When Should You Take Social Security? A 2026 Guide
- Matt Brennan, CFP®
- 1 day ago
- 13 min read
If you are married, the quiet worry behind “when should you take Social Security” is usually not about you. It is about the spouse who outlives you, and whether their income holds up after one of your two checks goes away.
Disclosure: The scenarios included are hypothetical illustrations used to demonstrate planning concepts. They do not represent the experience of actual clients. Hypothetical financial planning illustrations have inherent limitations, including that they are prepared with the benefit of hindsight and do not reflect actual results of any specific client situation.
If you are single, divorced, or already widowed, the same timing question still applies — it just rests on one life instead of two. This guide answers it with the 2026 numbers, the survivor-benefit math many articles skip, and a clear way to think it through.
Quick Answer
There is no single best age to take Social Security. The right age depends on your health, your marital status, and whether you need the income.
For many married couples in average-or-better health who do not need the cash right away, the higher earner delaying until age 70 can buy an inflation-protected income the surviving spouse cannot outlive.
As of 2026, that survivor benefit can be set at up to 100% of the higher earner's full-retirement-age benefit. (Social Security Administration).
Key takeaways:
For couples, this is a one household decision, not two separate ones.
Delaying past full retirement age adds about 8% per year up to age 70 (Delayed Retirement Credits).
The higher earner's claiming age sets the survivor-benefit floor the surviving spouse lives on.
The trust-fund headline is real, but it means roughly 78% of benefits would still be payable after 2033 — not zero (Trustees Report Summary).
The low-income “gap years” before you claim are often the best Roth-conversion window you will get.
Health or a genuine need for cash flow can make claiming early the right call.
The short answer — and why “it depends” is genuinely useful here
“It depends” sounds like a dodge. Three things decide it, and they differ for every household.
They are your health and longevity, your marital status (single, married, widowed, or divorced), and whether you need the income now.
Sort those three out and the right claiming age tends to reveal itself.
The 2026 maximum runs from about $2,969 a month at 62 to $5,181 at 70 (SSA), so when you claim clearly moves the result. But the timing question is rarely about the maximum.
This guide works through the three variables, so you can place yourself and fit the decision into your broader retirement income plan.
For married couples, this is one decision, not two
Here is the single most important idea in this article. For a married couple, Social Security is one coordinated decision, not two individual ones. The reason is the survivor benefit.
When the first spouse dies, the survivor keeps the larger of the two monthly checks, not both. So the higher earner's claiming age sets a floor that lasts as long as either spouse lives.
That reframes the whole question. You are not betting on your own life expectancy; you are protecting the income of whoever lives longest.
Research on household claiming strategies lands on a near-universal rule of thumb: delay the highest benefit in the household. You usually get one chance to set that floor well. (Kiplinger).
Why the higher earner usually delays to 70 (the survivor benefit)
When the higher earner delays past full retirement age, two things grow at once: that earner's own benefit, and the survivor benefit the other spouse may one day inherit.
Wait until 70, and the surviving spouse's benefit can be set at up to 100% of the higher earner's full-retirement-age amount, payable for as long as either spouse lives (SSA).
That is why delaying the larger check so often does the most good. It raises the floor the survivor stands on.
Consider a hypothetical couple David and Maria (illustrative only — not a real client). David is the higher earner, and they can cover their 60s from savings without his check. If David delays to 70 and dies first, Maria steps up to his larger amount for life. Either way, the household is better protected against a long life.
This is a hypothetical illustration of how the survivor-benefit rules work, not a representation of any actual client or a guarantee of any particular result; individual outcomes depend on your own earnings, health, and circumstances.
One fear surfaces again and again in retirement forums: “What if I die before 70 — does my spouse lose the credits I was building?” No. The surviving spouse is credited for the delayed-retirement credits the higher earner earned up to the date of death (Delayed Retirement Credit Questions).
Waiting is not an all-or-nothing gamble that resets if you die early.
Why the lower earner often claims early
If the higher earner is delaying, the household still needs income in those gap years. The lower earner often claims at or near 62 to bring money in while the larger benefit keeps growing. Their own benefit is the smaller lever, so claiming it early costs the household less than claiming the big one early would.
One nuance to note, which Michael Kitces explores in the article Why It Rarely Pays for Both Spouses to Delay Social Security Benefits: if the lower earner's own benefit already exceeds any survivor benefit they would receive, delaying it adds nothing to survivor protection. (Survivor Benefits). Then the timing should rest on their own health and income needs.
It also helps to separate two terms. A spousal benefit is what you receive on a living spouse's record, up to 50% of their full-retirement-age amount. A survivor benefit is what you receive after a spouse dies. (SSA Spousal Benefit Calculator).
One rule surprises people: spousal benefits stop growing at full retirement age, even though your own retirement benefit keeps growing to 70.
Age-gap couples and equal-earner couples
The “delay the higher earner” rule flexes with the couple. A big earnings gap, or a younger lower-earning spouse, makes the case to delay stronger. That survivor floor is the household's main one, and a younger survivor may draw it for many years.
Roughly equal earners have no single big check to protect, so each decision leans more on personal health and income needs. These are general directions, not rules that fit everyone.
“Isn't Social Security running out? Shouldn't I grab it now?”
This worry is real, and also the most misunderstood reason people claim early. Per the 2025 Social Security Trustees Report, the OASI trust fund that pays retirement benefits is projected to be depleted around 2033.
Even then, continuing payroll taxes would still cover about 77% of scheduled benefits — about 81% from the combined retirement-and-disability funds, which would deplete around 2034.
That is a possible benefit reduction in one scenario, not zero checks. These are projections, and Congress has changed the program before.
Here is the part worth sitting with. If you claim at 62 to “beat the cut,” you lock in a permanent reduction for life. You would accept a certain, lifelong cut today to avoid a possible, smaller one years from now.
For most people that is the wrong side of the bet, though if you genuinely need the income, that is a different conversation.
Widows, widowers, and switching benefits
Survivor rules are where good planning saves the most money, because they are flexible in a way most people never learn. As of 2026, a surviving spouse can claim a survivor benefit and their own retirement benefit at different times, collecting one while letting the other grow (Changes in Filing Rules).
That flexibility does not exist for spousal benefits, which is exactly why people get it wrong.
That means one of two paths. You take the survivor benefit first and let your own grow to 70. Or you take your own smaller benefit first and switch to the survivor benefit later, whichever produces more over a lifetime.
The key fact: a deceased spouse's benefit does not keep growing after death.
It is frozen at the amount it would have been, including any delayed credits already earned. So if the deceased had delayed, the survivor inherits that larger, frozen amount.
How the math works — without the actuarial headache
You do not need to be an actuary to make this decision. You need four numbers and one reframe.
Full retirement age (FRA) is when you get 100% of your benefit. It is 67 for everyone born in 1960 or later, and 66 years and 10 months for those born in 1959 (SSA FRA).
Claim before FRA and your benefit is reduced, by up to about 30% at 62 for the FRA-67 group. Wait past FRA and you earn delayed retirement credits of 8% per year up to age 70. (SSA Age Planner).
On top of that, benefits get an annual cost-of-living adjustment; the 2026 COLA is 2.8% (SSA COLA).
Want to see where your own benefit lands at each age? A personalized claiming-age estimate is the kind of thing worth running before you decide.
Now the reframe. Many people decide this with a break-even age: the age at which waiting finally pays off in total dollars. Break-even is a fine input but a poor driver, because it ignores the real value of waiting — protection against a long life.
A cleaner way to see delayed credits is as a guaranteed, inflation-adjusted increase that buys something close to an annuity you cannot outlive.
To be clear, that is the delayed-credit rule, not an investment return. It is also the guaranteed alternative to “just take it early and invest the difference.”
The tax and Medicare angle: Roth windows, provisional income, IRMAA
For affluent households, when you claim is often a tax decision as much as an income one. Delaying creates lower-income “gap years” — after you stop working, but before benefits and required withdrawals begin.
Those are often the best Roth-conversion window you will ever have, because less taxable income means you can convert traditional retirement dollars to Roth at lower rates.
The catch is that conversions must be sized against two thresholds - the provisional-income rule, and the IRMAA brackets.
Read more about Roth Conversion Strategies here.
One common mistake is worth flagging: claiming Social Security first and converting to Roth second. Once benefits are flowing, every converted dollar can drag more of those benefits into the taxable column.
So a sound Roth Conversion strategy and a plan for managing IRMAA brackets often do their best work in these same gap years. This is educational, not individualized tax advice, so confirm any plan with your tax professional.
Working while collecting — the earnings test
If you claim early and keep working, you may run into the retirement earnings test — which scares people more than it should. In 2026, if you are under full retirement age all year, Social Security withholds $1 for every $2 you earn above $24,480 (How Work Affects Your Benefits).
In the year you reach full retirement age, the test loosens to $1 for every $3 above $65,160, counting only earnings before your birthday.
Here is the part people miss: withheld benefits are not gone for good. At full retirement age, Social Security recalculates your benefit upward for the withheld months, so you are largely paid back through a higher check.
The test delays benefits while you work; it does not erase them.
Single filers and divorced spouses
If you are single, the household math falls away. The decision rests on your own longevity, health, and need for income — the same three variables, with one life in the equation.
Divorced readers should not overlook a benefit they may have earned. You can claim up to 50% of an ex-spouse's full-retirement-age benefit if you were married at least 10 years, are currently unmarried, and are age 62 or older. It has no effect on the ex (SSA; AARP).
People miss this constantly. In one widely shared forum case, a divorced woman assumed she had missed her window. She had not, and the benefit was worth more than $1,000 a month.
One recent change matters for some families. The Social Security Fairness Act repealed two old rules: the Windfall Elimination Provision and the Government Pension Offset. They had previously cut benefits for many teachers, firefighters, police officers, and certain federal retirees.
If a spousal or survivor benefit was once zeroed out by one of them, it is worth re-examining now. (Social Security Fairness Act Questions).
When claiming early is the right call
Delaying is not always the answer, and a fiduciary owes you the honest cases against waiting. Claiming early can be the right call when:
Your health or life expectancy is significantly shortened. The longevity insurance in delaying has little value if a long life is unlikely.
You genuinely need the income. If an early check is what lets you retire without straining the rest of your plan, that need is real.
You are the lower earner in a couple. Claiming the smaller benefit early to fund the gap years, while the larger one grows, is often the household-smart move.
“A bird in the hand” matters to you. Loss aversion is real. For couples it is usually beaten by the survivor math, but it is a feeling worth naming.
Neither spouse is likely to reach their early 80s. If neither is expected to live to roughly 80–82, early claiming can win on total dollars.
You have a very large traditional IRA. Waiting can force higher-bracket required withdrawals later, pushing your break-even into the late 80s.
The takeaway is not “always wait” — it is that there is no one-size-fits-all answer.
How Covenant approaches this decision (the fiduciary lens)
When we help clients with Social Security timing, we treat it as one moving part in a single household plan. The survivor benefit, IRMAA surcharges, the tax torpedo, and sequence-of-returns risk get coordinated together, rather than solved one at a time.
A good process is mostly about catching expensive mistakes before they happen. We see four most often: treating the decision as two choices instead of one, letting solvency fears drive a permanent benefit cut, the widow “all benefits” trap, and converting to Roth in the wrong order. Coordinated planning catches each before a form is signed.
Conclusion
So when should you take Social Security? Start with your own three variables: your health and longevity, your marital status, and whether you need the income.
If you are married and in good health and can cover the early years, your central move is usually to protect the surviving spouse by delaying the higher earner's benefit. The lower earner and your tax picture then fit around it.
If you are single, or your health is poor, the math shifts, and claiming earlier may be exactly right for you.
This is one of the few retirement decisions you mostly cannot undo, and it can set an income floor for the next 20 or 30 years. So it is worth seeing your own numbers before you file: how your survivor benefit, your tax and Medicare brackets, and the rest of your plan fit together.
That household-level look is what a retirement strategy session is built to give you.
This article is for educational purposes only and is not individualized investment, tax, or legal advice. Figures are current and subject to change. Consult your own financial advisor and tax professional before acting.
Want Us to Just Do Your Retirement Planning for You?
In one free 45-minute Strategy Session with a CFP® professional, you'll find out exactly where you stand — and whether we're the right firm to get you the rest of the way.
Walk away with a clear read on your situation and the gaps worth fixing — whether you work with us or not.
See what changes when your investments, taxes, and retirement income are managed as one plan instead of three.
Find out whether we're the right fit to be your advisor — or if you're better off on your own. If we're not, we'll tell you.
No pressure. No obligation. Just an honest conversation.
Fee-only fiduciary serving families with $1M+ in retirement savings across 22+ states.
Frequently Asked Questions
What's the best age to take Social Security
There is no single best age. It depends on your health, marital status, and whether you need the income. Delaying past full retirement age adds about 8% per year up to age 70 (SSA, 2026).
What's the maximum Social Security benefit in 2026?
As of 2026, the maximum is up to $5,181 a month claiming at 70, $4,152 at full retirement age, and $2,969 at 62 (SSA). These are ceilings for high lifetime earners, not typical benefits.
Should the higher-earning spouse delay?
Usually yes, for couples in average-or-better health who don't need the income. Delaying to 70 can set a survivor benefit of up to 100% of that earner's full-retirement-age benefit, payable as long as either spouse lives (SSA; Kitces).
Is Social Security running out?
No — not to zero. The OASI trust fund is projected to deplete in 2033, after which about 78% of scheduled benefits would still be payable from payroll taxes (2025 Trustees Report).
How much can I earn while collecting in 2026?
If you are under full retirement age all year, you can earn $24,480 before $1 is withheld for every $2 above that. Withheld benefits are not lost — they are credited back through a higher benefit at full retirement age (SSA).
Will my benefits be taxed?
They can be. Above $25,000 (single) or $32,000 (married filing jointly) of provisional income, up to 50% of your benefits may be taxable; above $34,000 (single) or $44,000 (joint), up to 85% may be. These thresholds are not adjusted for inflation, so more retirees cross them each year (IRS Publication 915).
Can a divorced spouse claim on an ex's record?
Yes, if you were married at least 10 years, are currently unmarried, and are age 62 or older. You can claim up to 50% of your ex's full-retirement-age benefit, with no effect on the ex (SSA; AARP).
Ready to get the help you need to retire with peace of mind?
Contact us today for a Free Strategy Session.
About the author:
Senior Financial Advisor
Matt is a Senior Financial Advisor with Covenant Wealth Advisors and a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ practitioner. He has over 20 years of experience in the financial services industry in the areas of financial planning for retirement, tax planning, and investment management.
Disclosures: Covenant Wealth Advisors is a registered investment advisor with offices in Richmond, Reston, and Williamsburg, VA. Registration of an investment advisor does not imply a certain level of skill or training. Past performance is no guarantee of future returns. Investing involves risk and possible loss of principal capital. The views and opinions expressed in this content are as of the date of the posting, are subject to change based on market and other conditions. This content contains certain statements that may be deemed forward-looking statements. Please note that any such statements are not guarantees of any future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those projected. Please note that nothing in this content should be construed as an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to purchase an interest in any security or separate account. Nothing is intended to be, and you should not consider anything to be, investment, accounting, tax, or legal advice. If you would like accounting, tax, or legal advice, you should consult with your own accountants or attorneys regarding your individual circumstances and needs. This article was written and edited by a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional with the assistance of AI. No advice may be rendered by Covenant Wealth Advisors unless a client service agreement is in place. Hypothetical examples are fictitious and are only used to illustrate a specific point of view. Diversification does not guarantee against risk of loss. While this guide attempts to be as comprehensive as possible no article can cover all aspects of retirement planning. Be sure to consult an advisor for comprehensive advice.