Claim check · People and society

Should you always wait until 70 to take Social Security?

Waiting from 65 to 70 makes every check about 43% bigger. We checked the official US life table to see how many people live long enough for that to pay off.

By Lauri Niskasaari · Published 2026-11-12 · Updated 2026-11-12 · Change history

Our verdict

✕ False Evidence: High · Read why ↓

43% bigger check each month at 70 than at 65

81.6 the age when waiting has paid you more in total

65% of people who reach 65 live past that age

Photo: Clerks keep the first Social Security records in Baltimore, around 1936. US Social Security Administration via Wikimedia Commons, public domain

Our verdict Evidence: High · Checked 12 Nov 2026 · History

False.

About 1 in 3 Americans who reach 65 die before waiting until 70 pays off. That is our count from the official 2024 US life table. Waiting does give a bigger check: about 43% more each month than at 65.

In short. If you were born in 1960 or later, starting at 65 pays 86.7% of your full amount. Starting at 70 pays 124%, which is about 43% more each month. But you miss five years of checks. In total dollars, the later start only catches up at about age 81½. About 65% of Americans who reach 65 live that long: about 60% of men and 70% of women.

Before we show you the data

Try it yourself first

You can start Social Security at 65 or wait until 70. How much bigger is each check if you wait? Drag to your guess. 20%

About 43% bigger. You get 124% of your full amount instead of 86.7%, if you were born in 1960 or later. Our calculation from the federal rules. SRC-CFR

Key figures

The numbers that matter

Each figure with its source, period and what it measures.

Every value has a source

STAT-001 To verify

86.7% vs 124%of full amount

monthly check if you start at 65 and at 70

People born in 1960 or later · full amount at 67

Our calculation from the rules Original source ↗

STAT-002 To verify

81.6years

age when starting at 70 has paid more in total than starting at 65

Before taxes and interest

Our calculation Original source ↗

STAT-003 To verify

65%of 65-year-olds

live past 81.6 (men 60%, women 70%)

United States · life table for 2024

Our calculation from official data Original source ↗

STAT-004 To verify

67years

full retirement age for anyone born in 1960 or later

Federal rule 20 CFR 404.409

Official rule Original source ↗

What people say vs what the data says

Five things people believe

Each belief checked on its own.

1 Full retirement age is 65
It is 67 for anyone born in 1960 or later.
False
2 Waiting past 70 makes the check even bigger
No. The extra stops the month you turn 70.
False
3 Waiting until 70 always pays off
Only if you live past about 81½. About 1 in 3 people who reach 65 do not.
False
4 Waiting until 70 gives the biggest monthly check
Yes. 124% of your full amount, the most the rules allow.
True
5 Every country pays more if you wait
No. Australia, South Africa and Brazil pay no bonus for waiting alone. Japan pays up to 84% extra, if you wait until 75.
False

Our own count

What our own count shows

Things we found ourselves, with the math shown.

FIND-001

Waiting pays off for most people, but not for all

About 65% of Americans who reach 65 live past 81.6, the age when waiting until 70 has paid more in total.

The later start pays more each month but begins five years later. It catches up about 16½ years after 65, after about 11½ years of the bigger checks.

Our math

At 65 you get 100% minus 24 months × 5/9 of 1% = 86.667%. At 70 you get 100% plus 36 months × 2/3 of 1% = 124%. The totals are equal after 199.3 months from 65, which is age 81.6. From the 2024 life table, the number alive at 81.6 (counted on a straight line between ages 81 and 82) divided by the number alive at 65: all people 54,548 of 84,133 = 64.8%, men 47,874 of 80,401 = 59.5%, women 61,309 of 87,990 = 69.7%.

What this can't tell you

No taxes, no interest and no survivor checks in this sum. Our reasoning: the yearly cost-of-living raise grows both choices by the same percentage, so it does not move the catch-up age.

Sources: SRC-CFR SRC-NCHS

Short answers

Questions people also ask

What is full retirement age?

It is 67 for anyone born in 1960 or later. That is the age when you get 100% of your monthly amount.

You can start as early as 62 and get less every month. You can also wait until 70 and get more every month.

The rule starts from 2 January 1960. Someone born on 1 January 1960 has a full retirement age of 66 and 10 months.

How much smaller is the check at 65?

It is 86.7% of your full amount, so 13.3% smaller. In most cases the cut stays for the rest of your life.

The rules take 5/9 of 1% off for each month before 67. Two years early is 24 months, so 24 × 5/9 = 13.3%.

The cut gets smaller only if some checks were held back before 67 because you earned too much from work. Then the cut is worked out again at 67.

How much bigger is the check at 70?

It is 124% of your full amount. The rules add 2/3 of 1% for each month you wait after 67, and that stops at 70.

Compared with starting at 65, the check at 70 is about 43% bigger. You can check it yourself: 124 divided by 86.7 is 1.43.

When does waiting until 70 pay off?

At about age 81½. Before that, starting at 65 has paid you more in total. After that, starting at 70 is ahead every month.

Say your full amount at 67 would be $2,000 a month. At 65 you get $1,733 and at 70 you get $2,480. By 81½ both have paid about the same total, and after that the later start is ahead by $747 every month. This is a made-up example, not an average.

If you are married and earn more than your husband or wife, waiting also raises the check they get after you die. So waiting can pay off for a couple even if you die before 81½.

How many people live past 81½?

About 65% of Americans who reach 65, by our count from the official 2024 US life table. That is about 60% of men and 70% of women.

A life table starts with 100,000 babies. It shows how many would still be alive at each age if death rates stayed as they were in 2024. We compared the number alive at 65 with the number alive at 81.6.

Related figures65% · live past 81.6 (men 60%, women 70%)

Do other countries also pay more if you wait?

Many do, but not all. Japan has the biggest increase in our table: 184% of the full amount if you start at 75, against 76% at 60.

The Canada Pension Plan pays 64% at 60 and 142% at 70. Germany and the UK also add to the pension if you wait. Australia, South Africa and Brazil pay no bonus for waiting alone.

We read each rule on the country's own official pension website. For South Korea we found the official rule for waiting but not for starting early. For Mexico, Chile, India and China the official pages were blocked or missing, so they are not in the table.

How long do 60-year-olds live around the world?

It depends a lot on where you live. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that a 60-year-old in the US can expect 23.3 more years, so to about 83. In Japan and South Korea it is 26.0 more years, and in Nigeria 17.6.

In the WHO's Africa region, a 60-year-old can expect 17.5 more years, and in its South-East Asia region 19.2. In its Europe and Americas regions it is 22.7 years. The world average is 21.2 years.

These are WHO estimates for 2023, and they are averages, not the share of people who reach a given age. Our 65% figure uses the US life table, because the 81½ rule is a US rule.

We also compare countries in another check: is Finland really the happiest country?

Is retiring the same as starting Social Security?

No. You can stop working at 65 and start Social Security later, or keep working and start it earlier.

The age you stop working and the age you start your checks are two separate choices.

Charts

The data behind the verdict

Every chart is drawn from the downloadable data.

Data visualisation

Your monthly check by the age you start

Monthly Social Security check as a share of the full amount at 67, for people born in 1960 or later. 62: 70%, 65: 86.7%, 67: 100%, 70: 124%. Our calculation from the federal rules.

% of full amount

70% 62

75% 63

80% 64

86.7% 65

93.3% 66

100% 67

108% 68

116% 69

124% 70

Sources: SRC-CFR · Chart values must match the source register.

Data table

Starting early or waiting: the rules in other countries

Country	Earliest and full age	Start early	Wait longer
United States	62 and 67	70% at 62	124% at 70
Canada (Canada Pension Plan)	60 and 65	64% at 60	142% at 70
Japan	60 and 65	76% at 60	184% at 75
Germany	63 (after 35 years in the pension system) and 67 (born 1964 or later)	0.3% less per month	0.5% more per month
United Kingdom	State Pension age, the same for both	Not allowed	1% more for every 9 weeks (if you reached pension age after 5 April 2016)
South Korea	60 and 65 (born 1969 or later)	No official figure found	7.2% more per year, up to 5 years
Israel	Retirement age, with an income check. From 70, no income check	No official figure found	5% more per year, only if work income stopped the pension
Australia	Not checked: the official page did not open	Not allowed	No bonus for waiting. The bonus scheme closed to new members in July 2014
South Africa	60	Not allowed	No bonus for waiting. A grant only for people with low income and few assets, a little more after 75
Brazil	62 women, 65 men, after 15 or 20 years of paying in	Not allowed under the main rule (older transition rules exist)	No extra for age alone. Each extra year of paying in adds 2% of your average pay

Sources: SRC-AUS SRC-BRA SRC-CFR SRC-CPP SRC-DRV SRC-ISR SRC-JPN SRC-KOR SRC-UK SRC-UK-AGE SRC-ZAF

What we don't know

Why the evidence is rated high

The life table counts deaths in one year, 2024. People who are 65 today will probably live a little longer. So the real share who reach 81½ is probably a little higher. Your own answer can be different. It depends on your health, your other income and how soon you need the money. This page shows the rules and the averages, not advice for you.

For journalists and publishers

Ready-to-use findings

Wording you can copy. Each line says where the number comes from, so your readers can check it.

Always check the original source

Suggested wording Needs verification

About 65% of Americans who reach 65 live past 81.6, the age when waiting until 70 for Social Security has paid more in total than starting at 65, according to a FactsOut calculation from the 2024 US life table.

FactsOut analysis of NCHS United States Life Tables, 2024

SRC-NCHS SRC-CFR

How to credit us

How to cite this page

Niskasaari, L. (2026). Should you always wait until 70 to take Social Security? FactsOut. Retrieved 12 Nov 2026.

Questions about the data

Lauri Niskasaari

Editor · Questions about the data and corrections are welcome.

Contact ↗

Data access

Download and reuse the data

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No downloadable dataset added yet

Reuse and licensing: CC BY 4.0: free to reuse numbers, tables and the card with credit. If you publish online, please link to this page.

Behind the verdict

How we checked

Where the figures come from and what they can and cannot tell us.

What we tested

We tested the claim that you should always wait until 70 to start Social Security.

What it covers

US Social Security retirement checks for people born in 1960 or later, compared with the main public pension in 9 other countries. Not survivor, disability or spouse checks.

Which sources we used

The federal rules for the size of the check, and the official US life table for how many people live to each age.

How we got the data

We read the rules and the 2024 life table on 12 Nov 2026.

How much data

The life table covers the whole US population in 2024.

Our math

Share of full amount from the monthly rules. Catch-up age where both choices have paid the same total. Number alive at the catch-up age divided by number alive at 65, straight line between whole ages.

What it can't tell you

No taxes, interest, survivor checks or health differences. The life table is for one year, so it slightly understates how long people who are 65 today will live.

Funding, ads and AI use

No funding, no ads and no affiliate links on this page. Drafted with AI help. Every number is checked against its original source before publishing.

Second check

Check your State Pension age

Official pension rules · United Kingdom · Data: Rules in force 2026 · Published: current

Quote: 'Your State Pension age is the earliest age you can start receiving your State Pension.'

Open original source

Version history

Verdict and change history

2026-11-12

First version. Verdict: False.

New claim page.

Free to reuse

Numbers first. Context always.

CC BY 4.0: free to reuse numbers, tables and the card with credit. If you publish online, please link to this page.