Working in retirement can mean a part-time job, consulting in your old field, seasonal work, or a business of your own. For some people it’s about the paycheck. For others it’s structure, purpose, or people to see every day.
Before you take on retirement work, check how the income fits the rest of your plan. A paycheck can shrink your Social Security checks before full retirement age, change when you need Medicare, and raise your taxes. It can also give your savings and your future benefit more time to grow. Here’s how each piece works.
What Does Working in Retirement Look Like?
A retirement job is paid work you take on as you wind down your career or after you leave it. Most fall into a few types:
- Part-time work. Retail, tutoring, bookkeeping, and other part-time jobs for retirees come with set hours.
- Phased retirement. You cut back your hours with your current employer before you leave.
- Consulting or freelancing. You sell the skills you built over your career, on your own schedule.
- Remote work. Customer service, writing, and virtual assistant roles let you work from home.
- A business of your own. You can turn a skill into a business after 50, from a consulting firm to a small online shop.
- A new field. An encore career lets you take on work you’ve wanted to try for years.
Why Do People Work in Retirement?
People work in retirement for money and for reasons that have nothing to do with money. Extra income can pay for travel, fill a gap in your budget, or let you delay Social Security. Work also brings structure, social contact, and a sense of purpose that many retirees miss after a career ends.
Should You Count on Working in Retirement?
Counting on work income is risky. In the 2026 EBRI/Greenwald Retirement Confidence Survey, 75% of workers said they expect income from work in retirement. Only 27% of retirees said they have it.
Plans change for reasons outside your control. Nearly half of retirees in the survey stopped working earlier than they planned. Among them, 41% cited a health problem or disability, and 35% cited changes at their company. The median retirement age for retirees was 62.
Treat work income as a bonus in your plan, and check that the plan still works if the paycheck stops sooner than you expect. Age discrimination can also make it harder to get hired, even though federal law protects workers 40 and older.
Can You Work and Collect Social Security?
You can work and collect Social Security at the same time. If you’re younger than full retirement age, Social Security holds back part of your benefit once your earnings pass a yearly limit. Starting the month you reach full retirement age, you can earn any amount with no reduction.
| Earnings test | 2026 limit | 2027 limit | Amount withheld |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under full retirement age all year | $24,480 ($2,040 a month) | $25,560 ($2,130 a month) | $1 for every $2 above the limit |
| Year you reach full retirement age | $65,160 ($5,430 a month) | $67,920 ($5,660 a month) | $1 for every $3 above the limit, counting earnings before the month you reach full retirement age |
Source: Social Security Administration, Exempt amounts under the earnings test.
Withheld benefits aren’t lost. Your monthly benefit goes up at full retirement age to make up for them.
Work can also raise your benefit. Social Security bases your check on your highest 35 years of earnings, so a strong year late in your career can replace a weaker one.
Can You Work and Collect a Pension?
Yes, and a job with a new employer won’t affect most private pensions. Going back to your old employer can. A private plan can pause your pension in any month you work 40 or more hours for the employer behind it. That’s the threshold in Labor Department rules. In a multiemployer plan, common in union trades, the trigger is work in the same industry, trade, and area. The plan has to tell you in writing when it holds back a payment. It also has to restart payments by the third month after you stop working.
Public pensions for state and local government workers set their own limits. CalPERS, for example, caps most retirees who return to work for a CalPERS employer at 960 hours per fiscal year, counting all CalPERS employers combined. Before you take a job, ask your plan administrator how the work would affect your payments. Also ask whether the rules change once you reach the plan’s normal retirement age.
How Much Can a Retirement Job Help Your Plan?
A retirement job helps most when the paycheck covers your bills and your savings stay invested. Say a part-time job brings in $2,000 a month from age 62 to 67. That’s $120,000 you don’t pull from savings, before counting any investment growth.
The same job can let you wait to claim Social Security. With a full retirement age of 67, claiming at 62 cuts your benefit by 30%. Waiting until 67 gets you the full amount, about 43% more each month than claiming at 62. Each year you wait past 67, up to age 70, adds about 8% more.
How Does Working in Retirement Affect Medicare?
If your employer has 20 or more employees, its health plan pays before Medicare. While you’re on that plan, you can often delay Part B without a penalty. When you or your spouse stop working, you get 8 months to sign up for Part B. That Special Enrollment Period applies even if you choose COBRA.
If you miss that window, you may go without coverage for a while. You may also owe a Part B penalty for as long as you have Part B. Most people pay no premium for Part A, so many sign up for it at 65 even while working. If you contribute to an HSA, enrolling in any part of Medicare, including Part A, ends your contributions. Smaller employers follow different Medicare enrollment rules.
If you retire before 65, a job with health benefits can bridge the gap until Medicare starts. COBRA and ACA plans are other ways to cover healthcare before 65.
How Does Working in Retirement Affect Your Taxes?
Work income adds to your taxable income, and that can ripple through your plan. If you’re collecting Social Security, a paycheck can make up to 85% of your benefits taxable. It can also push your income above the 2026 thresholds for Medicare surcharges (IRMAA): $109,000 for individuals or $218,000 for joint filers.
Medicare uses your tax return from two years earlier to set those surcharges. That means income you earn in 2026 sets your 2028 premiums.
If you freelance or consult, you’ll also owe self-employment tax of 15.3% on most of your net self-employment earnings. That covers both the employee and employer shares of Social Security and Medicare.
Can You Keep Saving for Retirement While You Work?
You can keep saving for retirement at any age, as long as you have earned income. Since 2020, there’s been no age limit on IRA contributions. In 2026 you can put in up to $7,500, or $8,600 at 50 and older, but no more than you earn.
If you still work for the company that sponsors your 401(k), you can often delay required minimum distributions from that plan until you retire. That break doesn’t apply if you own 5% or more of the business, and it doesn’t apply to IRAs.
If you consult or freelance, you can open a solo 401(k) and contribute as both the employee and the employer.
How Do You Find a Job After Retirement?
Finding a job after retirement often starts with the employer you already have. Before you leave, ask about part-time hours, consulting, or a phased exit. Beyond that, these steps help:
- Decide what you want from the job: income, a flexible schedule, social contact, or all three.
- Tell former colleagues and clients you’re open to work. They’re often the fastest route to consulting projects.
- Update your skills and your résumé for the roles you want.
- Look at seasonal and project work, which can fit around travel and family time.
How Do You Plan for Income From Work in Retirement?
Plan for work income by adding it for the years you expect to work, then testing a version where it stops early. The Boldin Planner does both. You’ll see how the paycheck changes your savings and taxes, and how it interacts with when you claim Social Security. You’ll also see whether your plan holds up without it.
FAQs About Working in Retirement
Can I go back to work after I retire?
You can go back to work after you retire, for your old employer or a new one. Check your pension rules first, since some plans pause payments if you return to the same employer. If you’re collecting Social Security before full retirement age, earnings above the yearly limit will reduce your benefit.
Do you pay Social Security tax when you work in retirement?
Workers in retirement pay Social Security and Medicare payroll taxes on their wages at any age, even while collecting benefits. Social Security recalculates your benefit each year. If your new earnings replace a lower-earning year in your record, your monthly payment goes up.
Does working in retirement raise your Medicare premiums?
Working in retirement can raise your Medicare premiums if it pushes your income above the IRMAA thresholds. Medicare looks at your modified adjusted gross income from two years earlier. If you’ve since stopped working and your income dropped, you can ask Social Security to use your newer, lower income instead.
What is a good job for a retiree?
A good job for a retiree fits your schedule and your reason for working. People who want income often consult in their old field. Those who want social contact may prefer retail, hospitality, or tutoring. If flexibility matters most, remote and seasonal jobs let you choose your hours and take time off.
Should I work part time before I fully retire?
Working part time before you fully retire can ease the shift and let your savings keep growing. It helps most when it lets you delay Social Security or avoid early withdrawals. Test your plan with and without the paycheck, since part-time work may end sooner than you expect.
