Social Security at 62, Full Retirement Age, or 70? Busting the Biggest Claiming Myths

The Decision Everyone Argues About

Few retirement questions generate more strong opinions — and more myths — than when to start Social Security. Ask five people and you'll likely get five confident, contradictory answers. Some of what's floating around is genuinely useful. A lot of it is oversimplified, outdated, or just wrong for a particular person's situation. Let's walk through the biggest myths and what the actual mechanics say instead.

Myth #1: "You Should Always Claim as Early as Possible"

The logic sounds reasonable — take the money while you can, since nothing's guaranteed. But claiming at 62 comes with a real, permanent cost: your benefit is reduced for life, not just delayed. If your full retirement age is 67, claiming at 62 means a 30% reduction to your monthly benefit, and that reduction stays in effect for as long as you receive benefits.

That doesn't make claiming early wrong for everyone — health concerns, an immediate income need, or simply wanting the money now while you can enjoy it are all legitimate reasons. It just means "early is always best" isn't true as a blanket rule. It's a trade-off between more money now and a permanently smaller check for the rest of your life.

Myth #2: "Waiting Until 70 Is Always the Smart Move"

The flip side of the first myth is just as common: the idea that everyone should wait as long as possible. Delaying past full retirement age does increase your benefit — by 8% for each year you wait, up until age 70, when the increase stops. For someone in good health with other income to bridge the gap, that can be a strong strategy.

But it's not automatically right for everyone. If you have health issues that may shorten your life expectancy, or you have no other income to cover expenses in the meantime, waiting may mean giving up money you'll never fully recoup. There's no universal "right" age — there's a right age for your specific health, finances, and family situation.

Myth #3: "Your Full Retirement Age Is 65"

This one is simply outdated. Full retirement age hasn't been 65 for a long time. It's based on your birth year: 66 for people born between 1943 and 1954, gradually increasing in two-month increments for those born from 1955 to 1959, and 67 for anyone born in 1960 or later. Knowing your actual full retirement age matters, because it's the reference point every reduction and increase is measured against.

Myth #4: "If You Work After Claiming, You Lose the Money for Good"

This is one of the most persistent — and most misunderstood — Social Security myths. If you claim benefits before full retirement age and keep working, your benefit can be temporarily reduced once your earnings pass a certain limit ($24,480 for 2026 if you're under full retirement age all year, or $65,160 in the year you reach it, counting only earnings before that birthday). Above the limit, $1 is withheld for every $2 you earn over it (or $1 for every $3 in the year you reach full retirement age).

But here's the part that gets left out: that money isn't gone. Once you reach full retirement age, Social Security recalculates your benefit going forward to credit you for the months that were withheld. It's a temporary timing adjustment, not a permanent loss.

Myth #5: "Social Security Won't Be There, So the Decision Doesn't Matter"

Concerns about the long-term funding of Social Security are worth taking seriously and are worth watching over time. But treating the program as if it will simply vanish tends to lead to decisions made out of fear rather than a clear look at your own numbers. The claiming-age decision is about maximizing what you're entitled to under current rules — and that's very much still worth getting right.

The Takeaway

There's no single correct age to claim Social Security — there's a correct age for you, based on your health, your other income sources, whether you're still working, and what your household needs the money to do. The myths above tend to push people toward a one-size-fits-all answer when the honest answer is almost always "it depends."

If you'd like to talk through what your own claiming timeline could look like — including how it fits with other income sources — we're happy to sit down and map it out together.

Sources: Social Security Administration, "Retirement Age and Benefit Reduction," "Delayed Retirement Credits," and "Receiving Benefits While Working" (ssa.gov). This article is educational only and not personalized financial or legal advice.