Social Security calculators and guides
Compare retirement benefit scenarios, understand the inputs, and follow the official source for the rule behind each estimate.
Open the claiming-age calculator
Five calculators for common questions
Claiming age comparison
Compare two retirement start ages using your PIA, birth year, and transparent COLA and discount assumptions.
Tax on benefits
Estimate the taxable portion of annual benefits using the federal combined-income method and your filing status.
Earnings test
Estimate the benefit withholding formula that applies when wages overlap with retirement benefits before full retirement age.
COLA calculator
Apply the announced adjustment to your benefit and compare gross change with deductions you enter yourself.
Benefit estimator
Apply the PIA formula to an AIME assumption and see rough amounts at age 62, full retirement age, and 70.
Featured guides
How Social Security Retirement Benefits Are Calculated
Learn how the SSA calculates retirement benefits using your 35 highest earning years, average indexed monthly earnings (AIME), and progressive PIA bend points.
Full Retirement Age and Claiming Social Security Early
Explore Full Retirement Age guidelines, permanent benefit reductions when claiming at age 62, spousal benefit impacts, and the retirement earnings test.
Delayed Retirement Credits: What Waiting Until 70 Does
Learn how delayed retirement credits increase your Social Security benefit by 8% per year past Full Retirement Age up to age 70, with worked examples.
Social Security Break-Even Age Explained
Understand how Social Security break-even analysis works, comparing claiming at age 62, Full Retirement Age, and 70 with nominal and discounted cash flows.
This site does not model trust-fund outcomes or legislative changes. The tools are for education and are not financial, tax, insurance, or legal advice.
Frequently asked questions
What calculators are on BenefitWise?
BenefitWise has five calculators: a claiming-age and break-even comparison, a federal tax-on-benefits estimator, a retirement earnings test calculator, a COLA calculator, and a benefit estimator that applies the PIA formula to an AIME you enter.
Is BenefitWise part of the Social Security Administration?
No. BenefitWise is an independent site and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Social Security Administration. Your official benefit information is on your my Social Security statement.
Do the calculators use my actual earnings record?
No. They work only from the numbers you type in, such as a benefit at full retirement age or an AIME. Your real record and official estimates are in your my Social Security account at ssa.gov/myaccount.
Does the site collect my personal information?
The calculators run in your browser on the figures you enter. Please see the privacy policy for the full details of what the site does and does not collect.
Can these tools tell me the best age to claim?
No. They show how the numbers change under the assumptions you choose. The site does not give advice on when you should claim, and results are estimates for education, not financial, tax or legal advice.