Strategies to Increase Your Own Social Security Benefit

You cannot change the past, but you maintain immense control over how you handle the final years before retirement. If you want to push your own monthly check toward the numbers seen in the top 10 states, focus on the variables you can actually control.

• Work a Full 35 Years: The formula averages your 35 highest-earning years. If you only work 30 years, the government inserts five “zeros” into your calculation. Replacing those zero-income years with even modest earnings will noticeably lift your baseline benefit.
• Maximize Earnings Now: Because your benefit scales with your income up to the taxable maximum, late-career salary negotiations, promotions, or side businesses directly pad your future retirement checks.
• Delay Your Claim: The most powerful lever you have is patience. Claiming at age 62 permanently locks in a reduced benefit. Waiting until your full retirement age ensures you get 100 percent of your earned amount. Waiting until age 70 maxes out the delayed retirement credits.

“Every year you delay claiming Social Security past your full retirement age, your benefit grows by a guaranteed 8 percent. There is no other investment that gives you a risk-free 8 percent return.” — Suze Orman, Personal Finance Expert