Most Americans Are Making This Social Security Move Early, and It Could Cost Them $182,000

For millions of Americans approaching retirement, one of the biggest financial decisions may come down to a deceptively simple question: when should Social Security benefits begin?

New research from investment firm Schroders suggests most non-retired Americans are not planning to wait until 70, even though delaying benefits can substantially increase the monthly payment. Just 10% of respondents said they planned to wait until age 70 to claim, while 44% said they expected to file before reaching their full retirement age.

Under current Social Security rules, eligible workers can begin claiming retirement benefits at 62. But claiming before full retirement age permanently reduces the monthly benefit. For people born in 1960 or later, full retirement age is 67. Someone who claims at 62 can receive as little as 70% of their full retirement benefit, according to the Social Security Administration.

Waiting beyond full retirement age creates the opposite effect.

Waiting Until 70 Can Produce a Significantly Larger Monthly Check

For workers born in 1943 or later, Social Security provides 8% in delayed-retirement credits for every year of delay after full retirement age, with increases stopping at 70. So, a person born in 1960 or later who waits from 67 until 70 receives 124% of their full-retirement-age benefit.

The difference can compound over decades of retirement.

A 2022 National Bureau of Economic Research study by David Altig, Laurence Kotlikoff, and Victor Yifan Ye examined Americans ages 45 to 62 and found that more than 90% would benefit, under the study’s lifetime-spending model, from waiting until 70. The researchers estimated the median loss at $182,370 for those whose claiming decisions were not optimized.

That figure is not a guaranteed $182,000 payout for everyone. The researchers modeled lifetime spending using individual financial circumstances, taxes, benefits, and other variables. Health, marital status, savings, and expected longevity can all change the calculation.

Fear of Social Security Running Out is Influencing Decisions

Schroders’ survey shows that Americans are not simply overlooking the strategy.

Among respondents who planned to claim before 70, 37% said they wanted access to the money as soon as possible, while 36% feared Social Security could run out of money or stop paying benefits. Another 34% said they would need the money earlier as regular income, and 15% said they had been advised to claim before 70.

Deb Boyden, head of U.S. defined contribution at Schroders, said the retirement income generated by Social Security is “critical to making ends meet” for many Americans.

She also noted that concerns about the program’s finances are making workers anxious to claim earlier, even as many households face substantial retirement savings gaps.

Those concerns are not entirely unfounded. The 2026 Social Security Trustees report projects that the Old-Age and Survivors Insurance trust fund will be depleted in the fourth quarter of 2032. At that point, incoming revenue would be sufficient to cover only about 78% of scheduled OASI benefits under current law. The combined Social Security trust funds are projected to remain able to pay 83% of scheduled benefits in 2034.

That does not mean Social Security would suddenly disappear in 2032. It means the financing gap would become a legal and political problem requiring action by Congress.

For many workers, that prediction justifies early cut and run. Claiming early locks in a lower benefit under today’s rules, while delaying exposes them to uncertainty over future Social Security policy. The Schroders findings show just how many Americans are choosing immediate income over the possibility of substantially larger payments later.

This story was originally published by Men’s Journal on Sep 29, 2026, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Men’s Journal as a Preferred Source by clicking here.