Retirees in these five states collect above-average Social Security benefits, so their raises will be bigger in 2026.
About the Author
Christy Bieber is a contributing Motley Fool retirement and Social Security expert covering retirement planning, 401(k)s, IRAs, and other personal finance topics. Christy has written about finance since 2008 and previously taught business courses at Bryant & Stratton College. She holds a law degree from UCLA and a bachelor’s degree in English, media, and communication with a certificate in business management from the University of Rochester. In law school, she earned three CALI Awards for Excellence for the highest scores in civil procedure and contract law exams.
An important change is coming to Social Security soon. Retirees and anyone else getting benefits through the program will have more money coming with each payment in 2026. Specifically, checks will get 2.8% bigger.
This is happening as a result of the Social Security cost-of-living adjustment (COLA), an automatic benefits increase built into the program.
In most years, COLAs occur to help benefits keep pace with inflation. Since prices have risen more year over year in 2025 compared with last year, the 2026 COLA is bigger than the 2.5% increase in 2025.
The 2.8% increase is the same for everyone collecting Social Security, but not everyone will see their checks go up by the same amount in raw dollars. And in some states, there's a strong chance that the COLA will result in an above-average increase as measured in dollars alone, rather than percentages.
Here are five states where Social Security benefits for retired workers are likely to go up more than average in terms of raw dollars.
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Where retirees will see bigger benefit increases
According to Social Security's most recent statistical snapshot, there are a number of states where the COLA is likely to result in above-average nominal-dollar Social Security benefit increases in 2026 -- and these five states are expected to see the biggest hikes:
By comparison, the average Social Security retirement benefit nationwide will increase by $56 to $2,071. So, in each of the five aforementioned states, the typical retiree with the average benefit is on track for a bigger COLA than the national average.
Why are retirees in these states likely to beat the average?
Retirees in these states are likely to see a bigger nominal-dollar increase simply because they are starting with a larger-than-average benefit check in the first place -- not surprising, because many of these states have a lot of high earners.
Social Security benefits are based on average wages throughout a recipient's 35 highest-earning years. If there are a lot of people in a state who had above-average earnings during their careers, then this can result in the state's average check being higher than the national average.
So any percentage-based increase (2.8% in 2026, for example) applied to a higher Social Security check to begin with results in a higher dollar-for-dollar raise. And the more a state's average check beats the national average check, the bigger the average COLA will end up being.
How is your own benefit affected?
To be clear, none of this data means that moving to a particular state could help you get a bigger increase in your own benefit.
Everyone's benefit is based on their work record. So, whether you live in a state with the largest average benefit or the smallest average benefit, your payment -- and your COLA -- will be determined solely based on your personal work history.
Still, the difference in the dollar-for-dollar benefits bump underscores the importance of trying to earn as much as possible throughout your working life. When you increase your income, you end up with a larger Social Security check, get larger raises (on a dollar-for-dollar basis) throughout your retirement, and have more financial security. This makes retirement planning easier.
You can also take other steps to increase your Social Security payment (and thus your future COLA amount). For example, delaying your Social Security claim past your full retirement age results in a larger monthly payment and, in turn, bigger dollar-for-dollar increases when COLAs are applied.
Since a larger Social Security check and bigger benefit bumps mean you may not have to take as much out of your 401(k) or IRA to cover your costs as a retiree, it's worth exploring your options to get the biggest check you can.