For millions of Americans turning 66 this year, there’s a number they’ve probably had circled in their heads for a long time: 67 years old. That’s the age at which they’ll be able to collect their full Social Security check with no reductions, no penalties, no waiting games. And while that might not sound like breaking news, it quietly marks the end of one of the longest-running shifts in American retirement policy.
It started in 1983, when Ronald Reagan was in the White House and Congress was staring down a Social Security crisis. The math wasn’t working. People were living longer, collecting benefits for more years, and the trust fund was bleeding out faster than anyone was comfortable admitting publicly. Something had to give.
America’s Retirement Age Just Hit 67 in 2026
What came out of Washington that year wasn’t a dramatic overhaul; it was something more politically palatable: a slow crawl. The retirement age would inch upward, two months at a time, spread across decades. Long enough that most of the people voting on it wouldn’t have to answer for it at the polls.
The age of 65, which had been the standard since Franklin Roosevelt’s administration, was on its way out. It just took 42 years to fully arrive at its replacement.
Now, in 2026, the final cohort affected by that transition — those born in 1960 — hits the finish line. For anyone born from that year forward, 67 is the number. Full stop.
The Maximum Benefits for Retirees in 2026 Per Retirement Age
For those who make it there, the maximum Social Security benefit at full retirement age this year sits at $4,152 per month — not a figure most Americans will see, since it requires 35 years of earnings at or above the taxable maximum, which in 2026 stands at $184,500. But for the high earners who do qualify, that’s the ceiling at 67 years old.
The ceiling gets higher, though, for those willing to wait. Every year a retiree delays claiming past their full retirement age, their monthly benefit grows by roughly 8%. Hold out until 70, and that patience pays off with a maximum monthly check of $5,181 — nearly $1,000 more than what 67 would have yielded.
