How much Social Security will I get at 65, 67 and 70?
- There is no single number; your benefit reflects your highest 35 years of earnings and the age you claim
- For people whose full retirement age is 67, claiming at 62 gives 70% of the full benefit while claiming at 65 gives about 86.7%
- Waiting until 70 raises it to 124% through delayed retirement credits, after which the credits stop
- The average retiree gets about $2,071 a month, while the 2026 maximum is $4,152 at full retirement age and $5,181 at age 70
| Claiming age |
Share of full benefit |
2026 maximum |
| Age 62 |
70% |
$2,969 |
| Age 65 |
About 86.7% |
Varies by record |
| Full retirement age (67 for people born in 1960 or later) |
100% |
$4,152 |
| Age 70 |
124% |
$5,181 |
Every month you delay claiming between 62 and 70 can raise your starting check, so the decision is really about health, other income and how long you expect to need the money. Claiming early locks in a permanent reduction.
For people with a full retirement age of 67, claiming early can reduce benefits to 70%, while waiting until age 70 can increase them to 124%.
What is the maximum Social Security benefit?
- The 2026 maximum benefit is $5,181 a month for someone who delays claiming until age 70
- At full retirement age the maximum is about $4,152, and at age 62 it is $2,969
- Reaching the maximum requires earning at or above the annual taxable maximum in each of the 35 years used in the calculation, and that ceiling is $184,500 in 2026
- Very few retirees hit this ceiling, since it demands decades of high earnings and delayed claiming
| Claiming age |
2026 maximum monthly benefit |
| Age 62 |
$2,969 |
| Full retirement age |
$4,152 |
| Age 70 |
$5,181 |
The gap between the $2,969 early maximum and the $5,181 delayed maximum shows how much claiming age matters even for top earners. The reward for waiting is built into the formula.
The maximum Social Security benefit rises from $2,969 per month at age 62 to $5,181 per month at age 70 for top earners who delay claiming.
What is the average Social Security retirement benefit?
- The average retired worker receives about $2,071 a month in 2026
- A married couple where both collect averages about $3,208 a month
- That average sits well below the $4,152 full-retirement-age maximum, since most workers earn less than the taxable cap
- For many seniors, this check covers only a fraction of care costs, such as the $6,200 monthly median for assisted living
| Beneficiary (2026) |
Average monthly benefit |
| Retired worker |
$2,071 |
| Married couple, both collecting |
$3,208 |
Because the average benefit replaces only part of pre-retirement income, most households combine it with savings, pensions or other support. How it stacks against care costs appears in our assisted living payment research.
The average retired worker receives about $2,071 per month in Social Security, far below the $6,200 national median monthly assisted living cost.
How much is the Social Security COLA this year?
- The 2026 cost-of-living adjustment is 2.8%, effective with January 2026 payments
- It adds about $56 a month to the typical retired worker’s check and about $88 for a couple
- The COLA is based on the change in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) from the third quarter of one year to the next
- Adjustments are automatic, so beneficiaries do not need to apply for them
The standard Medicare Part B premium, which is $202.90 in 2026, is deducted from many checks and can offset part of the raise. Even so, the COLA protects buying power against inflation over time.
How does the Social Security benefit change by claiming age?
- Claiming at 62 permanently reduces a benefit to 70% of the full amount for someone whose full retirement age is 67
- Each year of delay past full retirement age adds about 8%, reaching 124% at age 70
- The choice is permanent; the reduction or increase locks in for life, then grows with future cost-of-living raises
- In December 2025 data, retired workers currently age 62 averaged about $1,424 a month versus about $2,275 at age 70, which are current-age averages rather than a pure claiming-age comparison
Working while collecting before full retirement age can also reduce benefits; in 2026, Social Security withholds $1 for every $2 earned above $24,480 for people under full retirement age for the entire year. A higher limit and different formula apply in the year someone reaches full retirement age, and the earnings test ends once the person reaches full retirement age.
What is the average Social Security benefit for women versus men?
- Men receive a higher average Social Security benefit than women at every age, based on the latest published data
- At age 62, men average about $1,573 a month and women about $1,286, a gap of roughly $287
- At age 70, men average about $2,530 and women about $2,024, a gap of roughly $506
- The gap reflects lifetime earnings differences, not the benefit formula, which treats all workers the same
| Age group |
Average for men |
Average for women |
| Age 62 |
$1,573 |
$1,286 |
| Age 70 |
$2,530 |
$2,024 |
The gap reflects differences in lifetime earnings histories. Spousal and survivor benefits can help some people whose own-worker benefit is lower.
This research is for informational purposes only and is not financial advice. Social Security amounts, the cost-of-living adjustment and earnings limits change annually and depend on individual earnings records. Confirm your own figures at SSA.gov or in your my Social Security account.
Sources and additional resources
Source note: The maximum benefits ($2,969 at age 62, $4,152 at full retirement age, $5,181 at age 70) come from the SSA maximum-benefit FAQ. The 2.8% COLA, average retired-worker benefit ($2,071), aged-couple average ($3,208), $184,500 taxable maximum and $24,480 earnings test come from the SSA 2026 COLA fact sheet.
Source note: Claiming-age percentages (70% at 62, about 86.7% at 65, 124% at 70) come from the SSA early-retirement reduction chart and the SSA delayed retirement credits page (8% per year, stopping at age 70). The $56 and $88 monthly increases equal the before-and-after averages in the SSA fact sheet.
Source note: Average benefits by age and sex (men $1,573 and women $1,286 at age 62, men $2,530 and women $2,024 at age 70) and the current-age averages ($1,424 at 62, $2,275 at 70) come from SSA Office of the Chief Actuary data for retired workers in current payment status at the end of December 2025.
Source note: The $202.90 standard Medicare Part B premium comes from SSA’s 2026 Understanding the Benefits publication. The $6,200 national median monthly cost for assisted living comes from the CareScout 2025 Cost of Care Survey.
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