Will my Social Security benefits increase if I keep working after FRA? Beyond just COLA?

Yes, your benefit can increase if you continue working while receiving Social Security retirement benefits! The SSA automatically reviews your record each year and if your current earnings are higher than one of your 35 highest earning years used in your original benefit calculation, they'll recalculate your benefit amount. This is different from the COLA increases that everyone gets regardless of work status. The adjustment (if you qualify for one) typically shows up in your payment around December of the following year.

That's fantastic news! So they automatically check without me having to call or file anything? I was worried I'd need to request a recalculation each year.

they do it automatic, my husban got a increase last febuary from working the year before. it wasnt huge but it was like $37 more a month on top of the cola

Same happened to my wife! She got about $42 extra after working that one extra year. Every dollar counts these days!

SSA is SUPPOSED to recalculate automatically but they MESS UP all the time!!! I worked 2 years after taking my benefits and they NEVER increased my amount beyond the regular cola!! When I finally got through to them (took 14 calls and 3 visits!!), they admitted they'd

Oh no, that's concerning. Did you eventually get it all sorted out? Should I be checking my benefit calculation somehow every year to make sure they're doing it correctly?

YES got it fixed but only because I KEPT DETAILED RECORDS of my earnings and benefit amounts!! Check your MySocialSecurity account every January to make sure any increases look right. If you see only the COLA amount and nothing extra despite higher earnings, CALL THEM IMMEDIATELY!!

I'm actually in almost the same situation! Turned 67 in March, started benefits in April, but still working part-time. My brother-in-law said something about the SSA only counting earnings before you start receiving benefits that year? Anyone know if that's true or does the whole year count?

That's not correct for people at or above Full Retirement Age. Once you've reached FRA, all earnings count toward potential benefit recalculations, regardless of when during the year you started receiving benefits. Your brother-in-law might be thinking of the earnings test that applies to people who claim benefits before their FRA, which is a completely different situation.

Something nobody mentioned yet - the recalculation impact depends heavily on your earnings history. If you're replacing a zero or very low earning year in your top 35, you'll see a more noticeable increase. If you're replacing a year where you already had substantial earnings, the increase might be minimal. At $88k, you're likely near or at the maximum taxable earnings for Social Security purposes ($168,600 for 2025), which would give you the maximum credit for this year in your calculation.

That makes perfect sense! Looking back at my work history, I did have about 4-5 years in my early career where I earned very little (under $20k). I'm guessing those might be the years that would get replaced by my current earnings. Thanks for explaining that aspect.

I went through exactly this last year and ended up getting a $67 monthly increase after working a year beyond claiming my benefits. One tip - if you're trying to reach SSA to verify anything about this, don't waste your time sitting on hold for hours. I used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an agent in about 15 minutes instead of the 3+ hour wait I had before. They have a video showing how it works at https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU. Saved me a huge headache when I needed to confirm my benefit recalculation was processed correctly.

Thanks for the tip! After reading some of these responses, I probably should check that everything gets recalculated properly. I'll look into that service if I need to call SSA. The thought of sitting on hold for hours is definitely not appealing.

Has anyone else used this service? Is it legit? I've been trying to get through to SSA for weeks about my own recalculation question.

It works! Used it twice. Not free but WORTH EVERY PENNY when you need to actually TALK to someone at SSA and can't waste an entire day on hold!!

my friend at church says her husband got less SS after working another year. is that possible?

No, continuing to work cannot decrease your Social Security benefit. However, there are a few possibilities for why they might think this happened:1. They might be confusing the recalculation with changes in their Medicare Part B premium (which is deducted from Social Security for many people)2. They could have had an increase in taxable Social Security benefits if their combined income went up3. Perhaps there was an unrelated overpayment adjustment happening at the same timeYour friend's husband should check his SSA-1099 form and benefit verification letter to see exactly what changed.

i think theyres a limit to how much u can earn and still get the bumps. my sister earns over 100,000 and they told her shes already at max so work doesnt change it anymore

Your sister is likely already at the maximum benefit based on her earnings history. There's a cap on how much income is subject to Social Security tax each year ($168,600 in 2025), and earnings above that don't increase your benefit. But for most people who haven't consistently earned at that maximum taxable level throughout their career, additional work can still increase benefits by replacing lower-earning years.

Thanks everyone for the extremely helpful information! To summarize what I've learned: yes, my benefits can increase beyond COLA if my current earnings replace lower years in my top 35, the SSA should recalculate automatically (but I should verify), and the increase will appear the following year. I'll definitely keep an eye on my account to make sure any adjustments are properly applied. This forum has been invaluable!