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Survivor benefit calculator

FERS survivor benefit cost calculator

The survivor benefit cost calculator shows what each FERS survivor election costs and pays. A full survivor annuity pays your spouse 50 percent of your unreduced annuity and costs you 10 percent of it; a partial annuity pays 25 percent and costs 5 percent. The election is generally permanent.

The calculator

What the calculator shows

  • Your reduced annuity under each election: none, partial and full.
  • The monthly and yearly cost of each election.
  • What your spouse would receive each month under each election.
  • An FEHB flag: which elections keep survivor health coverage.
  • A CSRS mode with the CSRS cost formula.

Your inputs

Prefilled with an example so the result is never empty. Change any number; the result updates as you type.

Educational estimate on the assumptions you entered

$250.00 a month

the cost of a full election ($3,000 a year)

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Your annuity after the election
$27,000 a year
Survivor annuity
$15,000 a year, $1,250.00 a month
Rule
10% of your annuity buys 50%

Assumptions behind this estimate

  • The annuity is what you enter, before health and life insurance deductions.
  • Current-spouse elections only. Former-spouse court orders and insurable-interest elections follow other rules.
  • No COLA is projected.
  • Taxes are not modeled.

Educational estimate on the assumptions you entered, not a projection or a promise and not OPM's official computation. FFEBA is an education organization, not a financial advisor, and does not give personalized financial, tax or legal advice.

Inputs you will enter

  • Unreduced annuityYearly, before the survivor reduction. Use the FERS pension estimator if you do not have a figure.
  • Retirement systemFERS or CSRS.
  • CSRS elected baseOptional, if you would elect less than your full annuity as the base.

How we compute it

For FERS, we subtract 10 percent of your unreduced annuity for a full election and 5 percent for a partial one, then show your spouse's benefit as 50 percent or 25 percent of the unreduced annuity (OPM, retrieved 2026-07-05).

For CSRS, the cost is 2.5 percent of the first $3,600 of the base you elect plus 10 percent of the base above $3,600, and the survivor receives up to 55 percent of the base (OPM, retrieved 2026-07-05).

Survivor annuities receive COLAs under the rules for the system, which we note but do not project.

A worked example

Your unreduced FERS annuity is $36,000 a year. A full election costs $3,600, leaving you $32,400, and pays your spouse $18,000 a year. A partial election costs $1,800, leaving you $34,200, and pays your spouse $9,000 a year. Educational estimate on the assumptions shown.

10%Cost of the FERS full survivor annuityOPM, retrieved 2026-07-05
50%Spouse's benefit under the full electionOPM, retrieved 2026-07-05
5% / 25%Cost and benefit of the partial electionOPM, retrieved 2026-07-05

What to do with your result

Read the full rules in FERS survivor benefits, including what the FEHB link means for your spouse, and check your designations in the beneficiaries guide. Your unreduced figure comes from the FERS pension estimator.

This is one of the few retirement choices you cannot easily undo.

FFEBA is an education organization. If you want someone to look at your own numbers, we can match you with a Federal Retirement Consultant (FRC), a professional trained on federal benefits. The FRC designation is listed with FINRA. The first review is free, nothing is booked until you choose a time, and you are never obligated to work with anyone we introduce. Get matched with an FRC.

Questions about this calculator

How much does the FERS survivor benefit cost?

A full survivor annuity costs 10 percent of your unreduced annuity and pays your spouse 50 percent of it. A partial survivor annuity costs 5 percent and pays 25 percent. Electing less than the full benefit requires your spouse's notarized consent (OPM, retrieved 2026-07-05).

Why does the survivor election affect FEHB?

A surviving spouse can continue FEHB only if they receive a survivor annuity. If you decline the survivor election and die first, your spouse loses federal health coverage along with the income. Even a partial election keeps FEHB eligibility, provided your spouse is covered under your Self Plus One or Self and Family enrollment at your death (OPM BAL 15-209, retrieved 2026-10-12).

Can I change my survivor election after I retire?

Generally no. The election is permanent, with narrow exceptions such as a later marriage, a divorce, or the death of the spouse. Confirm the rules with OPM before you sign.

How is the CSRS survivor benefit different?

CSRS retirees can provide up to 55 percent of their annuity. The cost is roughly 2.5 percent of the first $3,600 of the elected base plus 10 percent of the amount above it, and a smaller base can be chosen with spousal consent (OPM, retrieved 2026-07-05).

Reviewed by the FFEBA education team. Last reviewed October 2026.

Sources

  1. U.S. Office of Personnel Management, Benefits Administration Letter 15-209 (FEHB continuation for survivors, Self Plus One), retrieved 2026-10-12
  2. U.S. Office of Personnel Management, what happens to FEHB if I die (health tab), retrieved 2026-10-12
  3. U.S. Office of Personnel Management, FERS survivors, retrieved 2026-07-05
  4. U.S. Office of Personnel Management, CSRS survivors, retrieved 2026-07-05
  5. U.S. Office of Personnel Management, health benefits, retrieved 2026-07-05

Every government figure on this page carries its source and retrieval date. Worked examples are educational estimates on the assumptions shown, not a projection of any person's benefit. FFEBA is an education organization, not a financial advisor.

Keep reading

Read the rule behind the math.