We all receive annual Social Security statements showing estimated retirement benefits, but in case your earnings have changed since receiving your last statement, you can find out what those numbers are by using the online calculator at the Social Security Administration’s (SSA) Web site.

The Retirement Estimator is tied to a person’s Social Security earnings record and doesn’t require punching in any earnings information. All you do is type in the requested personal information (the site is secure). You’re then asked to enter your annual earnings. Results are immediate. The estimator only shows retirement benefit estimates; it does not show the earnings record information on which the estimate was calculated or any other personal information.

If your earnings haven’t changed, you’ll notice that the numbers are the same as those in your annual statement. However, you can take it a step further and use the estimator to create other scenarios that involve more or less income and earlier or later retirement dates. This lets you compare different retirement options.

From there, if you want, you can click on “More charts and calculators,” and then scroll down to “Retirement Income Estimator.” It takes you to the Ballpark Estimate page, where you can figure out how much you need to save to fund a comfortable retirement. If you do the worksheet online, the computer will do the math for you. Other calculators at the site allow you to see how your benefits might be affected by various factors.

In November 2008, the online Retirement Estimator received the best customer service satisfaction rating of any government Web site from the University of Michigan’s American Customer Satisfaction Index for Federal Websites. “It’s great to be recognized as the best, but we’re not resting on our laurels,” Michael J. Astrue, commissioner of Social Security, responded in a press release. “We will have a series of new services in the coming year, and we are also improving some of our already successful online services.”