Your Social Security full retirement age (FRA) is 67 if you were born in 1960 or later. If you were born from 1943 through 1954, it is 66. If you were born from 1955 through 1959, it falls between 66 and 67, rising by two months for each birth year. Full retirement age is the age when you can collect 100% of your retirement benefit. Claim as early as 62 and your check is cut by up to 30% for life. Wait past full retirement age and it grows by 8% a year until 70. If you were born on January 1, use the year before your birth year.
The chart below comes from the federal rule that sets full retirement age, 20 CFR 404.409, which matches the Social Security Administration's (SSA) own retirement planner. As of November 2026, every person born in 1959 or earlier has already reached full retirement age. So anyone who has not yet reached it has a full retirement age of 67. People born in 1960 are the first group to reach 67 as their full retirement age, and they do it in 2027.
Full Retirement Age Chart by Birth Year
| Year of birth | Full retirement age | Months from 62 to FRA | Your benefit at 62 | Reduction at 62 |
|---|
| 1943 to 1954 | 66 | 48 | 75% | 25% |
| 1955 | 66 and 2 months | 50 | 74.2% | 25.8% |
| 1956 | 66 and 4 months | 52 | 73.3% | 26.7% |
| 1957 | 66 and 6 months | 54 | 72.5% | 27.5% |
| 1958 | 66 and 8 months | 56 | 71.7% | 28.3% |
| 1959 | 66 and 10 months | 58 | 70.8% | 29.2% |
| 1960 and later | 67 | 60 | 70% | 30% |
The January 1 rule. Social Security says you reach an age on the day before your birthday (20 CFR 404.102). Someone born on January 1, 1960 legally turns each age on December 31, so SSA treats them as born in 1959. Their full retirement age is 66 and 10 months, not 67. The same rule applies to every row: if your birthday is January 1, read the row for the year before.
People born in 1937 or earlier had a full retirement age of 65. The rise from 65 to 67 started with people born in 1938 and was set by the 1983 Social Security Amendments. Under current law, 67 is the top. No birth year has a full retirement age above 67.
How Much You Get at Each Claiming Age
For anyone born in 1960 or later, here is what you collect at each age as a share of your full benefit. The dollar column uses an example full benefit (SSA calls it your "primary insurance amount") of $2,000 a month. SSA rounds the final payment down to the whole dollar.
| Age you start benefits | Share of your full benefit | Monthly check if full benefit is $2,000 |
|---|
| 62 | 70% | $1,400 |
| 63 | 75% | $1,500 |
| 64 | 80% | $1,600 |
| 65 | 86.7% | $1,733 |
| 66 | 93.3% | $1,866 |
| 67 (full retirement age) | 100% | $2,000 |
| 68 | 108% | $2,160 |
| 69 | 116% | $2,320 |
| 70 | 124% | $2,480 |
The gap between the earliest and latest choices is large. In this example, waiting from 62 to 70 raises the monthly check from $1,400 to $2,480, about 77% more, and that difference lasts for life. Cost-of-living adjustments are added on top at every age, so the gap in dollars grows over time.
To find your own full benefit amount, sign in to your my Social Security account at ssa.gov/myaccount. Your statement lists your estimated benefit at 62, at full retirement age and at 70.
How the Early Claiming Reduction Works
The reduction is set by 20 CFR 404.410 and is figured month by month, not year by year:
- 5/9 of 1% for each of the first 36 months you claim before full retirement age. That is about 0.56% a month, or 6.67% a year.
- 5/12 of 1% for each month beyond 36. That is about 0.42% a month, or 5% a year.
With a full retirement age of 67, claiming at 62 means 60 months early. The first 36 months cost 20%, and the next 24 months cost 10%, for a total of 30%. Claiming at 64 is 36 months early, which is exactly 20%.
The reduction is permanent. It does not go away when you reach full retirement age. There are two exceptions worth knowing:
- Withdrawing your application. Within 12 months of first getting retirement benefits, you can withdraw your claim with Form SSA-521. You must repay everything you and your family received on your record. You can do this once in your life, and afterward SSA treats you as if you never applied.
- Benefits held back for work. If SSA withholds some of your checks before full retirement age because you earned over the earnings limit, it recalculates your benefit at full retirement age to give you credit for those months. That raises your monthly amount going forward.
Delayed Retirement Credits: The Increase for Waiting
For each month you wait past full retirement age without collecting, SSA adds a delayed retirement credit. For anyone born in 1943 or later, each credit is worth 2/3 of 1%, or 8% a year (20 CFR 404.313). Credits stop at age 70.
Because the starting point differs by birth year, so does the maximum boost at 70:
| Year of birth | Full retirement age | Months of credits possible | Benefit at 70 as share of full benefit |
|---|
| 1943 to 1954 | 66 | 48 | 132% |
| 1955 | 66 and 2 months | 46 | 130.7% |
| 1956 | 66 and 4 months | 44 | 129.3% |
| 1957 | 66 and 6 months | 42 | 128% |
| 1958 | 66 and 8 months | 40 | 126.7% |
| 1959 | 66 and 10 months | 38 | 125.3% |
| 1960 and later | 67 | 36 | 124% |
There is no reason to wait past 70. Your benefit stops growing, and every month after that is a month of payments you do not get. If you have not applied by 70, apply then.
If you already started benefits early, you can still earn delayed credits. Once you reach full retirement age, you can ask SSA to voluntarily suspend your payments, and you earn credits for each suspended month until 70. Note that suspending also stops benefits paid to family members on your record, such as a spouse.
For the dollar ceilings at 62, 67 and 70, see our page on the maximum Social Security benefit for 2027.
Break-Even Ages: When Waiting Pays Off
Waiting means fewer total checks but bigger ones. The "break-even" age is when the larger checks catch up with the smaller checks you would have collected by starting early. Using the $2,000 example above and ignoring COLAs, taxes and investment returns:
| Comparison | Checks given up by waiting | Extra per month after waiting | Rough break-even age |
|---|
| 62 vs 67 | $84,000 (60 months at $1,400) | $600 | About 78 and 8 months |
| 67 vs 70 | $72,000 (36 months at $2,000) | $480 | About 82 and 6 months |
| 62 vs 70 | $134,400 (96 months at $1,400) | $1,080 | About 80 and 5 months |
If you expect to live past the break-even age, waiting usually produces more lifetime income. If your health is poor, or you need the money now to pay bills, claiming earlier can make sense. For a married higher earner there is another reason to wait: a surviving spouse can keep the larger of the two checks, including any delayed credits.
Full Retirement Age for Spouses and Survivors
Spouses use the same chart as workers. A spouse claiming at their own full retirement age gets up to 50% of the worker's full benefit. Claiming early cuts it more steeply than a worker's own benefit: 25/36 of 1% for each of the first 36 months, then 5/12 of 1% after that.
| Spouse's age when claiming (FRA 67) | Share of the worker's full benefit |
|---|
| 62 | 32.5% |
| 63 | 35% |
| 64 | 37.5% |
| 65 | 41.7% |
| 66 | 45.8% |
| 67 | 50% |
Spousal benefits do not earn delayed retirement credits, so a spouse gains nothing by waiting past full retirement age. Our Social Security spousal benefits guide covers the rules, divorced spouses and examples.
Survivors have a separate chart that runs two years behind the worker chart (20 CFR 404.409(b)):
| Survivor's year of birth | Survivor full retirement age |
|---|
| 1945 to 1956 | 66 |
| 1957 | 66 and 2 months |
| 1958 | 66 and 4 months |
| 1959 | 66 and 6 months |
| 1960 | 66 and 8 months |
| 1961 | 66 and 10 months |
| 1962 and later | 67 |
A widow or widower can start survivor benefits at 60 (or at 50 if disabled). At 60, the benefit is reduced by 28.5%, so the survivor gets 71.5% of the deceased worker's amount.
What Full Retirement Age Changes, and What It Does Not
Reaching full retirement age matters for several rules beyond the size of your check:
- The earnings limit ends. Before full retirement age, SSA withholds benefits if you work and earn over a yearly limit. For 2027 the limit is $25,560 a year, with $1 withheld for every $2 above it. In the calendar year you reach full retirement age, the limit is $67,920, with $1 withheld for every $3 above it, counting only earnings in the months before your full retirement age month. Starting the month you reach full retirement age, there is no limit at all. For 2026 the figures are $24,480 and $65,160. See our Social Security earnings limit 2027 guide for how the withholding works.
- SSDI becomes retirement. If you get Social Security disability, your benefit converts to a retirement benefit automatically at full retirement age, in the same amount. You do not file anything. Details are in our SSDI to retirement conversion page.
- Medicare does not move. Medicare eligibility starts at 65 for nearly everyone, even though full retirement age is 67. If you are not getting Social Security when you turn 65, you have to sign up for Medicare yourself during the seven-month window around your 65th birthday. Missing it can mean a late enrollment penalty for life. Our guide to benefits when turning 65 walks through the timing.
- WEP and GPO no longer apply. If you have a pension from work not covered by Social Security, such as some teaching or government jobs, the Social Security Fairness Act repealed the Windfall Elimination Provision and Government Pension Offset. Read more in our Social Security Fairness Act explainer.
How to Find Your Full Retirement Age and Claim
- Find your birth year in the chart. If your birthday is January 1, use the previous year.
- Count forward from your birthday. Someone born June 15, 1965 has a full retirement age of 67, which they reach in June 2032. Someone born March 10, 1958 had a full retirement age of 66 and 8 months, reached in November 2024.
- Check your earliest start month. Before full retirement age, you must be 62 for the entire month to get a benefit for that month (20 CFR 404.311). Most people can start the month after the month they turn 62. If your birthday is on the 1st or 2nd of the month, you can start in your birthday month.
- Get your estimate. Sign in at ssa.gov/myaccount to see your estimated checks at 62, full retirement age and 70, based on your actual earnings record.
- Pick a start month. Weigh your health, other income, whether you are still working (the earnings limit applies before full retirement age), and any spouse who may rely on your record.
- Apply. You can apply online at ssa.gov/apply up to four months before you want benefits to start, by phone at 1-800-772-1213, or at a local Social Security office. If you apply after full retirement age, you can ask for up to six months of back payments, though taking them lowers the delayed credits you earned for those months.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is my full retirement age if I was born in 1960?
- People born on January 2, 1960 or later have a full retirement age of 67, and the 1960 group reaches it during 2027. If you were born on January 1, 1960, SSA treats you as born in 1959, so your full retirement age is 66 and 10 months.
Is full retirement age going to change?
Under current law, 67 is the highest full retirement age for any birth year. Proposals to raise it come up in debates about Social Security's finances, but none has been enacted. Any change would require a new law from Congress.
How much do I lose if I take Social Security at 62?
If your full retirement age is 67, claiming at 62 cuts your monthly benefit by 30%, so you get 70% of your full amount. The cut is permanent. With a full benefit of $2,000, that is $1,400 a month instead of $2,000.
How much more do I get if I wait until 70?
If your full retirement age is 67, waiting until 70 adds 24%, so you get 124% of your full benefit. That is 8% for each year you wait past 67. With a $2,000 full benefit, the check at 70 is $2,480 a month.
Is full retirement age the same as Medicare age?
No. Medicare starts at 65 for most people. Full retirement age for Social Security is 66 to 67 depending on your birth year. You can sign up for Medicare at 65 without starting Social Security.
Can I work after full retirement age without losing benefits?
Yes. The earnings limit ends the month you reach full retirement age. You can earn any amount from then on and keep your full Social Security check. Your earnings may still raise your benefit if they replace a lower-earning year in your top 35.
Does the full retirement age apply to SSI?
No. SSI is a needs-based program with its own rules, and it has no full retirement age or early claiming reduction. People can qualify for SSI at 65 based on age alone if their income and resources are low enough. Some people get both Social Security and SSI at the same time.
What happens if I claim early and then go back to work?
Before full retirement age, SSA may withhold some benefits if your earnings pass the yearly limit ($25,560 in 2027). The withheld money is not lost for good. At full retirement age, SSA recalculates your benefit to credit the months it withheld, which raises your monthly payment from then on.
