Here's a wake-up call for you: The average monthly Social Security retirement benefit was $1,835 as of April, 2023. That's only about $22,000 per year. If you don't think you'll be able to live comfortably on that in retirement, you're probably right.

There's some good news and bad news related to Social Security benefits: The good news is that, unless you're claiming your benefits in the very near future, you have the power to make them bigger. Indeed, the maximum monthly benefit is currently $4,555 -- close to $55,000 annually. That's much better than $22,000. The bad news is that it's rather difficult and probably impossible for most of us to attain that benefit.

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Source Fool.com