Social Security COLA 2027
The 2027 cost-of-living adjustment is 3.6%. It was set by the CPI-W average for July, August and September 2026, announced in October 2026, and is first paid in January 2027. Below: what 3.6% does to your own monthly benefit, the three CPI-W prints that decided it, and every COLA SSA has published since the first automatic one in 1975.
The 2027 COLA is 3.6%. Enter your benefit to see the new monthly amount, or compare it with past adjustments below.
The gross amount before any Medicare premium or tax withholding — the figure on your SSA benefit-verification letter.
New monthly benefit after a 3.6% COLA
SSA rounds each monthly benefit down to the whole dollar.
Monthly increase
Increase over 12 months
Medicare Part B premiums are deducted from most benefit payments and are set separately by CMS, so the amount actually deposited can rise by less than the figures above.
Benefit lookup table at 3.6%
Common benefit amounts run through the same arithmetic, so you can read off the row nearest yours without typing anything.
| Current monthly benefit | After a 3.6% COLA | Monthly increase | Increase over 12 months |
|---|---|---|---|
| $1,000 | $1,036 | $36 | $432 |
| $1,250 | $1,295 | $45 | $540 |
| $1,500 | $1,554 | $54 | $648 |
| $1,750 | $1,813 | $63 | $756 |
| $2,000 | $2,072 | $72 | $864 |
| $2,250 | $2,331 | $81 | $972 |
| $2,500 | $2,590 | $90 | $1,080 |
| $2,750 | $2,849 | $99 | $1,188 |
| $3,000 | $3,108 | $108 | $1,296 |
| $3,250 | $3,367 | $117 | $1,404 |
| $3,500 | $3,626 | $126 | $1,512 |
| $3,750 | $3,885 | $135 | $1,620 |
| $4,000 | $4,144 | $144 | $1,728 |
2027 determination tracker
Three CPI-W prints decide it. Each lands about mid-month after the month it covers, so the July 2026 figure arrives in mid-August 2026, August in mid-September, and September in mid-October. The table pairs each month against the same month of the base quarter, Q3 2025.
| Month | CPI-W, Q3 2025 (base) | CPI-W, Q3 2026 | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| July | 316.349 | 327.104 | Published |
| August | 317.306 | 328.481 | Published |
| September | 318.139 | 330.654 | Published |
| Quarter average | 317.265 | 328.746 | Complete |
Determined: 3.6%
All 3 months are published. (328.746 - 317.265) / 317.265 x 100, rounded to the nearest tenth, gives 3.6% — the same arithmetic SSA applies.
The timetable, in order
- Mid-August to mid-October 2026 — BLS publishes the July, August and September CPI-W figures, one per month.
- October 2026 — SSA announces the COLA, once the September figure is out. This is the first official number; everything before it is a projection.
- December 2026 — the adjustment is effective with benefits payable for December. This is why SSA files it under 2026.
- January 2027 — the larger amount appears in the payment actually received. This is why everyone else calls it the 2027 COLA.
How the COLA is determined
“A COLA effective for December of the current year is equal to the percentage increase (if any) in the CPI-W from the average for the third quarter of the current year to the average for the third quarter of the last year in which a COLA became effective. If there is an increase, it must be rounded to the nearest tenth of one percent. If there is no increase, or if the rounded increase is zero, there is no COLA.”
The last completed determination, worked through
The 2026 COLA — SSA's row for 2025 — came out of a Q3 2025 CPI-W average of 317.265 against a Q3 2024 base of 308.729:
(317.265 - 308.729) / 308.729 x 100 = 2.8%
That 2.8% is the figure SSA published, and the same arithmetic produces the 2027 number, 3.6%, from the Q3 2026 average. Note the base for the current determination is Q3 2025, the last year a COLA actually became effective.
Why "the last year a COLA became effective" is not just "last year"
In an ordinary year the base quarter is the prior year's Q3 and the distinction never shows. It matters after a zero year. Because there were no COLAs for 2010, 2011, 2016, each following determination reached back past those years to the last quarter that produced an adjustment — which is why prices had to recover their earlier peak before benefits moved again. It is also why the rule can never cut a benefit: the floor is zero, not a negative adjustment.
Every Social Security COLA since 1975
All 52 published adjustments, newest first. The left column is the public numbering — what news coverage and searches call each one, and the year the larger payment lands. The right-hand column is SSA's own index: the year the adjustment became effective.
The two columns agree until 1983, then separate by a year — and that is not an error. The 1975–1982 COLAs took effect with benefits payable for June, so the money arrived in the same year SSA indexes them under. From 1983 a COLA takes effect with benefits payable for December, which reaches recipients the following January. One consequence: no COLA increase arrived during calendar 1983 at all — the 7.4% rise landed in 1982 and the next one in January 1984.
| COLA year | Increase | SSA effective year | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2027 | 3.6% | 2026 | |
| 2026 | 2.8% | 2025 | |
| 2025 | 2.5% | 2024 | |
| 2024 | 3.2% | 2023 | |
| 2023 | 8.7% | 2022 | |
| 2022 | 5.9% | 2021 | |
| 2021 | 1.3% | 2020 | |
| 2020 | 1.6% | 2019 | |
| 2019 | 2.8% | 2018 | |
| 2018 | 2.0% | 2017 | |
| 2017 | 0.3% | 2016 | |
| 2016 | 0.0% | 2015 | No COLA payable |
| 2015 | 1.7% | 2014 | |
| 2014 | 1.5% | 2013 | |
| 2013 | 1.7% | 2012 | |
| 2012 | 3.6% | 2011 | |
| 2011 | 0.0% | 2010 | No COLA payable |
| 2010 | 0.0% | 2009 | No COLA payable |
| 2009 | 5.8% | 2008 | |
| 2008 | 2.3% | 2007 | |
| 2007 | 3.3% | 2006 | |
| 2006 | 4.1% | 2005 | |
| 2005 | 2.7% | 2004 | |
| 2004 | 2.1% | 2003 | |
| 2003 | 1.4% | 2002 | |
| 2002 | 2.6% | 2001 | |
| 2001 | 3.5% | 2000 | |
| 2000 | 2.5% | 1999 | Originally determined as 2.4% from the published CPIs; set to 2.5% by Public Law 106-554. |
| 1999 | 1.3% | 1998 | |
| 1998 | 2.1% | 1997 | |
| 1997 | 2.9% | 1996 | |
| 1996 | 2.6% | 1995 | |
| 1995 | 2.8% | 1994 | |
| 1994 | 2.6% | 1993 | |
| 1993 | 3.0% | 1992 | |
| 1992 | 3.7% | 1991 | |
| 1991 | 5.4% | 1990 | |
| 1990 | 4.7% | 1989 | |
| 1989 | 4.0% | 1988 | |
| 1988 | 4.2% | 1987 | |
| 1987 | 1.3% | 1986 | |
| 1986 | 3.1% | 1985 | |
| 1985 | 3.5% | 1984 | |
| 1984 | 3.5% | 1983 | First COLA effective with benefits payable for December rather than June. Because the 1982 increase arrived in 1982 and this one arrived in January 1984, no COLA increase reached recipients during calendar 1983. |
| 1982 | 7.4% | 1982 | |
| 1981 | 11.2% | 1981 | |
| 1980 | 14.3% | 1980 | |
| 1979 | 9.9% | 1979 | |
| 1978 | 6.5% | 1978 | |
| 1977 | 5.9% | 1977 | |
| 1976 | 6.4% | 1976 | |
| 1975 | 8.0% | 1975 |
Three years produced no adjustment at all: 2010, 2011, 2016. The largest was 14.3% for 1980. 1984: First COLA effective with benefits payable for December rather than June. Because the 1982 increase arrived in 1982 and this one arrived in January 1984, no COLA increase reached recipients during calendar 1983. 2000: Originally determined as 2.4% from the published CPIs; set to 2.5% by Public Law 106-554.
Frequently asked questions
What is the 2027 Social Security COLA?
3.6%. The CPI-W averaged 328.746 over July, August and September 2026, against 317.265 for the same quarter of 2025, and SSA rounds the increase to the nearest tenth of one percent. It is effective with benefits payable for December 2026 and first appears in the payment received in January 2027.
When does the 2027 COLA take effect?
It is effective with benefits payable for December 2026, which is why the larger amount first shows up in the payment received in January 2027. SSA announced it in October 2026, once the September 2026 CPI-W completed the quarter.
Why does SSA call it the 2026 COLA when I get the money in 2027?
SSA indexes a COLA by the year it becomes effective, and since 1983 a COLA is effective for December. The press, the public and search engines number it by the year the bigger check arrives — one year later. So SSA's table row for 2026 showing 3.6% is what everyone calls "the 2027 COLA". Both refer to the same adjustment. This page uses the public numbering throughout.
How is the Social Security COLA calculated?
SSA compares the CPI-W average for the third quarter of the current year against the third quarter of the last year in which a COLA became effective, and rounds any increase to the nearest tenth of one percent. For the 2027 determination the base is Q3 2025, average 317.265. If there is no increase, or the rounded increase is zero, there is no COLA.
Can the COLA be zero?
Yes, and it has been three times: 2010, 2011, 2016. The rule produces no adjustment when CPI-W does not rise. It never produces a negative one — benefits are not cut when prices fall. A zero year also pins the base quarter: the next determination compares against the last year a COLA actually became effective, not simply the prior year.
What was the 2026 COLA?
2.8%, announced in October 2025 and payable from January 2026. It came from a Q3 2025 CPI-W average of 317.265 against a Q3 2024 base of 308.729.
How much will my check go up?
Multiply your gross monthly benefit by one plus the COLA, then round down to the whole dollar — that is exactly what SSA does. The calculator at the top of this page runs that arithmetic for any percentage you pick, and the lookup table covers common benefit amounts. Remember that the Medicare Part B premium is deducted from most payments and is set separately, so the amount deposited can rise by less.
What has the biggest COLA been?
14.3%, for 1980 — the peak of the early-1980s inflation. The full series below runs from the first automatic COLA (8.0%, in 1975) to the most recent.
Sources
Related Calculators
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