For some married couples across the United States, $10,362 in monthly Social Security income lands in their bank accounts each month in 2026. Receiving $124,344 in guaranteed income from Social Security may sound like it would provide a stress-free retirement, especially for those who receive closer to the average Social Security benefit of $2,071.
Unfortunately, the vast majority of households won’t ever see that much income from the Social Security Administration. Here’s what you’d need to do to get it.
How do some couples get $10,362 in monthly Social Security income?
In order for a married couple to collect $10,362 in monthly Social Security income, they would each need to earn the maximum allowable monthly Social Security retirement benefit in 2026.
As the Social Security Administration reports, the maximum monthly benefit is $5,181.
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Breaking down the annual income
Each spouse can collect their own Social Security check while both spouses are alive. So, if both people in the marriage get the largest amount available from Social Security, they’ll be on track for $124,344 in combined benefits this year.
However, there are two things both spouses must do to make that happen.
Earn the maximum average wage
Social Security benefits are directly based on the average wages in your 35 highest earning years (after adjusting for inflation). There is, however, a cap on the wages that count when calculating your average wages. As a result, there is also a cap on your benefit.
Workers only pay Social Security taxes on income up to something called the wage base limit. And only income up to the wage base limit counts in calculating the average wages that benefits are based on. The wage base limit is $184,500 in 2026. It’s adjusted for inflation each year, so it is essentially always the inflation-adjusted equivalent of this amount.
Understanding the wage base limit
The wage base limit is the reason for the cap on Social Security. If people paid tax and earned benefits based on all their wages, someone who earns $1 million consistently could end up getting close to $400,000 in Social Security income. The wage base limit exists to keep benefit payouts reasonable.
So, for a married couple to get the max $10,362 in monthly Social Security income, each spouse would have to earn at least the inflation-adjusted equivalent of $184,500 for 35 or more years. Their minimum household income would need to be $369,000.
Wait until age 70
If both spouses earn the inflation-adjusted equivalent of $184,500 for 35 years, then they are on track for the largest possible primary insurance amount (PIA). That’s the benefit they get at full retirement age (which is 67 for anyone born in 1960 or later).
However, the maximum PIA isn’t the maximum total benefit. That’s because you can increase your primary insurance amount by earning delayed retirement credits. These credits raise your monthly benefit by 0.67% for each month you wait beyond your FRA. You can earn them until age 70.
The math behind waiting
Since you can raise your standard benefit by 24% if you delay claiming Social Security from 67 to 70, you must do that to max out your Social Security checks.
Each spouse would need to forgo years of Social Security benefits, which become available at 62, so they could both max out their combined Social Security income and get $10,362 per month.
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What about the family maximum?
It may seem odd that Social Security would send so much money to one couple, but the reality is that while there is a “family maximum,” it doesn’t apply to limit benefits in this situation. The family maximum limits how much you can collect in total retirement and disability benefits on one person’s work record.
In this case, each spouse is claiming benefits based on their own work history — so if each person pays the maximum taxes into the system, they can get the max benefit out. They’re entitled to that $124,344 per year due to the amount they each paid in overtime.
Bottom line
While a $10,362 monthly Social Security benefit would be nice, the reality is that most couples don’t even have one spouse earning the inflation-adjusted equivalent of $184,500 consistently for 35 years or more, much less two spouses doing so.
Most people can expect much smaller benefits and should make their retirement plan based on the assumption that Social Security will replace around 40% of their pre-retirement income. This is not enough to live on by itself, so saving extra money in a 401(k), IRA, or other tax-advantaged account will be key to achieving financial security as a senior.
Of course, everyone can try to increase their benefit as much as possible through earning as much as they can and trying to delay a Social Security claim until 70 to max out delayed retirement credits. But, unless you were consistently one of the highest earners in the country throughout your career, and your spouse was too, a $10,362 combined Social Security income is probably off the table for you.
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Author Details
Christy Rakoczy Bieber
Christy Rakoczy Bieber is an attorney turned personal finance writer who has spent 17 years helping readers understand Social Security: the claiming rules, the policy shifts, and the fine print that can mean thousands of dollars in lifetime income. Her work has appeared in Kiplinger, Forbes, The Motley Fool, and the Wall Street Journal.
