The Social Security Administration (SSA) updates monthly payments for retirement, SSDI, and SSI once per year. As a matter of fact, these COLA increases help eligible recipients maintain their buying power. If this change did not take place, millions of Americans on benefits would see their purchasing power reduced, and they would face more financial difficulties.
The Senior Citizens League (TSCL) is a very reliable group if you are keen to know the evolution of the COLAs. Their predictions are very accurate, and they give Social Security recipients an idea of how much their future retirement, SSDI, or SSI benefits may be increased. In this way, they can plan in advance their financial situation if they rely on these benefits to get by.
2026 COLA Projection Update for Social Security
Before this figure is unveiled, it is important to know that the previous COLAs were:
- 2020 Cost-of-Living Adjustment: 1.6%
- 2021 Cost-of-Living Adjustment: 1.3%
- 2022 Cost-of-Living Adjustment: 5.9%
- 2023 Cost-of-Living Adjustment: 8.7%
- 2024 Cost-of-Living Adjustment: 3.2%
- 2025 Cost-of-Living Adjustment: 2.5%
The Senior Citizens League has confirmed that the 2026 COLA prediction is 2.3%. This increase is after the tariff announcement and pause. Therefore, it will depend on how the events develop whether the boost will be higher or not.
Bear in mind that when the new tariffs were announce on imports on April 2, 2025, the stock market retreated. As a result, this news hasn’t had a major effect on the Senior Citizens League’s projection for the 2026 COLA. In fact, it is just 0.1% higher than the previous prediction. So it was 2.2% for February, and it is 2.3% for March.
Social Security amounts after a 2026 COLA projection
If the current prediction for 2026 becomes true, Social Security recipients would receive 2.3 dollars extra for each $100 they receive from Social Security or the Supplemental Security Income program.
Imagine your Social Security payment is $100 in 2025. Then, you would receive $102.3 in 2026 after the COLA increase. What if your monthly payment is $1,000? If so, you would receive $1,023 in total in 2026 with a 2.3% boost.
- Retirement, SSDI, or SSI payment amount of $1,500: after a 2.3% COLA increase, it would become $1.534.5
- Retirement, SSDI, or SSI payment amount of $2,000: after a 2.3% Cost-of-Living Adjustment increase, it would become $2,046
- Retirement, SSDI, or SSI payment amount of $2,500: after a 2.3% Cost-of-Living Adjustment increase, it would become $2,557.5
- Retirement, SSDI, or SSI payment amount of $3,000: after a 2.3% Cost-of-Living Adjustment increase, it would become $3,069
- Retirement, SSDI, or SSI payment amount of $3,500: after a 2.3% Cost-of-Living Adjustment increase, it would become $3,580.5
- Retirement, SSDI, or SSI payment amount of $4,000: after a 2.3% Cost-of-Living Adjustment increase, it would become $4,092
- Retirement, SSDI, or SSI payment amount of $4,500: after a 2.3% Cost-of-Living Adjustment increase, it would become $4,603.5
- Retirement, SSDI, or SSI payment amount of $5,000: after a 2.3% Cost-of-Living Adjustment increase, it would become $5,115
- Retirement, SSDI, or SSI payment amount of $5,500: after a 2.3% Cost-of-Living Adjustment increase, it would become $5,626.5