Most people claim Social Security retirement benefits at age 62, making it the single most popular claiming age in the United States. However, that dominance is fading fast. In 2010, a full 52% of new retirees filed at 62. By 2022, that number had dropped to roughly 22-25%, with 22.9% of men and 24.5% of women choosing the earliest possible claiming age. The weighted average claiming age for all newly retired workers has climbed to approximately 65.2 years as of 2023, up from around 63.8 for men and 64.0 for women back in 1998. The shift is unmistakable: Americans are waiting longer to collect their checks, though the vast majority still claim well before age 70.
About 2.7 million new retired-worker beneficiaries were awarded in 2021, and 57% of them claimed before age 66. That is a notable decline from 2010, when 81% claimed before full retirement age. To put it in personal terms, consider a 62-year-old born in 1960 or later whose full retirement age is 67. If she claims immediately instead of waiting until 70, she could receive up to 77% less than her maximum possible benefit. That gap represents hundreds of dollars every month for the rest of her life. This article breaks down the most common claiming ages, why the trend is shifting later, how much you stand to gain or lose based on timing, and what to consider before you file.
Table of Contents
- What Age Do Most People Claim Social Security Retirement Benefits?
- Why Are Americans Waiting Longer to Claim Benefits?
- How Full Retirement Age Affects Your Claiming Decision
- Claiming at 62 vs. 67 vs. 70 — What the Numbers Actually Look Like
- Common Mistakes and Overlooked Risks When Choosing a Claiming Age
- How the 2026 COLA Adjustment Changes the Calculus
- The Future of Claiming Behavior and What It Means for Retirees
- Conclusion
What Age Do Most People Claim Social Security Retirement Benefits?
age 62 still holds the top spot as the most common claiming age, but its grip is loosening year by year. In 2022, roughly one in four new retirees filed at 62, compared to more than half just twelve years earlier. The next most popular milestone is around age 66, near the full retirement age for many recent retirees. About 25% of new retired-worker beneficiaries claimed at that age, making it nearly as popular as 62 in recent years. Interestingly, age 63 is one of the least popular claiming ages. Only 6.4% of men and 6.6% of women started collecting at 63 in 2022.
There is no particular financial incentive tied to 63, so most people either claim right away at 62 or hold out for a more meaningful bump at full retirement age or later. Meanwhile, less than 10% of newly awarded retirees maximize their benefit by waiting all the way to 70. For someone who could receive $5,108 per month at 70 — the maximum Social Security benefit in 2026 — the difference between claiming early and claiming late is staggering, often exceeding $2,000 a month. Think of it this way: the claiming landscape used to look like a cliff at age 62 with almost everyone jumping off at the first opportunity. Now it looks more like a gradual slope, with people spread across their early and mid-60s, making more individualized decisions. That is a meaningful change in retirement behavior.
Why Are Americans Waiting Longer to Claim Benefits?
The trend toward later claiming has been one of the most significant shifts in retirement planning over the past two decades. In 1998, roughly 60% of new retirees claimed at 62 and nearly 80% filed before full retirement age. By 2021, only 57% claimed before age 66. Several forces are driving this change, including better public awareness about the financial penalty of early claiming, longer life expectancies, and the gradual increase in the full retirement age itself. The full retirement age has been creeping upward for years. For people born in 1960 or later, it now sits at 67. Those turning 66 in 2025 face a full retirement age of 66 years and 10 months.
As the FRA rises, the reduction for claiming at 62 grows steeper, making early filing a harder pill to swallow. When the FRA was 65, claiming at 62 meant accepting a 20% cut. with the FRA at 67, that same early claim costs you 30% of your primary insurance amount. However, not everyone who waits does so by choice. Some workers are forced out of the labor market by health problems or layoffs but have enough savings to delay filing. Others simply cannot afford to wait. If you lose your job at 61 with no pension and limited savings, the academic argument for delaying until 67 or 70 rings hollow. The decision is always personal, and the “right” answer depends heavily on your health, other income sources, and whether you have a spouse whose benefits factor into the equation.
How Full Retirement Age Affects Your Claiming Decision
Full retirement age is the linchpin of the entire social Security benefit calculation, and misunderstanding it can cost retirees thousands of dollars. For anyone born in 1960 or later — which covers most people making claiming decisions in 2026 and beyond — the full retirement age is 67. That is the age at which you receive 100% of your calculated benefit. Claim earlier, and your monthly check is permanently reduced. Wait past it, and you earn delayed retirement credits of 8% per year up to age 70. Consider a worker entitled to $2,000 per month at her full retirement age of 67.
If she claims at 62, that benefit drops to roughly $1,400 — a 30% permanent reduction. If she waits until 70, it grows to about $2,480 thanks to delayed credits. Over a 20-year retirement, the difference between the 62 claim and the 70 claim adds up to more than $250,000 in total benefits received. The break-even point, where the larger later checks overtake the smaller earlier ones in cumulative value, typically falls somewhere around age 80. This math gets more complicated for married couples. A higher-earning spouse who delays to 70 not only boosts their own check but also increases the survivor benefit available to a widowed partner. For a couple where one spouse earned significantly more, this can be the single most valuable financial decision of their retirement.
Claiming at 62 vs. 67 vs. 70 — What the Numbers Actually Look Like
The financial tradeoff between claiming ages comes down to a simple tension: more checks at a lower amount versus fewer checks at a higher amount. With the 2026 COLA increase of 2.8% raising the average monthly retirement benefit, the dollar figures involved are larger than ever. At one end, a maximum earner claiming at 70 in 2026 can receive $5,108 per month. That same worker claiming at 62 would receive dramatically less — up to 77% less than the age-70 maximum for those born in 1960 or later. For average earners, the gap is proportionally the same. Someone entitled to $2,200 at full retirement age would get roughly $1,540 at 62 or about $2,728 at 70.
The 62-year-old collects for eight extra years, but at a rate so reduced that the 70-year-old typically catches up by their early 80s. The right choice is not always to wait. If you have a serious health condition that limits your life expectancy, taking money at 62 is often the rational move. If you are drowning in debt and have no other income, the early check can be a lifeline. But if you are healthy, have some savings to bridge the gap, and especially if you are the higher earner in a married couple, the math overwhelmingly favors waiting. The mistake most people make is not running the numbers at all and simply filing as soon as they are eligible because the money is available.
Common Mistakes and Overlooked Risks When Choosing a Claiming Age
One of the most costly errors retirees make is claiming Social Security while still working full time before reaching full retirement age. If you are under your FRA and earn more than the annual exempt amount, Social Security withholds $1 for every $2 you earn above the limit. In 2026, that threshold remains relatively modest. A 63-year-old who claims benefits but continues earning $60,000 a year could see a large portion of their Social Security check withheld — and they have already locked in the permanent early-claiming reduction regardless. Another frequently overlooked issue is taxes on Social Security income. Up to 85% of your benefits can be subject to federal income tax if your combined income exceeds certain thresholds.
Claiming early while you are still working can push you into a higher effective tax bracket, eroding the value of those early checks even further. Many retirees are genuinely surprised by this when they file their first tax return after claiming. Finally, there is the longevity risk that most people underestimate. The average 65-year-old today can expect to live into their mid-80s, and roughly one in three will reach 90. The permanent reduction from early claiming compounds painfully over a long retirement. A decision that feels prudent at 62 can look very different at 82 when you are living on a fixed income that is 30% smaller than it needed to be.
How the 2026 COLA Adjustment Changes the Calculus
The 2.8% cost-of-living adjustment for 2026 raises benefits across the board, pushing the maximum Social Security benefit at age 70 to $5,108 per month. While the COLA applies to all beneficiaries regardless of when they claimed, it amplifies the dollar gap between early and late claimers. A 2.8% increase on a $1,500 monthly check adds $42.
That same 2.8% on a $4,000 check adds $112. Over time, these compounding differences widen substantially. For someone currently deciding when to claim, the COLA is a reminder that delayed claiming does not just give you a higher base benefit — it gives you a higher base on which every future COLA increase is calculated. Each year you wait, the snowball gets bigger.
The Future of Claiming Behavior and What It Means for Retirees
The steady migration away from age-62 claiming shows no signs of reversing. As financial literacy around Social Security improves and the full retirement age settles at 67 for all new retirees going forward, the incentives to wait will only strengthen. The weighted average claiming age has already risen from the low 64s in the late 1990s to 65.2 as of 2023, and that number will likely continue climbing.
What remains uncertain is whether economic conditions will cooperate. Recessions, layoffs, and rising healthcare costs can all force early claiming regardless of what the math suggests. The best planning accounts for this uncertainty. Building even a modest bridge fund — one to three years of expenses in accessible savings — can give you the flexibility to delay claiming if the opportunity arises, potentially adding hundreds of dollars to every Social Security check you will ever receive.
Conclusion
The most common age to claim Social Security retirement benefits is still 62, but barely. What was once a dominant majority has shrunk to roughly a quarter of new retirees, as more Americans recognize the steep cost of early filing. The average claiming age has risen to about 65.2 years, and about 25% of retirees now wait until full retirement age, though fewer than 10% hold out until 70 to collect the maximum benefit.
For those born in 1960 or later, claiming at 62 instead of 70 means forgoing up to 77% of the highest possible monthly check. Your claiming decision is one of the most consequential financial choices you will make in retirement. Run the numbers for your specific situation, factor in your health and your spouse’s benefits, and do not let the availability of money at 62 override a clear-eyed assessment of what you will need at 75 or 85. If you can afford to wait — even a year or two past 62 — the payoff in higher monthly income is permanent and compounds with every future cost-of-living adjustment.