Social Security 2.8% COLA 2026 benefit increase explained
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The Social Security cost-of-living adjustment will be 2.8% in 2026, the Social Security Administration said Friday.
Retirement pension from SSK will increase about $56 per month According to the agency, on average it starts in January.
COLA provides for an annual adjustment to both Social Security and Supplemental Security Income to ensure that these benefits keep pace with inflation. Approximately 75 million people receive assistance checks from these programs. But for beneficiaries who rely on these payments to cover basic expenses, the size of this year’s COLA may not make their fight against high prices any easier.
The Social Security cost-of-living adjustment for 2026 is in line with expert estimates of a 2.7% to 2.8% increase in benefits.
Over the past 20 years, the Social Security COLA has averaged 2.6%, according to the Senior Citizens Association, a nonpartisan senior group.
The cost of living adjustment was 2.5% in 2025.
“Social Security is a promise kept, and the annual cost-of-living adjustment is one way we work to ensure benefits reflect today’s economic realities and continue to provide a foundation of security,” Social Security Administration Commissioner Frank J. Bisignano said in a statement.
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