Social Security Benefit Estimator (rough)
Rough estimate of monthly Social Security retirement benefit based on AIME → PIA → claiming-age adjustment. For precise figure use ssa.gov "my Social Security".
Result
- AIME (indexed monthly earnings)$6,500
- Birth year1975
- Full Retirement Age (FRA)67 yr (67.00)
- Claim age67
- — PIA computation —
- Bend point 1 ($1,226 cap × 90%)$1,103
- Bend point 2 ($7,391 cap × 32%)$5,274 × 32%
- Above bend point 2 × 15%—
- Primary Insurance Amount (PIA)$2,791
- Claim-age adjustmentClaimed exactly at FRA — no adjustment.
- Estimated monthly benefit$2,791
- Estimated annual benefit$33,493
- Replacement rate (benefit ÷ AIME)42.9% of pre-retirement income
Step-by-step
- PIA = 0.90 × min(AIME, 1226) + 0.32 × max(0, min(AIME, 7391) − 1226) + 0.15 × max(0, AIME − 7391) = $2,791.
- FRA based on birth year 1975: 67 yr .
- No claim-age adjustment.
- Monthly benefit = PIA × (1 ± adjustment) = $2,791.
How to use this calculator
- Find AIME from ssa.gov "my Social Security" account → "Estimated Benefits" → "View earnings record" (your actual indexed figure).
- Or estimate AIME yourself: highest 35 years of earnings, inflation-indexed, divided by 420 months.
- Enter birth year so FRA is computed correctly.
- Try several claim ages (62 / 67 / 70) to see the trade-off.
About this calculator
A rough estimate — for the precise figure log into ssa.gov "my Social Security" with your actual earnings record. Social Security retirement benefit = Primary Insurance Amount (PIA) × claim-age adjustment factor. PIA is computed from AIME (Average Indexed Monthly Earnings — your highest 35 inflation-indexed years averaged into a monthly figure) using the SSA "bend points" formula: 90% of the first $1,226, plus 32% of the next $6,165 (up to $7,391), plus 15% of anything above. The bend points are recalculated annually for inflation; the values here are 2025 vintage and shift slightly each year. Claiming before Full Retirement Age (FRA) reduces benefits by 5/9 of 1% per month for the first 36 months early, then 5/12 of 1% per month for any earlier months — claiming at 62 vs 67 (5 years early, all in the first 36 mo + 24 mo beyond) gives ~30% lower benefits, permanently. Claiming after FRA earns an 8% per year Delayed Retirement Credit up to age 70 — claiming at 70 vs 67 boosts benefits by 24%. The math is the same percentage applied to a smaller starting amount.