Step 6: Coordinate Claiming Strategies with Your Spouse

If you are married, your Social Security decisions are not just about you—they are about your household. Coordinating your claiming strategies with your spouse is essential to maximize your combined lifetime income and ensure financial security for the surviving partner.

There are a few important benefits and strategies to understand:

Spousal Benefits

A spousal benefit allows an individual to receive a monthly payment based on their partner’s work record, rather than their own. This is especially valuable for spouses who have lower lifetime earnings, perhaps because they stayed home to raise a family or worked in a lower-paying job.

The spousal benefit can be up to 50% of the higher-earning spouse’s full retirement age (FRA) benefit. For a spouse to claim this benefit, the higher-earning spouse must have already filed for their own retirement benefit. It’s important to note that if the lower-earning spouse claims their spousal benefit before their own FRA, the amount will be permanently reduced.

For example, let’s say Bill’s full benefit is $2,400 per month. His wife, Mary, has a smaller benefit of her own, say $800. When Bill files for his benefit, Mary can apply for a spousal benefit. The SSA will calculate 50% of Bill’s full benefit, which is $1,200. Since this is higher than her own $800 benefit, the SSA will pay her own $800 and add an extra $400 to bring her total up to the $1,200 spousal amount. She doesn’t get both, but she gets the higher of the two amounts.

The Survivor Benefit Strategy

One of the most powerful Social Security claiming strategies for married couples involves planning for the surviving spouse. When one spouse passes away, the survivor is entitled to receive the higher of the two Social Security benefits the couple was receiving. They don’t get to keep both payments, only the larger one.

This is why it is often a wise strategy for the higher-earning spouse to delay claiming their benefit as long as possible, ideally until age 70. By doing so, they maximize their own monthly check. This not only provides more income while both spouses are alive but also creates the largest possible survivor benefit for their partner. This single decision can provide decades of financial stability for the surviving spouse, who may be facing new challenges and expenses alone.

Discussing these options together is a key part of retirement planning. Consider your age difference, health, and respective benefit amounts to create a plan that best supports you both over the long term.