Dave Ramsey has weighed in on a wide range of personal finance topics, and not all of his guidance holds up under scrutiny. His position on credit scores is one example. His advice on when to claim Social Security is another, and for retirees who follow it, the consequences may be permanent. Ramsey has repeatedly pushed the idea of claiming benefits as early as possible, a choice that research shows can cost the typical household more than $182,000 in lifetime income.
Here is what Ramsey actually recommends, and why the math argues against it in the current economic environment.
Ramsey’s Recommended Age to Claim Social Security
In a 2019 podcast, Ramsey recommended claiming Social Security at 62, the earliest age at which you can claim retirement benefits. Following that advice means starting checks well before your full retirement age.
This remains the official position published on the Ramsey Solutions blog. The argument is that since “retirement payments die when you die,” you should collect immediately and invest the proceeds. That logic, however, ignores the guaranteed, inflation-adjusted return that comes from delaying. For the typical retiree, the cost of overlooking it can reach $182,370.
Why Early Claiming Is So Costly
Research from the National Bureau of Economic Research shows that waiting until age 70 is the optimal strategy for more than 90% of Americans, yet only about 10% actually do so. Claiming early produces a median loss of $182,370 in household lifetime discretionary spending, a figure that reflects the compounding cost of locking in a reduced base benefit for the entire length of retirement.
For workers born in 1960 or later, full retirement age is 67. Claiming at 62 rather than waiting until FRA triggers a permanent 30% reduction in monthly benefits. Every future cost-of-living adjustment is then applied to that already-reduced base, so the dollar gap between an early claimer and a patient one widens with each passing year.
The 2026 Numbers
The current economic context makes Ramsey’s one-size-fits-all recommendation look even weaker. The Social Security Administration announced a 2.8% cost-of-living adjustment for 2026, raising the average retired worker’s monthly benefit to $2,071. That adjustment helps protect purchasing power, but it operates on whatever base benefit was locked in at claiming age. A retiree who claimed at 62 receives the same 2.8% applied to a check already reduced by 30%.
Higher earners face additional headwinds. The maximum taxable earnings ceiling rose to $184,500 in 2026. For those attempting to work part-time while drawing benefits before full retirement age, the earnings test limit stands at $24,480. For every $2 earned above that threshold, the SSA withholds $1 in benefits, a clawback mechanism that can quickly unravel the cash-flow math underlying Ramsey’s “invest the difference” strategy.
The Bridge Strategy and Sequence-of-Returns Risk
A more disciplined approach, often called the “bridge strategy,” has retirees draw down traditional 401(k) or IRA assets to cover living expenses between ages 62 and 70. That keeps Social Security benefits growing at roughly 8% per year in delayed retirement credits, the highest guaranteed real return available to most Americans. The practical payoff is equally important: by not drawing Social Security early, retirees avoid being locked into a permanently smaller check.
Healthcare costs compound the problem for early claimers. Standard Medicare Part B premiums rose 9.7% in 2026, to $202.90 per month, up from $185 in 2025. Those premiums are deducted directly from Social Security checks for most enrolled beneficiaries, so a retiree who claimed at 62 starts from a smaller base and watches a rising mandatory expense consume a growing share of it. The cash available for Ramsey’s hypothetical market investments shrinks accordingly.
Spousal Coordination and the Reset Option
Blanket advice to claim early also tends to ignore the spousal dimension of Social Security planning. A common and often superior approach has the lower-earning spouse claim early to provide immediate household cash flow while the higher earner waits until 70. Because the survivor benefit is tied to the higher earner’s benefit at death, that delay protects the remaining spouse from a sharp income drop later in life.
For those who have already taken Ramsey’s advice and now regret it, a limited remedy exists. Social Security Form 521 allows a one-time withdrawal within the first 12 months of claiming, provided the beneficiary repays all benefits received. That window is narrow, but it is available.
The Trust Fund Question
Fear that Social Security will “go bankrupt” is a common reason people cite for claiming early, and it is also one of the most misunderstood arguments in retirement planning. The 2026 Social Security Trustees Report, released on June 9, 2026, provides the clearest current picture of where the program stands.
The combined Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance trust funds held $2.56 trillion in reserves at the start of 2026. The Trustees project those combined reserves will remain sufficient to pay 100% of scheduled benefits through the third quarter of 2034. At that point, ongoing payroll tax revenue is projected to cover 83% of scheduled benefits, a 17% reduction. The retirement-only OASI trust fund faces a tighter timeline: reserves are projected to run out in the fourth quarter of 2032, at which point incoming tax revenue would fund 78% of scheduled retirement benefits, implying an automatic 22% benefit cut.
The Trustees identified three forces driving the worsened outlook. First, the assumed long-run fertility rate was cut from 1.90 to 1.75 children per woman. Second, projected net immigration was revised downward. Both demographic changes reduce the number of future workers paying into the system. Third, the 2025 One Big Beautiful Bill Act lowered income taxes on Social Security benefits, reducing revenue flowing back into the trust funds. Together, these factors pushed the program’s 75-year shortfall to roughly $30.3 trillion, up from $26.1 trillion in last year’s report. Even so, the program does not face a complete shutdown at any of these dates: benefits continue, funded by ongoing payroll contributions.
Claiming at 62 out of solvency fear means locking in a permanent 30% reduction today. That self-imposed cut is far larger than the 17% shortfall that would arise from combined fund depletion in 2034 without any congressional action, and larger still than the 22% OASI-only cut that would result in 2032 under current law. Retirees who panic-claim are trading a certain, deep, and permanent loss for protection against a prospective and partial one.
The evidence argues against the early-claim approach for most households. Guaranteed real returns from delayed benefits, survivor protections for spouses, and the structural resilience of Social Security funding all point toward patience over panic.
Editor’s note: This update adds context from the June 2026 Social Security Trustees Report, including all three factors the Trustees cited for the accelerated depletion timeline (the fertility rate cut, lower immigration projections, and the 2025 One Big Beautiful Bill Act), the 22% automatic benefit cut figure applicable at OASI-only depletion in Q4 2032, and the program’s revised 75-year shortfall of approximately $30.3 trillion.
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