Still Working at 65? Your Best Social Security Years May Not Be Behind You

About 27% of Americans ages 65 to 74 are still working, and those extra years on the job may still help increase their Social Security benefits. Even after decades of work, a strong paycheck in your mid-60s can still count toward what you eventually receive.

If you are still earning a solid paycheck at 65, it is worth finding out whether your recent years are bringing you closer to your retirement goals.

How Social Security builds your benefit from your career

Social Security looks at your 35 highest-earning years when calculating your benefit. If you worked for 40 years, only your best 35 count. If you worked for 30 years, five zero years are included, which can lower your monthly benefit.

A new year of earnings can enter your top 35 when it is higher than one of the years already being counted. Social Security can then recalculate your benefit using the stronger earnings record.

Older earnings are adjusted for wage growth before the comparison is made, so the salary you remember earning decades ago is not necessarily the amount Social Security uses today. Your current pay needs to beat one of your lowest indexed years before it can increase your earnings average.

What one strong year at 65 could add to your check

Replacing a $30,000 indexed year with $90,000 in new earnings adds $60,000 to the earnings Social Security uses in your calculation. If those additional earnings fall in the middle part of the benefit formula, they could eventually add roughly $50 a month to your benefit at full retirement age.

The increase can be larger if your work history includes zero years, since a full year of new earnings would be replacing nothing at all. If you already have 35 years of high earnings, another year may add less because your current salary has to beat one of the years already being counted.

Working longer and delaying Social Security are separate choices

Working longer can increase your benefit by improving your earnings record, while delaying Social Security can increase the percentage of your benefit you receive. For someone with a full retirement age of 67, that works out to roughly:

• Claim at 65: 86.7% of your full benefit
• Claim at 67: 100%
• Claim at 70: 124%

You could stop working at 65 and wait until 70 to claim, allowing delayed retirement credits to increase your benefit. Or you could start collecting while you are still working, and stronger earnings may raise your benefit by replacing a lower year in your record.

Your benefit can rise even after you start collecting

Starting Social Security does not freeze your earnings record. If you keep working, SSA reviews your new earnings each year and can automatically recalculate your benefit when you qualify for the amount used to calculate your check. If that happens, you should receive a notice showing your new benefit amount.

Your work income can also affect your payments if you claim before full retirement age. In 2026, earning more than $24,480 may cause SSA to withhold some benefits temporarily. Once you reach full retirement age, your monthly amount is adjusted to give you credit for months when benefits were withheld.

Who has the most to gain from working another year

Another year on the job may be especially helpful if your work history includes gaps or stretches of lower pay. Time away for caregiving or school, along with years of part-time work, can leave lower earnings in your record that a stronger year at 65 may replace.

The same can happen if your income has climbed later in your career. A recent promotion or career change could make your current salary one of your better earning years, giving those extra years of work more value for Social Security.

If your career was consistently strong from start to finish and your record already has 35 high-earning years, another year may not make much difference.

How to see whether another year would make a difference for you

Your my Social Security account at ssa.gov can help you estimate whether working another year could increase your benefit. Compare what you might receive if you stop working now with an estimate that includes another year or two at your current salary, and the difference can give you a better idea of what those extra working years may add.

While you're there, you can also review your earnings history year by year. Errors and missing years are easier to correct before you file than afterward, and catching them now can protect the calculation that determines your check.

Bottom line

A paycheck at 65 may still be helping your future Social Security check, especially if your recent earnings are stronger than some of the years already on your record. Another good year on the job could give you a little more to collect each month later on.

Take a look at your earnings record before you decide when to call it a career. Knowing what another year of work could add to your benefit can help you make the right moves and get more from the years you are already putting in.

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