Experts Reveal the Exact Age You MUST Apply for Social Security Benefits in 2025—Find Out Why Timing is Everything

The best time to retire and start receiving Social Security payments is one of the most important questions that an American worker will have after turning sixty-two.

Everybody has a distinctive strategy that works for their circumstances, even when the economic answer is obvious in terms of immediate advantage.

There are four main ages at which employees typically decide to retire, but many people make the error of quitting at any time without thinking about the actual age they have selected.

Pros and Cons

One must first calculate the number of years they have worked before they can even think about receiving benefits. It is essential to have worked for at least 35 years since the Social Security Administration uses that amount to calculate payments.

If not, the computation will contain zeros, resulting in a significant drop in the amount. You can begin saving for retirement at age 62, the earliest you can start receiving Social Security payments, if you have these 35 years.

There is a small catch: if you start receiving benefits now, you will never get back 30% of your payout when you reach full retirement age.

Even though this seems like a horrible deal, people with health issues or short life expectancies might find it helpful because it might be worth delaying the loss of benefits in exchange for cash and leaving a job.

Sixty-five is another common retirement age. Prior to being raised in the wake of the Social Security crisis in the 1980s, it was the original retirement age. It is still the age at which an individual is eligible for Medicare.

Because you will receive subsidized healthcare and a less severe income loss (86.7% of your benefit at full retirement age), this may be a favorable time for people with higher healthcare costs to retire.

For those born in 1960 or after, 67 is the second most common retirement age. The majority of workers think that this is a good age to retire since you have enough years to enjoy life and are in good health.

If you retire at this age, you will collect all of your benefits. Of course, there is a third option, delaying benefit payments until one is 70 years old, that not many people know about and that most low-income workers cannot afford unless they have no other option.

To get the maximum Social Security payment, you must never start receiving benefits, but you can stop working when you reach full retirement age without compromising this decision.

The reason for this is because for every year you postpone retirement until you are 70 years old, the Social Security Administration increases your retirement benefits by 8%. As a result, your monthly Social Security payments might reach 124% of your retirement income.

Because Social Security often falls short of basic needs, many people choose not to take advantage of this option, even if they continue to work, to improve their quality of life and raise their benefits.

It makes sense that many people cannot afford to wait so long to receive their benefits, as the average payment in the US for those who retire at age 70 is $1,963.48.

In any event, a person can retire whenever they want between the ages of 62 and 70, and the percentage of benefits they receive will vary according on their age.