Social Security Announces 3.6% COLA for 2027, Adding About $75 a Month to Average Checks
The Social Security Administration announced Wednesday that benefits will rise 3.6% in 2027, the biggest increase in four years, reaching about 76 million Americans. The average retired worker's check will grow by roughly $75 a month, though advocates say it may not keep up with rising costs.
Social Security recipients will see bigger monthly checks in 2027. The Social Security Administration announced Wednesday that benefits will rise 3.6%, the largest annual increase in four years.
The cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA, covers about 76 million Americans who receive Social Security or Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits, according to the agency. For the average retired worker, the increase works out to about $75 more a month, or roughly $900 a year.
The increase takes effect in January 2027 for Social Security benefits. SSI recipients will see the bump a day earlier, on Dec. 31, 2026, because Jan. 1 is a federal holiday.
Federal law ties the COLA to inflation, measured by the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers, known as CPI-W. The agency compares average readings from July, August and September with the same three months a year earlier and sets the adjustment to the difference, rounded to the nearest tenth of a percent. This year, rising fuel and food prices pushed the index higher: the broader consumer price index was up 3.7% over the year ending in September, driven in part by a 5.2% jump in energy prices, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
“Social Security will implement this cost-of-living adjustment for 76 million Americans, giving them greater financial stability,” SSA Commissioner Frank J. Bisignano said in the announcement.
How much checks will change
The agency gave examples of what the 3.6% adjustment means across programs: the average retired worker’s monthly check rises from $2,095 to $2,170; an aged couple with both spouses receiving benefits goes from $3,238 to $3,355; an aged widow or widower living alone from $1,936 to $2,005; and an average disabled worker from $1,642 to $1,701.
The 3.6% increase tops the 2.8% COLA paid in 2026 and is the biggest since the 8.7% adjustment that took effect in 2023. In 2025 and 2024, the adjustments were 2.5% and 3.2%.
Along with the COLA, the agency said the cap on income subject to Social Security payroll taxes will rise to $192,300 in 2027, up $7,800 from $184,500 in 2026. The earnings test will also loosen: people younger than full retirement age can earn up to $25,560 a year before benefits are reduced, and people at full retirement age can earn up to $67,920.
Advocates say it may not be enough
Some advocacy groups said the raise may not close the gap for seniors whose budgets are stretched.
“While a 3.6% COLA is certainly welcome, it wouldn’t necessarily restore the purchasing power seniors have already lost,” Shannon Benton, executive director of the Senior Citizens League, told CBS News. “The COLAs are designed to keep pace with inflation, not make up for years of falling behind.”
An AARP survey found that 76% of retirees believed even a 3.5% COLA would not be enough to keep up with rising prices.
One cost that could eat into the gain remains unresolved: Medicare Part B premiums for 2027 have not been announced, and the Medicare board of trustees projected the monthly premium could climb to as much as $209.50, according to the New York Times.
Reporting based on coverage by the Detroit Free Press and People.
