When Should You Take Social Security
As retirement approaches, one of the most important decisions you will face is when to start Social Security. At first glance, it can sound like a simple choice. In reality, it rarely is. Once you start taking Social Security, the benefit you receive is largely locked in for life. That permanence gives this decision more weight than most, and it is why people tend to have strong opinions about it. Friends, family members, coworkers, and sometimes complete strangers will happily explain exactly what they did and why you should do the same.
Some people take it as soon as they turn 62 because they “earned it.” Others do it because they are not convinced the money will still be there if they wait, or because they want to enjoy the early years of retirement while they are healthiest and most active. Some wait patiently until Full Retirement Age because that feels responsible. And some delay all the way to 70 because they have read the articles, run the numbers, and decided they want the biggest possible check. All of these choices can be reasonable. The right one depends on context.
You can start Social Security as early as age 62. Full Retirement Age falls between 65 and 67, depending on your birth year. If you wait beyond Full Retirement Age, your benefit increases by about 8% per year until age 70. After that point, waiting no longer increases your benefit.
Taking Social Security early, often gets labeled as a mistake, but that judgment is too simplistic. The most obvious advantage is immediate income. For someone retiring relatively early, that income can reduce the need to draw heavily from investment accounts during the early years of retirement. Those early years are when market volatility can be especially uncomfortable, and having guaranteed income can help smooth the transition.
The tradeoff is that claiming early permanently reduces your benefit. Starting at 62 can mean receiving roughly 25% to 30% less per month for life. That lower benefit also reduces potential survivor benefits for a spouse. In addition, if you continue working before reaching Full Retirement Age, some benefits may be temporarily withheld due to earnings limits.
Still, there are situations where claiming early makes sense. Someone with health concerns, a shorter family longevity history, or a need for dependable income may reasonably decide that income today is more valuable than a larger benefit later in life. In those cases, Social Security can serve as a stabilizing force rather than a mathematical optimization exercise.
Claiming Social Security at Full Retirement Age often feels like the most straightforward option. At that point, you receive your full earned benefit with no permanent reduction and no earnings penalty. For many people, this aligns naturally with the end of their working years and provides a clean transition into retirement income.
The downside is opportunity cost. By starting at Full Retirement Age, you give up the guaranteed increases that come from delaying. That does not make this choice wrong. It simply reflects a preference for balance, simplicity, and certainty. For retirees with adequate savings, moderate spending needs, and a desire to avoid complexity, this can be a very reasonable approach.
Delaying Social Security until age 70 is often the most powerful strategy from an income perspective. Each year you delay beyond Full Retirement Age increases your benefit by about 8%, adjusted for inflation. This results in a significantly higher guaranteed income stream later in life, which can be especially valuable if you live longer than average.
For married couples, delaying the higher earner’s benefit can materially increase survivor income as well. For individuals with strong portfolios and other income sources, delaying Social Security can function as insurance against longevity risk rather than a bet on market returns.
The truth of the matter is that Social Security is built using actuarial math, which means that if you live roughly to your life expectancy, the lifetime dollars often come out surprisingly similar no matter when you claim. Waiting can feel uncomfortable, especially when peers are already collecting. There is also the reality that if you do not live as long as expected, you may never fully benefit from the higher payments. That uncertainty is real and should be acknowledged rather than dismissed.
Many people focus on break-even ages, asking how long they need to live for delaying to pay off. While those calculations can be useful, they often miss the larger purpose of Social Security. This is not simply about maximizing total dollars received. It is about creating reliable, inflation-adjusted income that lasts for life. This is, once again, one of the many times in finance where statistics must be balanced with emotions, and why there is no single right solution for everyone.
The best Social Security decision depends on your health, family longevity, marital status, other income sources, tax planning opportunities, and your comfort level relying on investment returns in the early years of retirement. It should be coordinated with your broader financial plan rather than made in isolation or based on someone else’s experience.
Taking Social Security early is not a mistake. Claiming at Full Retirement Age is not a default. Delaying to age 70 is not automatically superior. The goal is not to make a perfect decision. The goal is to make a thoughtful one that supports your lifestyle, protects against uncertainty, and helps you enjoy retirement on your terms.
The smartest Social Security decision is not always the one that looks best on a spreadsheet. It is the one that lets you sleep well at night and fully enjoy the retirement you have worked so hard to achieve.
This commentary on this website reflects the personal opinions, viewpoints and analyses of the Topel & DiStasi Wealth Management, LLC employees providing such comments, and should not be regarded as a description of advisory services provided by Topel & DiStasi Wealth Management, LLC or performance returns of any Topel & DiStasi Wealth Management, LLC Investments client. The views reflected in the commentary are subject to change at any time without notice. Nothing on this website constitutes investment advice, performance data or any recommendation that any particular security, portfolio of securities, transaction or investment strategy is suitable for any specific person. Any mention of a particular security and related performance data is not a recommendation to buy or sell that security. Topel & DiStasi Wealth Management, LLC manages its clients’ accounts using a variety of investment techniques and strategies, which are not necessarily discussed in the commentary. Investments in securities involve the risk of loss. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.