What is the Minimum Social Security Benefit for a Stay-At-Home Spouse?
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Stay-at-home spouses, especially those who did not earn enough over the years to qualify for their own Social Security retirement benefits, can still receive Social Security. Social Security allows a stay-at-home partner to claim what is called a spousal benefit, which is typically up to half of their spouse’s full retirement benefit.
That means if your spouse qualifies for $2,000 per month at full retirement age, you may be eligible for up to $1,000 per month, even if you never worked outside the home. However, that amount can be reduced if you claim before full retirement age or increased if you are eligible as a survivor.
How Spousal Benefits Work
If you did not work enough to earn the required 40 Social Security credits, roughly 10 years of paid employment, you will not qualify for your own retirement benefit. But you can still receive a spousal benefit if you are married to someone who did.
To receive the full spousal benefit, you must wait until your full retirement age, which is currently 66 or 67, depending on your birth year. If you file earlier, as soon as age 62, your benefit will be reduced permanently.
There are a few other eligibility requirements. You must be married for at least a year, and your spouse must have already filed for their Social Security. If you are divorced, you can still claim on your ex-spouse’s record if the marriage lasted at least 10 years and you are currently unmarried.
What Happens if Your Spouse Dies?
If your spouse passes away, you may be entitled to survivor benefits, which can be as high as 100% of what your spouse was receiving. These benefits can begin as early as age 60 (or 50 if you are disabled), but again, early claiming results in reduced monthly payments.
Is There a Minimum Dollar Amount?
There is no fixed dollar amount as the minimum benefit for homemakers. The amount is always a percentage of your spouse's benefit.
That said, there is a special minimum benefit for workers with very low lifetime earnings. In 2025, this ranges from $52.10 per month (for those with 11 years of coverage) to $1,093.10 per month (for those with 30 years of coverage).
Can Homemakers Get Social Security Credits?
This is where the system shows its limitations. While Social Security was designed to protect dependent spouses, usually women, it does not assign any monetary value to unpaid household labor. That means someone who spends decades raising children, managing a home and supporting a working spouse does not earn any credits unless they have outside employment.
Bottom Line
Social Security offers important protections for stay-at-home spouses, but it is far from a perfect system. Your benefit depends on your spouse’s work history and when you choose to claim. The longer you wait, the higher your benefit will be.
For those who have spent years raising families and running households without a paycheck, Social Security may seem a mixed bag. It recognizes the value of marriage in retirement planning but does not account for the true economic contributions of homemaking.
If you are a homemaker today, make it a point to understand your options and advocate for your financial future.