Social Security rewards filers who don't rush to take benefits. You're allowed to sign up for Social Security as early as age 62. But filing at that point will mean having to accept a reduced benefit for life.

You're not entitled to your full monthly Social Security benefit based on your income history until you reach full retirement age, or FRA. FRA falls out at 67 for anyone born in 1960 or later. If you were born earlier, FRA is 66, or 66 and a certain number of months.

You'll also snag a much higher monthly benefit from Social Security if you delay your filing past FRA. For each year you wait, up until age 70, your benefit grows 8%. And that boost, to be clear, is a permanent one, just as any reduction you face by claiming Social Security early is generally set in stone as well.

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Source Fool.com