How old do you have to get social security

Q: How much will I get if I retire at age 62?

According to the SSAs 2021 Annual Statistical Supplement, the monthly benefit amount for retired workers claiming benefits at age 62 earning the average wage was $1,480 per month for the worker alone.

The earliest you can start collecting retirement benefits is age 62. You can apply once you reach 61 years and 9 months of age.

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If you were born between 1960 your full retirement age is 67 (En español)
How Your Social Security Benefit Is Reduced
What is full retirement age for Social Security?
How much will I get if I retire at age 62?

However, Social Security reduces your payment if you start collecting before your full retirement age, or FRA. (FRA is 66 and 4 months for people born in 1956 and is gradually rising to 67 for those born in 1960 or later.) Only then do you qualify for 100 percent of your basic monthly benefit, which is calculated from your 35 highest-earning years.

Your payment will increase even more if you wait until age 70 to apply, as you’ll be accruing delayed retirement credits. (You can apply later than 70, but it doesn’t change your benefit.)

The starting age can differ for other types of Social Security benefits.

Spousal benefits: These can begin at 62, as long as the spouse on whose work record you are claiming them is already receiving retirement benefits. Spousal benefits are reduced if taken before FRA.

Survivor benefits: You can apply for benefits on the record of a deceased spouse or ex-spouse at 60; 50 if you are disabled; or any age if you are caring for the deceased’s under-16 or disabled child. These are also reduced if claimed prior to full retirement age, which is currently 66 for survivors.

Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI): No age requirement, but you must have spent some time in work in which you paid Social Security taxes. The amount of time increases with age, but you may qualify for SSDI with less time in the workforce than you need to collect retirement benefits. You must also demonstrate that your medical condition meets Social Security’s strict definition of disability and show evidence that it prevents you from working.

The Social Security Administration (SSA) is facing a large backlog of disability claims that grew during the COVID-19 pandemic. The agency had about 833,000 applications for SSDI pending in March 2021, an 11.5 percent increase from one year earlier, according to a July 2022 report from the SSA's Office of the Inspector General.

Keep in mind

The question of when you can receive benefits is separate from a more important question: When should you claim benefits? The answer is complicated and depends on your job situation, family circumstances, and financial and physical health.
There is no minimum age for dependent children to receive benefits on the earnings record of a retired or deceased parent. These can begin at any time but in most circumstances end at age 18.
Parents who were financially dependent on a son or daughter who dies can collect survivor benefits from age 62.

If you were born between 1960 your full retirement age is 67 (En español)

You can start your Social Security retirement benefits as early as age 62, but the benefit amount you receive will be less than your full retirement benefit amount.

The chart below provides examples of the percentage of your full retirement benefit amount you and your spouse would receive from age 62 up to your full retirement age.

If you start getting benefits at age *	And you are the: Wage Earner, the Retirement Benefit you will receive is reduced to	And you are the: Spouse, the Retirement Benefit you will receive is reduced to
62	70.0%	32.5%
62 + 1 month	70.4	32.7
62 + 2 months	70.8	32.9
62 + 3 months	71.3	33.1
62 + 4 months	71.7	33.3
62 + 5 months	72.1	33.5
62 + 6 months	72.5	33.8
62 + 7 months	72.9	34.0
62 + 8 months	73.3	34.2
62 + 9 months	73.8	34.4
62 + 10 months	74.2	34.6
62 + 11 months	74.6	34.8
63	75.0	35.0
63 + 1 month	75.4	35.2
63 + 2 months	75.8	35.4
63 + 3 months	76.3	35.6
63 + 4 months	76.7	35.8
63 + 5 months	77.1	36.0
63 + 6 months	77.5	36.3
63 + 7 months	77.9	36.5
63 + 8 months	78.3	36.7
63 + 9 months	78.8	36.9
63 + 10 months	79.2	37.1
63 + 11 months	79.6	37.3
64	80.0	37.5
64 + 1 month	80.6	37.8
64 + 2 months	81.1	38.2
64 + 3 months	81.7	38.5
64 + 4 months	82.2	38.9
64 + 5 months	82.8	39.2
64 + 6 months	83.3	39.6
64 + 7 months	83.9	39.9
64 + 8 months	84.4	40.3
64 + 9 months	85.0	40.6
64 + 10 months	85.6	41.0
64 + 11 months	86.1	41.3
65	86.7	41.7
65 + 1 month	87.2	42.0
65 + 2 months	87.8	42.4
65 + 3 months	88.3	42.7
65 + 4 months	88.9	43.1
65 + 5 months	89.4	43.4
65 + 6 months	90.0	43.8
65 + 7 months	90.6	44.1
65 + 8 months	91.1	44.4
65 + 9 months	91.7	44.8
65 + 10 months	92.2	45.1
65 + 11 months	92.8	45.5
66	93.3	45.8
66 + 1 month	93.9	46.2
66 + 2 months	94.4	46.5
66 + 3 months	95.0	46.9
66 + 4 months	95.6	47.2
66 + 5 months	96.1	47.6
66 + 6 months	96.7	47.9
66 + 7 months	97.2	48.3
66 + 8 months	97.8	48.6
66 + 9 months	98.3	49.0
66 + 10 months	98.9	49.3
66 + 11 months	99.4	49.7
67	100.0	50.0
* If your birthday is on the 1st of the month, we figure your benefit as if your birthday were in the previous month.

The full retirement age is 66 if you were born from 1943 to 1954. The full retirement age increases gradually if you were born from 1955 to 1960, until it reaches 67. For anyone born 1960 or later, full retirement benefits are payable at age 67.

How much will I get if I retire at age 62?

According to the SSA's 2021 Annual Statistical Supplement, the monthly benefit amount for retired workers claiming benefits at age 62 earning the average wage was $1,480 per month for the worker alone.

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