There can be significant lifetime advantages (up to 6 figure differences) of one plan over another.
This large lifetime only happens if they live significantly longer than the mortality tables predict. This is a very very small number of people. Yeah, yeah, us upper-middle & upper income people live longer. But not that much longer.
That’s only part of the story. The large lifetime differences typically occur when a married couple analyzes their benefits separately and fails to consider the impact on the survivor (second to die).
And as others have pointed out previously, those in the middle group should consider the impact of tapping other resources such as retirement accounts before starting Social Security. The potential reduction in future RMDs and IIRMA charges can provide significant financial advantages over their remaining lives.
Ira