Social Security timing question - start benefits in December birthday month or January for maximum advantage?

So the official answer is that Social Security benefits are paid the month AFTER they are due. If your birthday is in December, and you apply for benefits to start that month, your first payment would arrive in January anyway. There's no real advantage to delaying just one month after FRA in terms of the benefit calculation - the percentage increases for delayed retirement credits are calculated in monthly increments, but one month is only about 0.67% more. That said, there COULD be a tax advantage depending on your other income sources. If you're right at a tax bracket threshold, pushing that first payment into the next tax year might save you some money. But that's really more of a tax planning question than a Social Security one.

my sister had birthday Dec 12 and she just went ahead and took it in December!! she said the SSA people told her waiting 1 month makes almost no differenc at all. but she also said make sure u apply like 3 months b4 you want it to start!!!!

I was in EXACTLY ur situation last yr!! My bday is Dec 23rd and I stressed about this too! I ended up taking it in Dec because waiting one month only increased my check by like $12 or something ridiculously small. BUT what I didn't think about was taxes!!! If you have other income in Dec and are close to a tax bracket cutoff, it MIGHT be worth waiting till Jan just to push that income into next tax year. That's what my financial guy told me AFTER I already applied lol. I don't think it made a huge difference though.

I tried calling SSA to ask a similar question last year and waited for 2.5 HOURS before getting disconnected. Then tried again the next day and gave up after an hour. Their phone system is completely broken.

I'll add something important that others haven't mentioned. When you reach FRA in December, you're eligible for your FULL benefit for that month, even though you weren't at FRA for the entire month. So there's no proration of benefits for partial months. The other commenters are correct that the delayed retirement credit for waiting just one extra month is very small (0.67%). If maximizing your lifetime benefits is your goal, you should consider your health status, family longevity, and financial needs more broadly. The breakeven point (where waiting starts to pay off) for delaying benefits beyond FRA is typically around 82-83 years of age. Also, if you plan to work after claiming benefits, once you're at FRA, there's no earnings test, so you can earn as much as you want without any reduction in benefits - this applies whether you claim in December or January.

No, that's a common misconception. Once you reach your full retirement age (currently 67 for people born in 1960 or later), there is NO earnings limit. You can earn any amount from working without having your Social Security benefits reduced. The earnings test only applies before you reach your FRA.

I WAITED 6 MONTHS PAST MY FRA AND REGRET IT!! All that waiting for practically nothing! They make it sound like you get so much more but the monthly increase is tiny!! Just take it when you hit 67 - December or January doesn't matter. THE SYSTEM IS RIGGED AGAINST US ANYWAY!!!

i just remembered something else! my friend said december is actually a good month to start cuz of how they calculate the COLA increases! something about getting the full COLA for next year even if u only got benefits for 1 month this year? not 100% sure but worth checking!!

Thank you all for the helpful responses! Based on everything shared, it seems like: 1. The actual benefit increase for waiting one month is minimal (around 0.67% or about $12 on average) 2. Tax considerations might be more important than the benefit amount difference 3. If I apply for December, I won't get paid until January anyway 4. There's potentially some small advantage related to COLA calculations I think I'll talk to my tax advisor about the potential tax implications before making a final decision, but it's good to know that from a pure benefit amount perspective, there's not a significant advantage to waiting that one extra month. This has been really helpful - thanks again everyone!