Survivor benefits calculator for widows and widowers
Enter the PIA of the spouse who died, when they started, and when you want to start: the tool applies the age reduction and the 82.5% limit.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How we calculate
A widow or widower can receive up to 100% of what the deceased spouse was entitled to, from age 60 (50 if disabled). At 60 the benefit is 71.5% of that amount; the 28.5% cut shrinks month by month and disappears at the survivor full retirement age, 67 for survivors born in 1962 or later. With a deceased PIA of $2,500, that is $1,787 at 60 and $2,500 at 67. If the deceased had waited to 70, the survivor inherits the delayed credits: $3,100. If the deceased had started at 62, the RIB-LIM rule caps the survivor at the larger of the deceased's reduced check, $1,760, or 82.5% of the PIA: $2,062. The marriage must have lasted 9 months, remarrying after 60 keeps the benefit, and because deemed filing does not apply to survivor benefits, you can start one benefit and switch to the other later.
Survivor benefit starting at 60
$1,859
71.5% of the deceased's PIA
| Starting point (benefit or PIA) | $2,600.00 |
| Age reduction (84 months before 67) | 28.50% |
| After age reduction | $1,859.00 |
| Widow(er) limit (RIB-LIM) | $2,145.00, not reached |
| Start at | Monthly | Share of PIA |
|---|---|---|
| 60 | $1,859 | 71.5% |
| 61 | $1,964 | 75.5% |
| 62 | $2,070 | 79.6% |
| 63 | $2,145 | 82.5% |
| 64 | $2,145 | 82.5% |
| 65 | $2,145 | 82.5% |
| 66 | $2,145 | 82.5% |
| 67 (survivor FRA) | $2,145 | 82.5% |
Your start age against what the deceased did
| Survivor starts at | Deceased had not started | Deceased started at 62 | Deceased started at 70 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60 | $1,787 | $1,787 | $2,216 |
| 61 | $1,889 | $1,889 | $2,342 |
| 62 | $1,991 | $1,991 | $2,468 |
| 63 | $2,092 | $2,062 | $2,595 |
| 64 | $2,194 | $2,062 | $2,721 |
| 65 | $2,296 | $2,062 | $2,847 |
| 66 | $2,398 | $2,062 | $2,973 |
| 67 | $2,500 | $2,062 | $3,100 |
The reduction for age follows 20 CFR 404.410(c): 28.5% spread evenly over the months from 60 to survivor full retirement age. For a survivor born in 1964 that is 84 months, so each month earlier costs about 0.34% of the benefit. The middle column shows the RIB-LIM at work: from about 62 on, the reduced survivor amount would exceed 82.5% of the PIA, so the cap holds it at $2,062.
The 82.5% floor, explained
When a worker started early, the reduced check becomes the base for the survivor, but never below 82.5% of the worker's PIA. The POMS rule RS 00615.320 states it as a limit: the widow benefit cannot exceed the larger of the deceased's reduced benefit or 82.5% of the PIA. In practice it protects survivors of early claimants who start at or near full retirement age, and stops them from receiving the full 100% of a PIA the deceased never drew.
Delayed credits pass to the survivor
A worker who waited to 70 earned credits of 2/3 of 1% a month after full retirement age. Those credits are part of the benefit the survivor inherits: $3,100 on a $2,500 PIA, 124.0% of it. This is the main reason the higher earner of a couple looks at 70: see the break-even tool and waiting until 70.
Switching between survivor and own benefits
Retirement and spouse benefits are tied by deemed filing, but survivor benefits are not. A widow or widower who also has an own record can take one first and the other later. With an own PIA of $1,800 and the $2,500 record above, two orders are possible: the survivor benefit from 60, $1,787, then the own benefit at 70, $2,232; or the own benefit at 62, $1,267, then the full survivor benefit at 67, $2,500. You are never paid both in full: when entitled to two, you receive the larger. The SSA survivor page describes the switch.
Conditions the tool assumes
It treats you as a widow or widower married at least 9 months (20 CFR 404.335), not remarried before 60, and not disabled. A former spouse married 10 years or more follows the rules on the surviving divorced spouse page. Children of the deceased receive their own benefits, usually 75% of the PIA each, within the family maximum. A lump-sum death payment of $255 also goes to a spouse or to certain children.