I am a 67 year old widower and collecting my late wife's social security spousal benefit.
I was under the impression that I couldn't collect both my spousal benefit AND my own.
Therefore I should wait until age 70 to drop hers and start mine. Is that best? Can I collect both? Thank you

Hi,

You can't collect both your own Social Security benefit and a full widower's benefit at the same time. If and when you file for your own benefits you'll receive only the higher of the 2 benefit rates.

Assuming that your own age 70 retirement benefit rate will be higher than your widower's rate, then yes, your best strategy would likely be to file for your own benefits at age 70. However, you may want to consider using our maximization software to fully compare your options and decide for yourself.

Best, Jerry