What is the earliest retirement age for social security

Your Retirement Age and When You Stop Working (En español)

Your retirement age is the age you begin receiving Social Security retirement benefits. For many people, this is not the same age you’ll stop working.

The age you stop working can affect the amount of your Social Security retirement benefits. We base your retirement benefit on your highest 35 years of earnings and the age you start receiving benefits.

If You Stop Work Before You Start Receiving Benefits

If you stop work before you start receiving benefits and you have less than 35 years of earnings, your benefit amount is affected. We use a zero for each year without earnings when we calculate the amount of retirement benefits you are due. Years with no earnings reduces your retirement benefit amount.

Even if you have 35 years of earnings when you stopped working, some of those years may be low-earning years. When you file for retirement benefits, those years are averaged into your calculation, creating a lower benefit. However, if you had continued to work, your low earning years are replaced with your high earning years. Higher earnings increase your benefit amount.

If You Stop Work Between Age 62 and Your Full Retirement Age

You can stop working before your full retirement age and receive reduced benefits. The earliest age you can start receiving retirement benefits is age 62. If you file for benefits when you reach full retirement age, you will receive full retirement benefits.

If You Stop Work After Full Retirement Age

If you choose to work beyond your full retirement age, you have two options:

  1. You can work and get full retirement benefits no matter how much you earn.

  2. You can delay getting retirement benefits and earn credits that increase your benefit amount.

Benefit Calculators

How we compute retirement benefits

Early or Delayed Retirement

Spousal benefits

We sometimes call a retired worker the primary beneficiary, because it is upon his/her primary insurance amount that all dependent and survivor benefits are based. If the primary begins to receive benefits at his/her normal (or full) retirement age, the primary will receive 100 percent of the primary insurance amount. If the spouse of a primary begins to receive benefits at his/her normal retirement age, the spouse will receive 50 percent of the primary's primary insurance amount.

The table below illustrates the effect of early retirement, for both a retired worker and his/her spouse. For our illustration, we have used a $1,000 primary insurance amount. With this primary insurance amount and both primary and spouse retiring at their respective normal retirement ages, the primary would receive $1,000 per month and his/her spouse would receive $500 per month. The table shows that retirement at age 62 results in substantial reductions in monthly benefits. Please note that relatively few people can begin receiving a benefit at exact age 62 because a person must be 62 throughout the first month of retirement. Thus most early retirees begin at age 62 and 1 month.

Primary and spousal benefits at age 62
(benefits based on a $1,000 primary insurance amount)
Year of
birth a
Normal (or full)
retirement
age
Number of
reduction
months b
PrimarySpouse
Amount Percent
reduction c
AmountPercent
reduction d
1937 or earlier 65 36 $800 20.00% $375 25.00%
1938 65 and 2 months 38 791 20.83% 370 25.83%
1939 65 and 4 months 40 783 21.67% 366 26.67%
1940 65 and 6 months 42 775 22.50% 362 27.50%
1941 65 and 8 months 44 766 23.33% 358 28.33%
1942 65 and 10 months 46 758 24.17% 354 29.17%
1943-1954 66 48 750 25.00% 350 30.00%
1955 66 and 2 months 50 741 25.83% 345 30.83%
1956 66 and 4 months 52 733 26.67% 341 31.67%
1957 66 and 6 months 54 725 27.50% 337 32.50%
1958 66 and 8 months 56 716 28.33% 333 33.33%
1959 66 and 10 months 58 708 29.17% 329 34.17%
1960 and later 67 60 700 30.00% 325 35.00%

a If you are born on January 1, use the prior year of birth.
b Applies only if you are born on the 2nd of the month; otherwise the number of reduction months is one less than the number shown.
c Reduction applied to primary insurance amount ($1,000 in this example). The percentage reduction is 5/9 of 1% per month for the first 36 months and 5/12 of 1% for each additional month.
d Reduction applied to $500, which is 50% of the primary insurance amount in this example. The percentage reduction is 25/36 of 1% per month for the first 36 months and 5/12 of 1% for each additional month.

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.

What is the earliest possible retirement age?

A worker can choose to retire as early as age 62, but doing so may result in a reduction of as much as 30 percent. Starting to receive benefits after normal retirement age may result in larger benefits. With delayed retirement credits, a person can receive his or her largest benefit by retiring at age 70.

What is my full retirement age for Social Security?

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.

Can I retire at 55?

So it's perfectly legal to retire in your mid-50s if that's your goal. But it's important to keep in mind that retiring at 55 isn't the norm for most people. If you're going by the normal retirement age prescribed by Social Security, for example, that usually means waiting until you're 66 or 67.