Full retirement age calculator
| Birth year | Full retirement age | Claiming at 62 pays |
|---|---|---|
| 1943–1954 | 66 | 75% |
| 1955 | 66 and 2 months | 74.2% |
| 1956 | 66 and 4 months | 73.3% |
| 1957 | 66 and 6 months | 72.5% |
| 1958 | 66 and 8 months | 71.7% |
| 1959 | 66 and 10 months | 70.8% |
| 1960 and later | 67 | 70% |
The table is the US Social Security schedule. Other countries set state pension age differently and several are raising it — check your own national scheme.
Full retirement age is 67 for anyone born in 1960 or later, and between 66 and 67 for those born from 1943 to 1959. Claiming at 62 permanently reduces the benefit to about 70% of full; delaying past full age raises it by roughly 8% a year until 70.
How to find your full retirement age
The choice between claiming at 62 and delaying to 70 is close to actuarially neutral for someone of average life expectancy — the smaller cheques for longer roughly balance the larger cheques for less time. What breaks the tie is circumstance: someone in poor health, or who needs the income now, is usually better claiming early, while someone healthy with other income to live on is buying inflation-linked longevity insurance by waiting. For married couples the calculation shifts again, because the higher earner benefit often continues as a survivor benefit.
Questions
The age at which the unreduced benefit is payable — 67 for anyone born in 1960 or later.