Retirement Social Security

Majority of People Don't Understand How to Maximize Social Security Benefits (Do You?)

Unlock these strategies to help maximize your Social Security benefits and strengthen your retirement plan.

By Adam Palasciano

Edited by Andrea Basse

Updated Nov. 23, 2025

If you're building a retirement plan and expect to rely on Social Security, it's essential to understand how to maximize your benefit rather than simply claim it. The recent 2025 Social Security Survey by The Nationwide Retirement Institute found that while interest is high, knowledge may be lower when it comes to understanding Social Security strategies.

The stakes are serious — your monthly check can vary by thousands depending on your decisions. The following sections walk through some of the data and key ways you can make your benefits work harder for you.

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How Americans understand Social Security, according to one survey

The 2025 survey by Nationwide and The Harris Poll polled 1,812 U.S. adults who currently receive or expect to receive Social Security. It spanned from Gen Z through Boomers+ and ran from June 2 to July 10, 2025, with weighting for age, gender, race/ethnicity, region, income, and other demographics.

The findings reveal a strong interest in maximizing Social Security benefits but a limited understanding of how to do so. Roughly 8 in 10 (80%) respondents said they were "very" or "somewhat" interested in learning how to boost their benefit:

40% said very interested
41% said somewhat interested
Only 11% said not very interested
Only 9% said not at all interested

These survey results exemplify how the majority of people don't really understand how to maximize their Social Security benefits to begin with. On the other hand, a high level of interest doesn't always translate into action or understanding of how to optimize filings, earnings history, or benefit timing. This highlights a clear opportunity for better education and financial literacy that may help Americans make more informed retirement decisions.

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Ways to maximize your Social Security benefits

Here are some of the key steps you can take to maximize your Social Security benefits. Each of these steps can help you turn awareness into a higher benefit for years to come.

Work for at least 10 years

To qualify for retirement benefits, you must earn at least 40 credits, which equates to roughly 10 years of work since you can only earn a maximum of four credits per year.

While this is the eligibility threshold, merely qualifying doesn't mean you're maximizing your benefit — more earnings years matter. Each additional year of work not only builds your retirement security but can also replace lower-income or zero-income years with higher earnings, boosting your benefit amount.

Delay claiming benefits

You can claim benefits as early as age 62, but that locks in a reduced monthly benefit (up to 30% less). Each year you wait past full retirement age (FRA) — in this case, age 67— until age 70 increases your benefit by about 8% per year.

The decision of when to claim can be one of the most impactful strategies for maximizing lifetime Social Security benefits. Delaying may also mean higher survivor benefits for a spouse, which can provide additional financial protection later in life.

Make sure you have at least 35 high-earning years

Your benefit calculation uses your 35 highest-earning years of indexed income — if you have fewer than 35 years, missing years count as zeros. That means even if you qualify within 10 years, you haven't maximized your benefit potential.

Working additional years to substitute higher earnings for lower-income or zero-income years can meaningfully boost your benefit. For those who had career gaps or part-time work early on, these later years of higher income can potentially make a big difference in your monthly benefit amount.

Understand retirement earnings limits

If you begin claiming benefits before your FRA and continue working, earnings above certain limits will reduce your benefit temporarily. For 2025, the limit is $23,400 with a $1 reduction for every $2 earned above it; in the year you reach FRA, the limit is $62,160, with a $1 reduction for every $3 earned above it.

Knowing how employment income affects your benefit is critical when you're balancing work and retirement decisions. The good news: once you reach FRA, these earnings limits disappear and your benefit amount is recalculated to credit any withheld payments.

Coordinate claiming with your spouse

Married couples should think strategically about when each spouse claims benefits — the higher earner delaying filing can benefit the lower-earning spouse through survivor benefits later on.

Timing the primary claimant, assessing spousal and survivor benefit eligibility, and understanding how one spouse's decision affects the other can lead to meaningful incremental benefit gains. Even small adjustments in timing may have lasting impacts on household income security during your golden years.

Review your earnings record regularly

Review your earnings statement from the Social Security Administration (SSA) annually to ensure your income history is accurate and up to date. Errors in reported wages may reduce your benefit calculation and can be corrected — the earlier the better. Taking this step now can help avoid incorrect benefit estimates in the future.

Get a side hustle

Increasing your earnings through part-time work, consulting, or gig income later in your career can improve your highest-earning years, bolster your benefit calculation, and strengthen your filing flexibility.

Once you reach FRA, you can work without benefit reduction (assuming you're past FRA). This strategy helps you fill or replace low-earning years or zeros in your 35-year calculation window, as mentioned earlier. A side hustle may also help boost your retirement savings cushion and provide more cash flow to eliminate debt before you call it quits at your full-time job.

Stay aware of cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) and future program changes

Monitoring the broader Social Security landscape is valuable. For example, benefits are generally indexed to inflation via annual COLA increases, and the SSA's trust-fund projections may suggest future funding constraints.

Understanding how inflation, funding reforms, or future legislation could impact benefits allows retirees to adjust expectations and prepare for potential changes down the line.

Bottom line

While the data shows high interest in maximizing Social Security, the gap in understanding how to do so remains wide — many retirees may still overlook the rules and best practices that could meaningfully increase their monthly benefit. By applying strategies like working more years, delaying benefits, coordinating with a spouse, and regularly reviewing your earnings history, you can make smarter, more confident choices about your Social Security future.

As you continue planning for retirement, be sure to stay informed and proactive to ensure your benefits will contribute to your overall financial stability throughout your golden years.

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