Will delaying SS retirement for one year to replace $12,000 income with $82,000 significantly increase my monthly benefit?

I did exactly tihs last year! Worked one more year after my FRA and replaced a $15k year with a $75k year. My benefit went up around $80/month. Not huge but over time it adds up especially with COLA increases. The SSA calculators are confusing af to use so I just called them directly.

The impact will depend on several factors in your specific earnings record, but I can give you a general idea. Social Security calculates your benefit using your highest 35 years of earnings (indexed for inflation). By replacing a $12,000 year with an $82,000 year, you're adding approximately $70,000 of earnings. Since only about 15% of your earnings in this range affect your Primary Insurance Amount (PIA), you might see roughly a $40-90 monthly increase in benefits. This is a significant difference that compounds over time with annual COLAs. You should request your Social Security Statement online through your my Social Security account to see more precise estimates based on your complete earnings history.

I waited 2 yrs past FRA and my benifit went up quite a bit, i think it was like 16% more? plus I was making good money those 2 years. But the best part was the delayed retirement credits, you get 8% more for each year you delay after FRA until age 70. So maybe consider that too.

I think you should also consider how much income you'll be missing by not taking SS for that extra year. Like if your monthly benefit now would be $2500, that's $30,000 you're giving up to maybe get an extra what, $50-100 per month? You need to calculate how many months it would take to break even on that decision.

I worked with countless pre-retirees on this exact calculation. Here's a simple way to estimate it: take the difference between your low year and high year ($70,000), divide by 420 (35 years × 12 months), and you'll get about $167. Then multiply by approximately 0.4 (average primary insurance amount factor) = roughly $67 more per month. This is a simplified calculation, but it gives you a ballpark figure. The exact amount depends on where you are in the bend points of the PIA formula, which is why the SSA calculators are more accurate. But most people in your situation see about $50-100 monthly increase for this level of earnings difference.

The "bend points" refer to the points in the Social Security benefit formula where the percentage of your earnings counted toward your benefit changes. In 2025, SSA counts 90% of your first $1,350 of average indexed monthly earnings, 32% of earnings between $1,350 and $8,142, and 15% of earnings above $8,142 (up to the maximum). Most people replacing a higher earning year fall in that 15% range, which is why the benefit increase is relatively modest compared to the earnings difference.

I was in a very similar situation last year and spent HOURS trying to get someone at Social Security to help me with this exact calculation. After being on hold for 3+ hours multiple times and getting disconnected, I found a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an SSA agent in under 10 minutes. The agent walked me through my specific scenario and ran the numbers for me. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU For what it's worth, in my case, replacing a $14K year with an $85K year increased my monthly benefit by about $75. Not life-changing but definitely worth knowing the exact amount before making my decision.

My husband replaced a zero year with a $65k year and his benefit only went up like $40 a month. Pretty disappointing tbh

WAIT!!! Are you still working FULL TIME? Because if you are and you claim SS before FRA, you might hit the earnings limit and they'll withhold some of your benefits. After FRA there's no limit but before that they take $1 for every $2 you earn over the limit!! My brother got surprised by this and it was a mess!!!

Thanks everyone for the helpful insights! Based on your feedback, it seems like I might see around a $60-90 monthly increase by working that extra year. I'm leaning toward doing it since I don't mind my job, and that additional amount will add up over time with COLAs. I also appreciate the explanation about the bend points - that helps me understand why the increase isn't proportional to the earnings difference. I'm going to try to speak with SSA directly to get an exact calculation for my situation.