Social Security survivor benefits: who qualifies and how much they pay

Key points

• A widow or widower can start survivor benefits at 60, or at 50 with a disability. At any age, a surviving spouse caring for the worker’s child under 16 (or disabled) can get a benefit. Children, dependent parents and ex-spouses married at least 10 years can qualify too.
• At the survivor’s own full retirement age (66 to 67, from a separate survivor table), the benefit is 100% of the deceased worker’s full benefit. Starting at 60 pays 71.5%.
• The survivor benefit includes any delayed retirement credits the worker earned. If the worker claimed early, the widow(er)’s limit caps it at the larger of the worker’s reduced check and 82.5% of the worker’s full benefit.
• Deemed filing does not apply to survivor benefits, so a survivor can take one benefit first and switch to the other later. Remarriage after 60 does not end the benefit.

Social Security survivor benefits are monthly payments to the family of a worker who paid Social Security taxes and died. The amount starts from the worker’s primary insurance amount (PIA): the monthly benefit the worker would get at full retirement age, before any cut for claiming early or credit for claiming late. Each survivor then gets a share of it, set by their relationship to the worker and the age they start.

This guide covers who qualifies, the amounts, the two rules that move the amount most (delayed credits and the widow(er)’s limit), switching between benefits, and the $255 death payment. For the wider picture, see our guide to Social Security benefits. It covers federal rules only.

We checked every rule and figure below against the Social Security regulations (20 CFR part 404), the Social Security Act, SSA’s operations manual (the POMS) and SSA’s own pages and publications on October 27, 2026. The sources are listed at the end.

Who qualifies for survivor benefits?

Survivor	Earliest start	Share of the worker’s PIA
Widow or widower	60, or 50 with a disability	71.5% at 60, rising to 100% at survivor full retirement age
Widow or widower caring for the worker’s child under 16 or disabled	Any age	75%
Surviving divorced spouse (married at least 10 years)	60, or 50 with a disability	Same as a widow or widower
Unmarried child under 18, or up to 19 in elementary or secondary school full time	At the death	75%
Unmarried child of any age disabled before 22	At the death	75%
Dependent parent	62	82.5% for one parent, 75% each for two

A few conditions sit behind the table:

• Length of marriage. A widow or widower generally needs to have been married to the worker for at least 9 months before the death. The regulations make exceptions, for example for an accidental death or when the couple had a child together.
• Divorced spouses. The marriage needs to have lasted at least 10 years before the divorce became final. The age and 10-year rules do not apply to an ex-spouse caring for the worker’s child under 16 (or disabled) who gets benefits on the record. Rules for ex-spouses while the worker is alive are in our divorced spouse guide.
• Caring for a child. The child must be the worker’s child, under 16 or disabled, and getting benefits on the worker’s record. This benefit is called a mother’s or father’s benefit and pays 75% of the PIA.
• Dependent parents. The worker needs to have provided at least half of the parent’s support.
• The worker’s record. No one needs more than 10 years of work for any Social Security benefit. Under a special rule, children and a spouse caring for them can qualify if the worker worked 1 1/2 years in the 3 years before death.

There is also a family maximum: the total paid to everyone on one worker’s record is limited, and Social Security says the limit varies between 150% and 180% of the worker’s benefit. A surviving divorced spouse does not count toward it (unless caring for the worker’s child), so an ex-spouse’s benefit does not shrink the other survivors’ checks.

How much are survivor benefits at each age?

A widow or widower at full retirement age gets 100% of the worker’s PIA. Starting earlier cuts the benefit by up to 28.5%, spread evenly over the months between 60 and the survivor’s full retirement age. The regulation’s formula: months early x 0.285, divided by the number of months from 60 to full retirement age (84 months when that age is 67). SSA rounds the cut up to the next 10 cents and the final check down to the next whole dollar.

Example 1, a widow whose survivor full retirement age is 67. Her husband’s PIA was $2,000, and he died before his full retirement age without having claimed. Amounts are monthly, before cost-of-living increases:

Survivor starts at	Share of the PIA	Monthly benefit
60	71.5%	$1,430
61	75.6%	$1,511
62	79.6%	$1,592
63	83.7%	$1,674
64	87.8%	$1,755
65	91.9%	$1,837
66	95.9%	$1,918
67	100%	$2,000

SSA’s own summary says the same: over 75% at 61, over 80% at 63 and over 90% at 65.

Two details change the count of months. Months when the survivor has the worker’s entitled child in care do not count toward the reduction. And a widow or widower who qualifies through disability between 50 and 59 is treated as 60, so the benefit is 71.5% of the PIA, not less.

Survivor full retirement age is a different table

The age when a survivor gets 100% comes from its own table in the regulations, not the retirement table. For people born from 1955 to 1961 the survivor age is lower:

Born	Survivor full retirement age	Retirement full retirement age
1955	66	66 and 2 months
1956	66	66 and 4 months
1957	66 and 2 months	66 and 6 months
1958	66 and 4 months	66 and 8 months
1959	66 and 6 months	66 and 10 months
1960	66 and 8 months	67
1961	66 and 10 months	67
1962 or later	67	67

Both tables run each birth year from January 2 to January 1 of the next year, so someone born on January 1 reads the row for the year before. Our full retirement age guide covers the retirement table.

Delayed credits carry over to the survivor

If the worker waited past full retirement age, the delayed retirement credits go with the record. The regulation says SSA computes a surviving spouse’s benefit from the worker’s PIA “plus the amount of those delayed retirement credits”, including credits from the year of death, counted up to the month before the death. That holds even if the worker died at, say, 69 without having claimed, because credits build up for each month from full retirement age to 70 in which no retirement benefit is paid. The credits raise only the surviving spouse’s or ex-spouse’s benefit, not the children’s.

For anyone born in 1943 or later the credits are 2/3 of 1% a month (8% a year), and they stop at 70.

Example 2. A worker with full retirement age 67 and a $2,000 PIA waits to 70. The credits add 24%, so the check is 124% of the PIA: $2,480 a month. If the worker dies:

• a widow at her survivor full retirement age or later gets the full $2,480;
• a widow who starts at 60 gets 71.5% of it, $1,773.

Run this couple in our Social Security calculator. It shows $2,480 at 70 and, under Survivor, the same $2,480 at the survivor’s full retirement age and about $1,773 from 60. How the credits build up is covered in our guide to delaying Social Security.

If the worker claimed early: the widow(er)’s limit

When the worker took a reduced retirement benefit before full retirement age, the law caps the survivor benefit. The cap is the larger of two amounts:

1. what the worker would be getting now if alive (the reduced check), and
2. 82.5% of the worker’s PIA.

The cap applies only when the age-reduced survivor benefit is above both. SSA’s operations manual calls this the RIB LIM.

Example 3. Same worker, $2,000 PIA and full retirement age 67, but he claimed at 62 and got 70%, $1,400 a month (amounts before cost-of-living increases). 82.5% of his PIA is $1,650, so the cap is $1,650. The widow’s survivor full retirement age is 67:

Widow starts at	Age-reduced benefit	Paid after the limit
60	$1,430	$1,430 (below $1,650, no limit)
62	$1,592	$1,592 (below $1,650, no limit)
63	$1,674	$1,650
65	$1,837	$1,650
67	$2,000	$1,650

In this example the limit takes over from age 62 and 9 months. From then on, starting later does not raise this widow’s check: it stays at $1,650. Compared with Example 1, the early claim costs her $350 a month at full retirement age ($2,000 minus $1,650), and nothing at 60.

Run this case in our Social Security calculator. Under Survivor it shows about $1,650 a month at the survivor’s full retirement age and about $1,430 from 60, as in the table. It gives only those two ages, so it does not show where the limit takes over.

Can you switch between your own benefit and a survivor benefit?

Yes. Deemed filing, the rule that makes an application for retirement count as an application for spouse benefits too (for anyone born January 2, 1954 or later), does not apply to survivor benefits. In SSA’s words: “Deemed filing applies to retirement benefits, not survivor’s benefits.” A survivor can start one benefit and leave the other to start later.

Social Security never pays both in full. If you are entitled to your own retirement benefit and a survivor benefit, the survivor benefit is reduced by your own benefit, so the two together equal the higher amount. When one is taken before the other, SSA works out each one on its own: an early cut on your own benefit stays, but it does not cut a survivor benefit started later at full retirement age.

Example 4. A widow born in June 1966 (survivor and retirement full retirement age both 67). Her own PIA is $1,200. Her husband died before she turned 60 and before his own full retirement age, without having claimed; his PIA was $2,000. Two of the possible orders, before cost-of-living increases:

	Path A: survivor first	Path B: own benefit first
First benefit	Survivor at 60: $1,430	Own at 62: $840 (70%)
Second benefit	Own at 70: $1,488 (124%)	Survivor at 67: total $2,000
Total received by 70	$171,600	$122,400
Total received by 80	$350,160	$362,400
Total received by 90	$528,720	$602,400

In Path B, from 67 she gets her own $840 plus $1,160 on her husband’s record, $2,000 in all. In Path A, her own benefit at 70 ($1,488) is higher than the reduced survivor benefit ($1,430), so from 70 she gets $1,488. Path A pays more early; Path B’s running total passes it at 78. Which order pays more over a lifetime depends on the two PIAs, the ages and how long the survivor lives. The trade-offs behind the timing are in our claiming strategies guide.

Does remarriage end survivor benefits?

Not if it happens after 60, or after 50 for a survivor with a disability. SSA’s survivor booklet: remarriage after 60 “won’t prevent you from getting benefit payments based on your former spouse’s work.” Remarrying before 60 (or 50 with a disability) usually ends the right to the survivor benefit.

At 62 or older, a survivor who has remarried can take a benefit on the new spouse’s record instead, if it is higher. Spouse benefits work differently from survivor benefits (half the worker’s PIA at most, and deemed filing applies); our spousal benefits guide covers them.

The $255 lump-sum death payment

Social Security also pays a one-time $255 when an insured worker dies. The law pays the smaller of $255 and three times the worker’s PIA; SSA’s pages give the amount as $255. It goes:

1. to a widow or widower who was living in the same household; if there is none,
2. to a widow or widower entitled to survivor (or mother’s or father’s) benefits on the record for the month of death, even if not living in the same household; if there is none,
3. in equal shares to children entitled on the record for that month.

It must be claimed within 2 years of the death, unless the spouse was already getting spouse’s benefits on the record the month before. No part of it is taxable.

How to apply, and what else affects the check

• Applying. SSA takes survivor applications by phone appointment or in person; its apply page offers no online application. A spouse already getting spouse’s benefits on the worker’s record is generally switched to survivor benefits automatically. A survivor getting a retirement benefit on their own record has to contact SSA and apply.
• Back months. A survivor benefit that is not reduced for age can be paid for up to 6 months before the application month. One that is reduced for age generally cannot be paid for months before the application month. An exception: a widow or widower who was 60 or older in the month of death and applies in the next month can be paid from the month of death. SSA’s booklet notes that for some claims it pays benefits from the time of the application, not from the death.
• Working. Before full retirement age, earnings above the annual limit can reduce the benefit. For this test the law uses the regular retirement table, not the survivor table, so for someone born from 1955 to 1961 the limit runs 2 to 4 months past their survivor full retirement age. It ends in the month the survivor reaches full retirement age on that table, and a survivor’s earnings reduce only their own benefit, not other family members’ benefits. The limits and how much is withheld are in our earnings limit guide.
• Taxes. Survivor benefits count as Social Security benefits for federal income tax. Whether any part is taxable depends on your other income; see is Social Security taxable?
• Pensions from work outside Social Security. For benefits payable for January 2024 and later, a government pension from work that did not pay Social Security tax no longer reduces a survivor benefit. Our Social Security Fairness Act guide explains the change and the back payments.

About this guide

Written by the Diversify Guy editorial desk. Diversify Guy is a pen name. It is the byline of our editorial team, not a single individual. We do not publish personal trading records or claim to be your adviser. We tell you where every figure came from so you can check it yourself. How we work and how we get paid.

This guide explains federal rules. It is not personalized tax, legal or investment advice. Diversify Guy earns affiliate commissions and advertising fees from companies featured elsewhere on the site. This page carries no ads and no affiliate links.

Sources and check dates

All sources were fetched and checked on October 27, 2026.

• 20 CFR 404.335 (widow’s or widower’s benefits: who is entitled, including remarriage), eCFR, title 20 up to date as of October 23, 2026: https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-20/section-404.335
• 20 CFR 404.336 (surviving divorced spouse): https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-20/section-404.336
• 20 CFR 404.338 (widow’s and widower’s benefit amounts, including the limit when the worker claimed early): https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-20/section-404.338
• 20 CFR 404.339 and 404.342 (mother’s and father’s benefits): https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-20/section-404.339 and https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-20/section-404.342
• 20 CFR 404.350 and 404.353 (child’s benefits): https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-20/section-404.353
• 20 CFR 404.373 (parent’s benefit amounts): https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-20/section-404.373
• 20 CFR 404.313 (delayed retirement credits and survivors): https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-20/section-404.313
• 20 CFR 404.304 (rounding), 404.407 (entitlement to more than one benefit), 404.409 (full retirement age tables), 404.410 (reduction for age): https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-20/section-404.410
• 20 CFR 404.390 to 404.392 (lump-sum death payment): https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-20/section-404.392
• 20 CFR 404.621 (months before the application): https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-20/section-404.621
• 20 CFR 404.430 (annual earnings test): https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-20/section-404.430
• Social Security Act sections 202(e)(2)(D) and 202(i), 42 U.S.C. 402, U.S. Code 2024 edition: https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2024-title42/html/USCODE-2024-title42-chap7-subchapII-sec402.htm
• Social Security Act section 203(f)(9), 42 U.S.C. 403 (which full retirement age the earnings test uses), U.S. Code 2024 edition: https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2024-title42/html/USCODE-2024-title42-chap7-subchapII-sec403.htm
• SSA POMS RS 00615.320, Reduced widow(er)’s benefit when the worker was entitled to a reduced benefit (RIB-LIM), effective December 14, 2023: https://secure.ssa.gov/apps10/poms.nsf/lnx/0300615320
• SSA POMS RS 00615.301, Reduced widow(er)’s benefits: https://secure.ssa.gov/apps10/poms.nsf/lnx/0300615301
• SSA POMS RS 00615.150, Simultaneous retirement and widow(er)’s benefits: https://secure.ssa.gov/apps10/poms.nsf/lnx/0300615150
• SSA, Survivors Benefits, Publication No. 05-10084, April 2026: https://www.ssa.gov/pubs/EN-05-10084.pdf
• SSA, What you could get from Survivor benefits: https://www.ssa.gov/survivor/amount
• SSA, Who can get Survivor benefits: https://www.ssa.gov/survivor/eligibility
• SSA, Apply for Social Security benefits, Survivor benefits: https://www.ssa.gov/apply?benefits=survivor_adult&age=adult
• SSA, Filing rules for retirement and spouses benefits (deemed filing): https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/retirement/planner/claiming.html
• SSA Handbook section 1514, applications and deemed filing: https://www.ssa.gov/OP_Home/handbook/handbook.15/handbook-1514.html
• SSA, Delayed retirement credits: https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/retirement/planner/delayret.html
• SSA, Benefit reduction for early retirement: https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/retirement/planner/agereduction.html
• IRS Publication 915 (2025), Social Security and Equivalent Railroad Retirement Benefits: https://www.irs.gov/publications/p915