What happens when your spouse dies and you are both on Social Security?
According to the Social Security Administration (SSA), nearly 3.7 million widows and widowers received survivor benefits as of early 2025. This is a crucial benefit for many, but many retirees wonder what happens when their spouse dies and you are both on Social Security. The short answer is that you can't collect both benefits simultaneously, but you will receive the higher of the two amounts.