Retirement Social Security

Easy 3-Step Checklist To See if You’re Owed More in Social Security Benefits

Make sure you're getting the Social Security benefits you've earned.

By Maurie Backman , Edited by Laura Hohenstein

Updated May 21, 2026

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Many older Americans rely on their Social Security checks as an anchor of their retirement plans. But given that the Social Security Administration (SSA) processes millions of payments per month, it's possible for mistakes to happen on occasion.

The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities reports that Social Security has a payment accuracy rate of over 99%, and that only 0.3% of Social Security benefits are improper payments typically caused by mistakes or delays. But while mistakes can sometimes work out in your favor, they could also result in smaller checks than what you're entitled to, which could leave you short on retirement income for decades.

Here are a few steps you can take to make sure you're receiving the right Social Security benefits each month.

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Verify your Social Security earnings record

The amount of Social Security you're entitled to each month in retirement hinges on your wage history and filing age. If you file at full retirement age (FRA), you'll get your monthly benefits without a reduction, whereas claiming early will result in smaller checks.

The SSA takes your 35 highest-paid years of earnings into account when calculating your monthly benefits. But if the SSA has incorrect wage information for you on record, it could result in smaller retirement checks for life. That's why it's so important to check your earnings record and make sure the SSA has the right data on file.

To do this, you'll want to create a my Social Security account. Once you do that, you can access your annual earnings statements and see what wage information they contain.

If possible, compare the data the SSA has on file against W-2s or tax returns to make sure everything matches. If you don't have older W-2s or tax returns, it's still a good idea to review your earnings statements and see if anything looks off. If there's a year or time period of wages that seem lower than what you remember, you can take steps to investigate, such as reaching out to previous employers to ask for older W-2s or requesting old tax returns from the IRS.

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Make sure you're getting the right survivor benefit

If your spouse was the higher earner in your household and has passed away, you should be entitled to survivor benefits from Social Security equal to 100% of your spouse's monthly benefit. But those payments won't always happen automatically.

If you were receiving spousal benefits at the time of your spouse's passing, the SSA should automatically switch you over to survivor benefits once they're notified of the death. But that doesn't always happen seamlessly. If those checks haven't started, you'll need to contact the SSA and see if your spouse's death was properly recorded in their system.

And if you weren't getting spousal benefits at the time, you should contact the SSA to make sure your survivor benefits are processed.

Make sure withheld benefits are being added to your monthly checks

You're allowed to work and collect Social Security benefits at the same time. But if you have not reached FRA, you'll be subject to withheld benefits if you exceed the program's earnings test limits, which change from year to year. Currently, seniors who work and collect Social Security ahead of FRA have $1 in benefits withheld per $2 or $3 of earnings, depending on age.

Once your FRA arrives, withheld benefits under the earnings test should be paid back to you in the form of larger monthly checks. If your benefits don't increase and you know you had money withheld due to exceeding the earnings test limit, you should contact the SSA to follow up.

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How to address a Social Security error

If you have reason to believe you're not getting the Social Security benefits you're entitled to, it's important to try to rectify the situation. If you haven't started receiving survivor benefits or haven't seen withheld benefits from the earnings test added back to your monthly checks, contact the SSA at 1-800-772-1213 to follow up and figure out the next steps.

Meanwhile, if your earnings record has an error, you may be able to request a correction online using your my Social Security account. You may also be able to submit Form SSA-7008 or call the SSA at the number above.

You generally have three years, three months, and 15 days from the end of each tax year to correct an earnings record. But there are several exceptions, so don't give up on making a correction just because more time than that has passed.

Bottom line

Even if you don't need to stretch your retirement dollars further, it's important to make sure you're getting the Social Security benefits you're entitled to. After all, either you or your spouse paid into the system for years to qualify for those monthly checks. So you shouldn't give up so much as a dollar of what you're owed.

Furthermore, even if you're getting the right amount of Social Security, you never know when an innocent system glitch or other error could result in missed benefit payments. So even if you're set up for direct deposit, it's important to keep tabs on your Social Security checks and make sure they're arriving on time and in full like they're supposed to.

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