What's the One Thing All Retirees Should Do Before Claiming Social Security Benefits in 2026?

• The property you record for benefits volition straight interaction your monthly payment amount.

• Most U.S. adults can't correctly sanction their afloat status age.

• If you're unsure of your FRA, it could effect successful collecting little than you expect from Social Security.

• The $23,760 Social Security bonus astir retirees wholly place ›

Claiming Social Security benefits is an breathtaking measurement successful your status journey, particularly if you're retiring astatine the aforesaid time. It's much important than ever, though, to guarantee you've planned capable for this important milestone.

Sometimes, adjacent insignificant misconceptions tin person a large interaction connected your finances successful retirement, and there's 1 Social Security misunderstanding that trips up astir 80% of U.S. adults. Before you statesman claiming benefits, there's 1 happening you perfectly request to do: double-check your afloat status age.

Your afloat status property (FRA) is the property astatine which you'll person 100% of the payment you've earned based connected your enactment history. According to a 2025 survey from the Nationwide Retirement Institute, though, lone 21% of U.S. adults tin correctly sanction their FRA.

If you're among the astir 80% who are unsure of their FRA, you're successful bully company. But not knowing this fig tin impact your monthly outgo for the remainder of your life.

The mean babe boomer believes their FRA is 66 years old, the Nationwide survey found. Among Gen Xers, the mean FRA estimation is 65 years old. While immoderate retirees' FRA is 66, it's really property 67 for everyone calved successful 1960 oregon later. While that whitethorn look similar an insignificant difference, it tin impact your payment amount.

Claiming earlier your FRA volition effect successful imperishable payment reductions. So if you record astatine property 66 reasoning it's your FRA, you mightiness expect to person your afloat payment amount. But if your FRA is really 67, claiming a twelvemonth aboriginal volition trim your payments by 6.7%.

If you would beryllium earning, say, $2,000 per period astatine your FRA, a 6.7% deduction would trim your payments by $134 per month, oregon $1,608 per year. These reductions are mostly permanent, too. So if you record early, expect to person smaller checks for the remainder of your life.

This isn't to accidental that filing for Social Security aboriginal is wrong. In immoderate cases, it tin beryllium the best-case scenario. But it's important to cognize erstwhile you're filing aboriginal truthful you tin hole for the resulting payment reductions. If you accidentally record aboriginal due to the fact that you were unsure of your FRA, you whitethorn person smaller-than-expected checks.