09 Oct My husband died. Can I collect his Social Security benefits?

Q. My husband just died. He was 68 and taking Social Security. I’m only 55 though. Can I take his benefits even though I’m not Social Security age yet?
— Widow

A. We’re sorry to hear about your husband.

Here’s what you need to know.

You can begin to collect on your husband’s Social Security at age 60, said Jody D’Agostini, a certified financial planner with The Falcon Financial Group in Morristown.

She said they would be reduced survivor benefits.

If you are disabled, you would be able to collect now, as Social Security allows for surviving spouses to collect as early as age 50, she said.

“If you have your own Social Security monthly benefit that is higher than your husband’s, you can collect that later on,” she said. “The longer you wait up until age 70, the larger the monthly benefit will be.”

If you need additional income, then you should start the survivor benefit at age 60, D’Agostini said.

“A good strategy would be for you to hold off taking your own benefit until as close to age 70 as possible. Then you would switch to your own benefit,” she said.

There’s another option, she said.

“If the survivor benefit is larger, you might want to claim your retirement benefit as early as age 62 — reduced — and then switch to the full retirement age (FRA) from your husband’s benefit,” she said.

Also, if you are caring for children that are under the age of 16 or are disabled, you can collect survivor benefits at any age, she said.

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This story was originally published in October 2025.

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