2 Moves to Make in Your 40s to Get More Social Security in Your 60s

Your Social Security benefits in retirement are tied to your wage history.

Reviewing your earnings record could help you avoid reduced benefits due to errors.

When you're in your 40s, you may not be so interested in Social Security, since you won't be able to collect those benefits for another couple of decades. However, the moves you make (or don't make) in your 40s could actually help determine how much Social Security you collect once you're ready to retire.

If you're hoping to get more Social Security than less, here are two key moves worth making in your 40s that could lead to larger benefits in your 60s.

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By the time your 40s roll around, you may have a nice amount of experience in your industry. That could set the stage for you to chase promotions or better jobs that lead to higher pay.

Your Social Security benefits are calculated based on your 35 highest-paid years of income. So the more money you're able to earn in your 40s, the more generous your retirement benefits might be.

Having an accurate wage record with the Social Security Administration (SSA) is important, since it affects your benefits formula . If the SSA is missing earnings for you, or if you have earnings that are underreported, it could lead to smaller retirement checks.