Income
Know what retirement will cost and which sources pay for the first years, before Social Security at full retirement age.
Free 22-question checklist
Could You Retire at 62?
Before choosing a date, evaluate income, investments, Social Security, healthcare to 65, Medicare, taxes, reserves and market risk together.
Get the checklist
Can I Retire at 62?
Healthcare
Build a realistic 62–65 coverage bridge before Medicare, including premiums and out-of-pocket costs.
Risk & taxes
Understand which accounts fund spending, how withdrawals are taxed and what happens if markets fall early.
Who it's for
Built for people weighing a retirement date in their early 60s.
- You are within about five years of a possible retirement at or near 62.
- You have a 401(k), 403(b) or IRA and are not sure how it becomes a monthly paycheck.
- You would need health insurance for a few years before Medicare at 65.
- You want to compare claiming Social Security at 62 with waiting, using real trade-offs.
- You are married and want both spouses' timelines on one page.
What's inside
22 questions. Two worksheets. No product pitch.
The printable guide groups 22 questions by timeline, from 12 months before your date to your first retirement year. Then it walks you through two fill-in worksheets.
- Key dates if you are thinking about 62: the ages that matter, from the Rule of 55 and 59½ through full retirement age (67 for anyone born in 1960 or later) and RMDs.
- The 22-question checklist: spending and assets; Social Security and healthcare; reserves and market risk; taxes, beneficiaries and the long view.
- Worksheet A, the retirement budget: today's spending versus your retirement estimate, sorted into essential and discretionary.
- Worksheet B, the 62-to-67 income gap: year by year, how much spending must come from savings, and from which account.
- Questions to ask HR, your plan administrator and Social Security before you give notice.
- Common mistakes, 2026 reference figures and official help lines.
Sample checklist items
- Have I downloaded my current Social Security statement and checked my earnings record?
- Have I compared claiming at 62 with full retirement age and with 70, including survivor effects?
- Do I know how I will get health insurance from my retirement date until 65?
- Do I know exactly which account will fund my first year of retirement spending?
- Have I stress-tested a significant market decline during my first few years of withdrawals?
A preview of Worksheet B
| Age | Annual spending | Health costs | Social Security | Pension / other | Gap from savings |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 62 | … | … | … | … | … |
| 63 – 67 | … | … | … | … | … |
One 2026 fact the guide explains: if you claim Social Security before full retirement age and keep working, SSA withholds $1 of benefits for every $2 you earn above $24,480 (the 2026 limit). Withheld benefits are factored back in when your benefit is recalculated at full retirement age, but the short-term cash-flow effect can be significant. SSA: receiving benefits while working.
Prefer to read first? See Can I retire at 62?, Social Security at 62 vs. 67 and health insurance from 62 to 65.
Education first
Use the checklist to find the questions that need a deeper answer.
No account transfer or product decision is required to use the guide. Individual recommendations require individual facts and an appropriate advisory process.