Here's the Average Social Security Claiming Age for Men and Women

When you claim Social Security is entirely up to you. That sounds freeing, but it can also be confusing because there isn't a clear best choice. Apply early, and you get more checks, but each one is smaller. Wait to sign up, and you might get a larger lifetime benefit, but it depends on your life expectancy. There's a lot of uncertainty there.

That drives some people to look to others for guidance. And when we look at the Social Security beneficiary data, we see a pretty consistent average claiming age among men and women.

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65 is the average Social Security claiming age

For the past several years, 65 has been the average Social Security claiming age among men and women, though it's slowly creeping up. In 2020, it was 65. But as of 2024 -- the most recent data available -- it's now 65.2.

This change may be due in part to the rising full retirement age (FRA), which makes claiming early more costly for younger beneficiaries. When Social Security was first created, you became eligible for your full benefit at age 65.

However, when Social Security started running into financial trouble in the 1980s, the government raised the FRA, first to 66 and then to 67. You can still apply for Social Security as early as 62, regardless of your FRA. But the earlier you sign up, the steeper the penalty you pay for doing so.

Someone with an FRA of 66 who signed up for Social Security at 62 saw their checks shrink by 25% compared to what they would have qualified for at 66. Today, someone with an FRA of 67 who applies at 62 gets 30% less than they'd qualify for at 67.

For some, that higher penalty is more than they're willing to pay. So instead, they wait a bit longer to apply for Social Security.

Is claiming at 65 right for you?

Claiming at age 65 is still considered claiming early, and you'll face an early claiming benefit reduction for doing so. Whether that's the right choice for you depends on your financial situation and your life expectancy.

If you can't afford to work and you're not able to live off personal savings alone, claiming at 65 -- or even earlier -- is probably the right choice for you. Your Social Security checks can help you maintain your financial stability and stretch your savings further.

Claiming at 65 or sooner could also make sense if you don't expect to live very long and aren't sure you'll be able to benefit from the larger checks you'd get by waiting to apply. However, if you're married, you should know that applying early permanently reduces the survivor benefit your spouse will qualify for after you're gone.

It's worth considering all possible claiming ages to see which makes the most sense for you. You can claim at any point between 62 and 70, when you qualify for your largest possible checks.

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