The Social Security Administration will announce the 2026 cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) on October 15, provided the government shutdown has ended. In the meantime, two of three data points needed to determine the COLA are available, which means we already have a good sense for how much benefits will increase next year.
Read on to learn how much additional income retired workers can expect from Social Security.
Image source: The Motley Fool
Social Security benefits are forecast to increase 2.7% in 2026
Since 1975, the buying power of Social Security benefits has been protected from inflation by annual cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) tied to the CPI-W, a subset of the Consumer Price Index. The CPI-W tracks prices across more than 200 goods and services weighted based on their relative importance to hourly wage earners.
The math is straightforward: The percent increase in the CPI-W during the third quarter (July to September) of the current year becomes the COLA in the next year. For example, the CPI-W increased 2.5% in the third quarter of 2024, so Social Security benefits received a 2.5% COLA in 2025.
The Social Security Administration (SSA) still needs September inflation data to tabulate the 2026 COLA, but the most likely outcome is that benefits increase 2.7%, according to The Senior Citizens League and the Social Security Board of Trustees. The SSA will issue a press release detailing the official COLA on October 15, so long as the government shutdown has ended.
The SSA will also send COLA notices by mail in December. Those single-page documents provide exact dates and dollars amounts concerning your updated benefit, and they detail any deductions for Medicare premiums and federal income tax withholdings. You can also view your COLA notice through the my Social Security portal.
How the average retired-worker benefit will change after the 2026 COLA
The average Social Security benefit for retired workers was $2,005 in June 2025. That figure would increase to $2,059 in the event of a 2.7% COLA, meaning the average retired worker would collect an additional $54 per month next year. However, benefits vary widely across age groups, which means COLAs (as measured in dollars) will vary widely.
The chart below shows the average monthly benefit for retired workers aged 62 to 80 as of June 2025. It also shows how payments would change after a 2.7% COLA, and how much additional income the average retired worker in each age group would receive.
|
Retired Worker's Age |
Average Social Security Benefit Before COLA |
Average Social Security Benefit After COLA |
Additional Monthly Income |
|---|---|---|---|
|
62 |
$1,377 |
$1,414 |
$37 |
|
63 |
$1,392 |
$1,430 |
$38 |
|
64 |
$1,447 |
$1,486 |
$39 |
|
65 |
$1,613 |
$1,657 |
$44 |
|
66 |
$1,809 |
$1,858 |
$49 |
|
67 |
$1,963 |
$2,016 |
$53 |
|
68 |
$2,004 |
$2,058 |
$54 |
|
69 |
$2,052 |
$2,107 |
$55 |
|
70 |
$2,188 |
$2,247 |
$59 |
|
71 |
$2,157 |
$2,215 |
$58 |
|
72 |
$2,139 |
$2,197 |
$58 |
|
73 |
$2,125 |
$2,182 |
$57 |
|
74 |
$2,093 |
$2,150 |
$57 |
|
75 |
$2,085 |
$2,141 |
$56 |
|
76 |
$2,098 |
$2,155 |
$57 |
|
77 |
$2,082 |
$2,138 |
$56 |
|
78 |
$2,089 |
$2,145 |
$56 |
|
79 |
$2,057 |
$2,113 |
$56 |
|
80 |
$2,038 |
$2,093 |
$55 |
Data source: The Social Security Administration.
There are two noteworthy trends in the chart above. First, the average retired-worker benefit tends to increase between ages 62 and 70. That is primarily due to differences in claim age. Workers are entitled to Social Security at age 62, but they maximize their benefit by delaying until age 70.
Second, the average retired-worker benefit begins to decrease after age 70. That happens because Social Security payments are based on lifetime income and wages tend to increase over time. In other words, younger retirees generally earned more money during their careers, so their Social Security benefits are larger.
