Claim Check

How this works. Each choice pays its monthly amount from the age you claim for as long as you live. Break-even is the age at which the bigger, later check has made up the checks you skipped. The totals add up the checks received by age 75, 80, 85 and 90. To keep the comparison simple it leaves out cost-of-living increases (the 2026 increase was 2.8%), income taxes, the earnings limit that can hold back benefits if you claim before full retirement age and keep working ($24,480 in 2026), and anything you could earn by investing early checks. The survivor view assumes the surviving spouse collects at their own survivor full retirement age: they keep the larger of the two checks, not both, and if the person who died claimed early, the survivor's check cannot fall below 82.5% of that person's full benefit (Congressional Research Service). Survivors can start as early as 60 at a reduced amount, and the rules have special cases, so check ssa.gov for your own house. Rules reflect the Social Security Administration's published 2026 information. This is general information, not financial or legal advice.