Not correct. What matters is can you afford to take the risk? That's why it remains an insurance question like, "Can I afford to replace my house if it burns down and I don't have fire insurance?" It's always cheaper not to buy insurance at least in the short term, but if you cannot afford to self-insure (and most retirees cannot) then it is not a prudent decision.
I notice in these discussions those who announce their intention to start SS benefits at 62, never provide us with their plan to fund their cost of living if they unexpectedly live to 102, for instance. That tells me that they do not understand what it means to self-insure in this context.
the reality is most married couples shoot themselves in the foot when they have a choice taking it early or later.
few are able to get those returns on their own and one member of a couple usually makes it well past break even .
the damage done to survivor benefits is huge by filing at 62 especially if your spouse is younger and they will need to file before full retirement age if you die.
a widow who has a husband who files at 62 and dies shortly after and she herself is forced to file at 60 gets a double cut of about 1/3 off what the husbands full retirement benefit would have been had he waited to file,then because she herself has to file early she is hit again with another almost 1/3 cut from the already cut amount and that stays for life.
a surviving spouse can be left with a fraction of the benefits to carry on with.
way to much thought goes into the what if i die scenerio and not enough into the what if one of us lives scenerio.
the truth is like any insurance if you have a choice the only couples that should take it early are those that can really self-insure in case one of them beats methuslas record.
the opposite usually is true , those that can least afford to take it early end up being those that do.
some either have to because of illness or lack of a job or when they have a choice they get the what if i die scenerio in their head and subject the surviving spouse to a low low benefit.
singles are no problem if they want to take it early but couples really need to think good,long and hard at the effects.