Social Security Calculator: How Much You'll Get, and When to Claim

Quick answer: how much Social Security will I get?

It depends on your earnings record and when you claim. Someone who earned a steady $75,000 a year would get about $2,745 a month at 67 in today's dollars, $1,922 at 62 or $3,404 at 70. For 2027 the average retired worker gets about $2,170 a month and the maximum at full retirement age is $4,188 (SSA). Your own statement at ssa.gov/myaccount is the most accurate starting point; enter its "at full retirement age" figure in the calculator.

How your benefit is calculated

SSA indexes your past earnings to today's wage levels, averages your highest 35 years into a monthly figure (AIME), then applies three percentages to get your full benefit, the primary insurance amount (PIA) (SSA):

90% of first $1,286 + 32% up to $7,749 + 15% above = monthly benefit at full retirement age

Steady $75,000 a year → $6,250 a month average → $2,745.80. For people turning 62 in 2027 the thresholds are $1,340 and $8,077.

Estimates are capped at SSA's maximum at full retirement age ($4,152 in 2026). Real high earners often get less, because their pay in early-career years was below the taxable maximum.

Lower earners get a bigger share of their pay back. Years with no earnings count as zeros, and earnings above the taxable maximum ($184,500 in 2026, $192,300 in 2027) don't count (SSA bend points).

Full retirement age by birth year

If you were born on January 1, use the previous year. Survivor benefits use a slightly different schedule (67 for survivors born in 1962 or later) (20 CFR 404.409).

Claiming at 62 vs 67 vs 70

Claiming early cuts your benefit by 5/9 of 1% for each of the first 36 months before full retirement age and 5/12 of 1% for each month beyond; waiting past it adds 2/3 of 1% a month (8% a year) until 70 (SSA). The change is permanent, and cost-of-living raises apply to whatever you lock in.

Social Security break-even age

Claiming later pays more each month but starts later. The break-even age is when the bigger checks have made up for the ones you skipped. With equal real benefits (cost-of-living raises keep them level with prices):

If you expect to live past those ages, waiting tends to pay off. At 62, men have about 20 more years of life expectancy on average and women about 23, according to SSA's life tables, which puts the averages near 82 and 85 (SSA period life table). Waiting matters even more for married higher earners, because the higher benefit also becomes the survivor's benefit. Claiming early can make sense if your health is poor, you need the income, or you'd otherwise drain savings that are earning more than 8% a year after inflation.

Spousal benefits

A spouse can get up to 50% of the worker's full benefit at their own full retirement age, paid as a top-up on top of their own benefit if that's smaller. The worker must have claimed. Claiming the spousal benefit early cuts it by 25/36 of 1% a month for 36 months, and 5/12 of 1% beyond; there are no delayed credits for spousal benefits, so there's no reason for the spouse to wait past full retirement age for them (SSA). Anyone born on January 2, 1954 or later is "deemed" to file for both at once.

Example: a worker with a $2,500 full benefit and a spouse with $800 of their own. The top-up is $450 a month at the spouse's full retirement age, so the spouse gets $1,250 in total; claimed at 62 it would be $1,010. A divorced spouse can qualify too if the marriage lasted at least 10 years and they're unmarried and 62 or older.

Survivor benefits

When a worker dies, the surviving spouse can get up to 100% of what the worker was receiving, including any delayed credits (or, if the worker died before claiming, their full benefit plus any credits earned by waiting), if they claim at their own full retirement age; it can start from 60 at 71.5%. If the worker claimed early, the survivor still gets at least 82.5% of the worker's full benefit (the "widow's limit") (SSA POMS). In the example, a survivor at full retirement age would get $2,062 a month if the worker had claimed at 62, but $3,100 if the worker had waited until 70. That's why the higher earner in a couple often benefits from waiting.

Working while collecting: the earnings test

If you claim before full retirement age and keep working, SSA withholds $1 of benefits for every $2 you earn above $24,480 in 2026 ($25,560 in 2027). In the year you reach full retirement age it's $1 for every $3 above $65,160 ($67,920 in 2027), counting only earnings before the month you reach full retirement age (SSA). From full retirement age on, there's no limit.

Example: claim $1,750 a month at 62 while earning $40,000, and about $7,760 of the year's benefits is withheld. It isn't lost: at full retirement age SSA recalculates your benefit as if you'd claimed later for the months withheld.

Is Social Security taxable?

Up to 85% of your benefits can be federally taxable, depending on your "provisional income": your other income plus half your benefits. Below $25,000 single or $32,000 joint, none is taxable; between that and $34,000 / $44,000, up to 50%; above, up to 85%. The thresholds have never been raised for inflation (IRS Publication 915). After 2028, when the senior deduction ends, a single retiree with a $2,500 monthly benefit and $30,000 of other income pays about $1,651 a year in federal tax because of the benefits; with $60,000 of other income, $4,755.

The $6,000 deduction for people 65 and over (2025 to 2028) lowers taxable income, which can reduce or wipe out the tax, but it doesn't change how much of your benefit counts as taxable, and it phases out above $75,000 of income ($150,000 joint) (26 U.S.C. § 151). The calculator includes it if you claim at 65 or older in 2028 or earlier. You can have federal tax withheld from benefits with Form W-4V.

States that tax Social Security in 2026

Eight states tax some benefits; most of them exempt middle incomes. West Virginia's exemption reached 100% in 2026.

Medicare premiums come out of your check

Once you're on Medicare and collecting benefits, the Part B premium is usually deducted from your Social Security: $202.90 a month for most people in 2026, more at higher incomes (CMS). The calculator subtracts it from 65 in the "after federal tax and Medicare" figure. The 2027 premium hadn't been announced when we checked.

2027 COLA, the trust fund and WEP/GPO

• 2027 cost-of-living raise: 3.6%, paid from January 2027 (SSA). See the 2027 COLA page for what it means for your check.
• Trust fund: the 2026 Trustees Report projects the retirement fund runs out in late 2032, after which about 78% of benefits could still be paid; combined with disability, 2034 and 83% (SSA). Choose "78% from 2033" in the calculator to plan for it.
• WEP and GPO are gone: the Social Security Fairness Act, signed January 5, 2025, repealed the Windfall Elimination Provision and Government Pension Offset for benefits from January 2024, so public-sector pensions no longer reduce Social Security (SSA).

Common questions

How much Social Security will I get if I make $75,000 a year?

About $2,745 a month at 67 in today's dollars with 35 years at that pay, $1,922 at 62 or $3,404 at 70.

What is the break-even age for Social Security?

About 78.7 for 62 vs 67 and 82.5 for 67 vs 70, before discounting.

Is it better to take Social Security at 62 or 70?

Waiting gives a 77% bigger check (124% vs 70% of your full benefit) and pays off if you live past about 80. Early claiming suits people in poor health or who need the money.

How much can I earn while collecting Social Security?

$24,480 in 2026 ($25,560 in 2027) before full retirement age; above that $1 in $2 is withheld. There's no limit once you reach full retirement age.

Can my spouse get half of my Social Security?

Up to half of your full benefit, at their full retirement age, minus their own benefit if they have one. Less if they claim early.

Do I have to pay taxes on Social Security?

Federally, up to 85% can be taxable depending on your other income. Eight states also tax benefits in 2026, most with generous exemptions.

What is the maximum Social Security benefit?

For 2027, $4,188 a month at full retirement age, $3,094 at 62 and $5,358 at 70 for someone with maximum earnings (SSA).

Will Social Security run out?

No. If Congress doesn't act, about 78% of scheduled retirement benefits could still be paid after the trust fund runs out in late 2032.

Sources

1. Primary insurance amount formula — Social Security Administration. Accessed October 15, 2026.
2. Benefit formula bend points — Social Security Administration. Accessed October 15, 2026.
3. 20 CFR 404.409–404.410: full retirement age and benefit reduction — Social Security Administration. Accessed October 15, 2026.
4. Early or late retirement? — Social Security Administration. Accessed October 15, 2026.
5. Benefits for spouses — Social Security Administration. Accessed October 15, 2026.
6. POMS RS 00615.320: widow(er)'s limit — Social Security Administration. Accessed October 15, 2026.
7. Exempt amounts under the earnings test — Social Security Administration. Accessed October 15, 2026.
8. 2027 Social Security changes (COLA fact sheet) — Social Security Administration. Accessed October 15, 2026.
9. Workers with maximum-taxable earnings — Social Security Administration. Accessed October 15, 2026.
10. 2026 Trustees Report press release — Social Security Administration. Accessed October 15, 2026.
11. Publication 915, Social Security and Equivalent Railroad Retirement Benefits — Internal Revenue Service. Accessed October 15, 2026.
12. 26 U.S. Code § 151 (senior deduction, 2025–2028) — Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School. Accessed October 15, 2026.
13. 2026 Medicare Parts A & B premiums and deductibles — Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Accessed October 15, 2026.
14. Period life table (2023, used in the 2026 Trustees Report) — Social Security Administration. Accessed October 15, 2026.
15. Social Security Fairness Act — Social Security Administration. Accessed October 15, 2026.
16. Social Security, pensions and annuities (Colorado) — Colorado Department of Revenue. Accessed October 15, 2026.
17. Taxation of Social Security benefits (OLR 2025-R-0152) — Connecticut General Assembly. Accessed October 15, 2026.
18. Inflation-adjusted amounts for 2026 — Minnesota Department of Revenue. Accessed October 15, 2026.
19. Montana tax simplification resource hub — Montana Department of Revenue. Accessed October 15, 2026.
20. NMSA § 7-2-5.14 (Social Security exemption) — Justia. Accessed October 15, 2026.
21. Retirement income guide (Publication 2026-01) — Rhode Island Division of Taxation. Accessed October 15, 2026.
22. 2026 tax update webinar — Utah State Tax Commission. Accessed October 15, 2026.
23. Social Security exemption — Vermont Department of Taxes. Accessed October 15, 2026.

Estimates in today's dollars under 2026 rules; your SSA statement and SSA's own calculators are authoritative. Research checked October 15, 2026.