How to Find Out What Your 2026 Social Security Increase Will Look Like
The Social Security Administration has announced a 2.8% cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) to beneficiaries starting in January of 2026 — a small increase from the 2025 COLA. Beneficiaries will receive a notice of their increased monthly payment from the Social Security Administration in December.
Here’s what else you need to know about the annual Social Security increase.
How to Find Out Your 2026 Social Security COLA
You can see your COLA notice online sooner by creating a My Social Security account no later than Nov. 19.
If your COLA isn’t available online yet, you can get an update as soon as it’s posted by enabling account notifications. Simply log into your My Social Security account, then select email or text notifications under message center preferences.
Or, you can do the math yourself.
Simply multiply your current benefit amount by 0.028 to determine how much your monthly payment could increase.
For example, if you receive an average monthly Social Security benefit of $2,008 (the national average payment), you would multiply that by 0.028 and find that your checks will increase by $56 per month next year.
Roughly 78 million Americans will see the bump in their monthly Social Security benefits or in their Supplemental Security Income payments next year.
The increase, determined by the Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics, is tied to the annual COLA increase in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers.
The increase is good news compared to recent years. In 2023, the increase was a historically high 8.7%, the increase then dropped to 3.2% for 2024, and it was 2.5% in 2025. Now it’s bumped up to 2.8%.
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How to Create a My Social Security Account
If you don’t already have an account, you can create one anytime. However, only beneficiaries who created an account prior to Nov. 19 will receive their 2026 COLA notice online.
It’s a good idea to create an online account for other reasons, too — especially if you receive Social Security or SSI benefits. Go to www.ssa.gov/myaccount to begin.
With a My Social Security account, you can also:
- Request a new Social Security card.
- Set up or change direct deposit.
- Get your Social Security tax form (SSA-1099).
- Print a benefit verification letter.
- Change your address.
To create an account, you’ll need to do the following:
- Verify your identity by entering personal information about yourself.
- Answer some security questions.
- Create a username and password.
- Confirm your email address or phone number by entering a one-time security code.
Whether you have an online account or not, you can expect to receive a paper notice in the mail in December.
How Much Money Will the Average Social Security Recipient Get in 2026?
Here’s what that looks like for the average recipient:
- Retired workers will get an extra $56 a month on average. The current average monthly benefit is $2,008.
- Disabled workers will get an extra $44 a month on average. The current average monthly benefit is $1,582.
- The average Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefit for individuals will increase by $20. The current average monthly benefit is $717.
Some of That COLA Goes to Medicare
There is no such thing as a free lunch. The increase in Social Security benefits is often matched or exceeded with an increase in Medicare Part B Premiums, which increased by 5.9% in 2025. Details about the Medicare increase for 2026 are expected to be available at www.medicare.gov in late November.
Rachel Christian is a Certified Educator in Personal Finance and a senior writer for The Penny Hoarder. Timothy Moore contributed to this report.
