Money Expert Clark Howard: How Much More You Can Make by Waiting on Social Security
Written by
Adam Palasciano
Edited by
Chris Cluff
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Retirement should be a time of relaxation, rest, and enjoyment. It should not be a time of financial stress. Ideally, you’ve worked hard and saved for decades and now you can call it quits at work and live comfortably. For many, Social Security benefits play a significant role in retirement income.
As of August 2024, the Social Security Administration reported that about 72.5 million Americans receive a Social Security payment each month. Of those people, about 55.6 million are age 65 or older — that’s more than three-quarters of all Social Security recipients in the U.S.
However, the monthly benefit amount you’ll receive is based on two factors: your highest earning years throughout your career and the age you choose to claim benefits. You’ll be eligible to claim Social Security benefits any time after you turn 62, but you also can wait until age 70 to receive the maximum benefit for life.
The main benefit of waiting? Each month you delay claiming Social Security, your benefit grows.
“The odds overwhelmingly show that a lot of us are going to live a lot longer than we thought,” money expert Clark Howard said. “So the best time to take Social Security is to wait as long as you possibly can.”
Here’s how much more you can earn if you wait to collect Social Security, as Howard suggests.
Collecting Social Security at age 62
Using Fidelity’s Social Security calculator, a 62-year-old single man earning $80,000 per year expected to live into his 70s who claims benefits right away can expect to earn a monthly benefit of $1,759 or a lifetime benefit of $274,404.
Meanwhile, if this man lives into his 90s, he can expect to earn a lifetime benefit of $696,564.
Waiting To Collect Social Security Until Age 67
If the same man waits until full retirement age (FRA) of age 67 and is expected to live into his 70s, he can expect to earn a monthly benefit of $2,512 or a lifetime benefit of $241,152.
Meanwhile, if this man lives into his 90s, he can expect to earn a lifetime benefit of $844,032.
Waiting To Collect Social Security Until Age 70
If the same man waits until the age of 70 and is expected to live into his 70s, he can expect to earn a monthly benefit of $3,116 or a lifetime benefit of $186,960.
Meanwhile, if this man lives into his 90s, can expect to earn a lifetime benefit of $934,800.
Based on the calculations above, this man can expect to earn a lifetime benefit of about $87,444 less by waiting to collect benefits at age 70 rather than age 62, if he’s expected to live into his 70s.
Depending on your longevity, waiting until you’re older to collect benefits can mean that your lifetime benefit will be much smaller if you don’t live until a very old age.
Meanwhile, if he lives into his 90s, he can expect to earn a lifetime benefit of about $238,236 more by waiting to collect benefits at age 70 rather than age 62–that’s almost a quarter of a million dollars more.
If your family history shows that people live until they’re much older, waiting until age 70 to collect benefits should be a strong consideration to secure your financial future.
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