Key Points
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Delaying your Social Security benefits by a month or two will slightly increase your checks.
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It could also help you avoid owing benefit taxes in 2026.
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These differences are likely to be small and may not concern everyone.
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You’re just a few weeks away from November 2026, when you planned to begin receiving your Social Security checks. You may even have already gone through the application process. But now you’re wondering if you’re making the right decision.
There’s nothing inherently wrong with claiming Social Security in November vs. any other month. But if you don’t need your checks to start immediately, there are a couple of good arguments for waiting until December or January to start receiving checks.
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Delaying your Social Security application increases your benefits
Your age when you apply for Social Security determines the size of the benefit you receive. If you’re under your full retirement age (FRA) — 67 for most people today — you’ll face an early claiming penalty of up to 30%. Put another way, every month you wait to apply increases your checks, and this continues until you qualify for your largest checks at 70.
The rate at which your checks grow depends on your age at the time. For someone with an FRA of 67, your checks grow at the following speeds:
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Between Ages
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Checks Grow By
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62 to 64
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5/12 of 1% per month
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64 to 67
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5/9 of 1% per month
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67 to 70
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2/3 of 1% per month
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Source: Social Security Administration.
Waiting a month or two won’t dramatically change your checks, but it could give you a small, permanent increase in their size.
It could help you avoid 2026 taxes on your benefits
Seniors on Social Security could still owe benefit taxes on up to 85% of their checks, depending on their provisional income and marital status. Provisional income is defined as your adjusted gross income (AGI), plus any nontaxable interest from municipal bonds, and half your annual Social Security benefit. The following table breaks down what percentage of your benefits you could owe taxes on:
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Marital Status
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0% of Benefits Taxable If Provisional Income Is Below:
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Up to 50% of Benefits Taxable If Provisional Income Is Between:
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Up to 85% of Benefits Taxable If Provisional Income Exceeds:
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Single
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$25,000
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$25,000 and $34,000
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$34,000
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Married
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$32,000
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$32,000 and $44,000
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$44,000
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Source: Social Security Administration.
If you have a high AGI from a job or retirement savings and you apply for Social Security in November, there’s a chance you could owe benefit taxes on your November payment, which you’d receive in December. Waiting until December or January to sign up would help you avoid this in 2026, though you could still owe these taxes in 2027.
However, the amount of benefit taxes you’d owe would likely be small, so it may not be a big concern for you. If you prefer to apply in November, there’s no reason not to, as long as you’re comfortable with these trade-offs.
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