For a quick estimate of the 2026 Social Security cost-of-living adjustment (COLA), multiply your current monthly benefit by 0.028. Add that amount to your current benefit for an approximate new monthly amount. For example, a $1,500 benefit would rise by about $42, to roughly $1,542. This is an estimate—not necessarily the new benefit SSA determines or the amount that reaches your bank account.
Calculate a quick estimate
- Choose your starting amount. Use your gross monthly Social Security benefit before deductions if you want to estimate the benefit amount. If you start with your bank deposit, treat the result as a rough take-home estimate because deductions and offsets affect what you receive.
- Multiply by 0.028. This is the 2026 COLA rate announced by the Social Security Administration (SSA).
- Add the increase to your starting amount. The sum is an approximate new monthly amount, not a personalized SSA calculation.
| Current monthly amount | Estimated increase at 2.8% | Approximate adjusted amount |
|---|---|---|
| $1,000 | $28 | $1,028 |
| $1,500 | $42 | $1,542 |
| $2,000 | $56 | $2,056 |
These examples apply the announced rate directly to the amounts shown. SSA’s individual calculation can produce a different increase.
What rate applies, and when does it take effect?
The 2026 COLA is 2.8%, determined on October 24, 2025. Social Security benefits payable in January 2026 include the increase. SSI payments reflecting the increase began December 31, 2025. See the SSA’s 2026 COLA announcement and its 2026 COLA fact sheet.
SSA estimated the average monthly benefit for all retired workers at $2,015 before the adjustment and $2,071 after it. Those are national averages, not a forecast for any individual. The next COLA is due to be announced in October 2026; as of October 3, 2026, that rate had not been announced. Do not use a rate for a later year as though it were established.
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Why your actual benefit or deposit may differ
SSA does not simply increase the amount deposited in your bank account by 2.8%. The COLA is applied to your primary insurance amount (PIA), a foundational figure in the benefit calculation. SSA then recalculates the payable amount. Its calculation includes specified truncation and rounding steps, and may account for factors such as claiming before or after full retirement age and applicable offsets.
- Gross benefit versus deposit: Medicare Supplementary Medical Insurance premiums and other deductions or offsets can make the deposit different from the gross benefit.
- Claiming age: Claiming before or after full retirement age changes the payable benefit through early-retirement reductions or delayed-retirement credits.
- Rounding: SSA truncates the COLA-adjusted PIA to the next lower dime, applies any early- or delayed-retirement factor and truncates again to the next lower dime, subtracts applicable offsets, then truncates the result to the next lower dollar. As a result, the increase in the new monthly benefit may differ somewhat from the stated COLA.
SSA explains that “A COLA increases a person’s Social Security retirement benefit by approximately the product of the COLA and the benefit amount.” The word “approximately” matters: multiplication is useful for planning, but SSA’s individual calculation determines the benefit amount. For the underlying method, see the Office of the Chief Actuary’s Application of COLA to a Retirement Benefit and SSA’s explanation of how retirement benefits are calculated.
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How to find your personalized amount
Use the quick calculation to get a ballpark figure, then rely on your SSA notice or account information for the amount SSA determined for you. SSA’s official FAQ addresses the question, “How much will the COLA amount be for 2026 and when will I receive it?” at ssa.gov/cola.
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