Social Security is not just an individual decision when you are married. A spouse may be entitled to a spousal benefit of up to 50% of your full retirement amount, and after one spouse dies, the survivor generally steps up to the larger of the two benefits. That makes the higher earner's claiming age one of the most consequential choices a couple makes.
Because the survivor inherits the larger check, delaying the higher earner's claim does double duty: it raises the monthly benefit during both spouses' lifetimes and raises the survivor benefit for whoever lives longer. For many couples, having the higher earner wait toward 70 is the single strongest move to protect the surviving spouse.
Spousal benefits work differently from your own: they are based on your spouse's record, max out at full retirement age (delaying past FRA does not increase a spousal benefit), and are reduced if claimed early. Survivor benefits, by contrast, can be claimed as early as 60 and have their own rules.
This site's calculator currently models your own benefit by claim age; a survivor-aware version that takes a spouse's record into account is planned. In the meantime, run your own numbers and treat the higher earner's age as the lever that matters most for a couple. As always, this is general information, not financial advice.
Updated July 2026