiming early means smaller checks for more years; waiting means bigger checks for fewer. The break-even age is the point at which the total collected by waiting catches up with the total collected by claiming early. It can help show the trade-off, but it depends on how long someone lives, which nobody knows, and it leaves out spouses, taxes and other income, so it works best as one input among several.

What are the common mistakes?

• Treating the 10-year qualifying rule as the calculation window.
• Deciding as an individual when the choice also affects a spouse or survivor.
• Not checking the earnings record for missing years.
• Forgetting the earnings test when claiming early while still working.
• Letting a decision to delay Social Security delay Medicare too.

Don't let it pull Medicare along with it

Delaying Social Security doesn't mean delaying Medicare. Medicare.gov says people get Medicare automatically at 65 only if they start Social Security benefits "at least 4 months before you turn 65"; otherwise they sign up themselves. Waiting can cost more: the Part B penalty is "an extra 10% for each year you could have signed up for Part B, but didn't" (Medicare.gov), unless there's similar coverage, such as from an employer. Our guide to Medicare enrollment periods covers the windows.

What questions are worth asking?

• Has each parent already claimed? At what age?
• What does each receive per month?
• If one parent died, what would the surviving spouse receive?
• Does their combined income cover their actual monthly costs?
• Who can get into their my Social Security account if needed?

Frequently asked questions

What is the earliest age to claim Social Security?

1. The SSA's operations manual says retirement benefits can begin the first month a person is 62 for the whole month, and they're reduced for each month before full retirement age. The worker also has to be fully insured, which takes at most 40 quarters of work credits.

What is full retirement age?

For anyone born January 2, 1960 or later, full retirement age is 67, per the Social Security Administration. It's 66 for people born from January 2, 1943 through January 1, 1955, and rises in two-month steps for those born from 1955 to 1959.

How much smaller is the benefit at 62?

For someone whose full retirement age is 67, claiming at 62 cuts the benefit by 30%, according to SSA's chart: a $1,000 benefit at full retirement age would be $700 at 62. The CFPB notes the amount claimed at 62 stays at that level for life.

Is Social Security based on your last 10 years of work?

No. The 10 years is the work history needed to qualify at all: at most 40 quarters of coverage, earned at up to 4 a year. The benefit itself is computed from earnings averaged over many years, so the full earnings record matters, not only the last decade.

Is there a benefit to waiting until 70?

Delaying past full retirement age earns delayed retirement credits, 8% a year for anyone born January 2, 1943 or later (SSA), until the month before 70. Whether waiting makes sense depends on health, other income, marriage and more: a decision for your parent, ideally with a fee-only financial planner.

What happens to Social Security when a spouse dies?

The surviving spouse doesn't receive both benefits. Per the Social Security Administration, a person's benefit "can never exceed the highest single benefit to which that person is entitled." A deceased worker's delayed retirement credits can increase the widow or widower's benefit, which makes each spouse's claiming decision matter to the other.

If my parent delays Social Security, should they delay Medicare too?

No: they're separate. Medicare.gov says sign-up is automatic only for people already getting Social Security benefits; others sign up themselves around 65. Missing the 7-month Initial Enrollment Period can mean a late enrollment penalty for Part B, unless there's similar coverage, such as from an employer.

Getting started

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Sources

• Social Security Administration, POMS RS 00615.003, Full Retirement Age: Full retirement age by date of birth.
• Social Security Administration, POMS RS 00615.105, Estimating Reduced Retirement Benefits: The percentage of the full benefit payable at each claiming age, by birth year.
• Social Security Administration, POMS RS 00615.101, Reduced RIB: The reduction formula for claiming before full retirement age.
• Social Security Administration, POMS RS 00615.015, How the Day of Birth Affects Benefits: When benefits can begin at 62.
• Social Security Administration, POMS RS 00615.690 and .693, Delayed Retirement Credits: Credits for waiting past full retirement age, up to 70.
• Social Security Administration, POMS RS 00615.201, Reduced Spouse's Benefits: The spouse's benefit and its reduction.
• Social Security Administration, POMS RS 00615.020, Dual Entitlement Overview: Why nobody receives more than the highest single benefit.
• Social Security Administration, POMS RS 00301.105, Fully Insured Status: The work credits needed to qualify.
• Social Security Administration, POMS RS 00605.015, AIME computation: How the benefit amount is computed from earnings.
• Social Security Administration, POMS RS 02501.025, Earnings test exempt amounts: The annual earnings test for people working before full retirement age.
• Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Planning for retirement: How the benefit claimed at 62 stays at that level.
• Medicare.gov, Avoid late enrollment penalties: The Part B and Part D late enrollment penalties.
• Medicare.gov, When does Medicare coverage start?: The 7-month Initial Enrollment Period around 65.
• Medicare.gov, How do I sign up for Medicare?: Who gets Medicare automatically and who has to sign up.

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