Why waiting until 70 to start CPP can be the quiet winner
You can start CPP any time from 60 to 70. Each year you wait adds to the cheque, and deferring all the way to 70 gives you roughly 42% more than starting at 65. That bigger amount is guaranteed for life and indexed to inflation.
The reason waiting gets overlooked is that it asks you to do something uncomfortable: pass up money now for a larger, certain cheque later. People worry about leaving something on the table if they do not live a long life. That is a fair worry, but it frames CPP as an investment to win rather than as insurance. Its real job is to protect you against the risk you run out of money because you lived longer than expected.
Think about what that larger payment actually is. It is income you cannot outlive, it keeps pace with rising prices, and no market downturn can shrink it. There are very few places in a retirement plan where you can buy that combination, and delaying CPP is one of the cheapest.
Waiting is not right for everyone. If your health or family history points to a shorter life, if you need the cash flow now to cover essentials, or if drawing CPP early lets a registered account keep growing in a way that suits your situation, starting sooner can make sense. The point is to decide on purpose, not by default.
A common middle path is to spend down other savings first and let CPP grow in the background. That can mean a leaner-looking early retirement in exchange for a sturdier, inflation-protected floor later, when you may be less able to manage money yourself.
Delaying CPP is not a bet on living long — it is insurance against the cost of living longer than you planned.
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The upside to waiting until age 70 to take CPP benefitsMoneySense ↗Have a question like this one?
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