The Social Security Administration (SSA) announced today that millions of Americans receiving Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) will see a 2.8 percent increase in their benefits beginning in 2026, intended to keep pace with rising living costs. This annual cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) applies to approximately 75 million recipients nationwide.

The average monthly Social Security retirement benefit is expected to rise by about $56 starting in January, while nearly 71 million Social Security beneficiaries will see their adjusted payments reflected from the start of the new year. Supplemental Security Income payments to 7.5 million people will begin reflecting the increase on December 31, 2025.

Social Security’s COLA, calculated based on the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W), has averaged 3.1 percent over the past decade. The increase for 2025 was 2.5 percent.

In addition to the COLA, the SSA is raising the maximum taxable earnings for Social Security taxes. The 2026 threshold for taxable income will increase to $184,500 from the current $176,100.

Along with benefit adjustments, changes to Medicare premiums for 2026 will be announced at www.medicare.gov and in recipients’ online Message Centers starting in late November.