The Social Security COLA (cost-of-living-adjustment) increase went into effect last month and now that we're in February, recipients should have received their payments by now.
Those who receive Social Security, including retirement, survivors, Social Security Disability Insurance and Supplemental Security Income should have received a minor monetary bump in their monthly checks due to the 2.5% COLA increase, though the amount will likely vary from person to person.
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The 2.5% COLA increase is a modest adjustment compared to 2024's 3.2% increase and 2023's major 8.7% increase. The small boost in monthly payments may not bring a meaningful difference to the table for beneficiaries, but a lower COLA is an indication that inflation is cooling.
If for any reason you haven't received your monthly benefit check for January yet, here's what you can do -- and make sure you haven't done any of these four things that could have got your benefits suspended.
What is the Social Security COLA?
The Social Security Administration determines COLA using the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers, which is a measure of the average change in prices for consumer goods and services, released monthly by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The administration uses COLA to adjust each year's benefits that are paid to Social Security beneficiaries and Supplemental Security Income recipients.
Announced in October, the COLA goes into effect in January of the following year.
Which government benefits make adjustments using COLA?
Social Security isn't the only government benefit that is affected by the COLA. Social Security Disability Insurance, Supplemental Security Income, Medicare and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (including food stamps and other programs) all use COLA to account for inflation when setting benefits.
The 2.5% COLA increase was predicted
We'd been following expert predictions in the lead-up to the official COLA announcement, and those predictions were spot on. The Senior Citizens League, a nonpartisan advocacy group for older adults, had predicted a COLA Increase of 2.5% a month before the official announcement, and that's exactly where the COLA landed.
The league said in a recent survey of 3,000 older Americans, 72% reported that changing the COLA calculation to an index that better reflects seniors' changing costs should be a top priority for Congress.
"Our research shows that 67% of seniors depend on Social Security for more than half their income and that 62% worry their retirement income won't even cover essentials like groceries and medical bills," TSCL Executive Director Shannon Benton said in a statement regarding the latest COLA announcement.
COLA Increases 2020 - 2025
| Year | COLA Increase | % change vs. the previous year |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 2.50% | -0.70% |
| 2024 | 3.20% | -5.50% |
| 2023 | 8.70% | 2.80% |
| 2022 | 5.90% | 4.60% |
| 2021 | 1.30% | -0.30% |
| 2020 | 1.60% |
2026 COLA predictions already rolling out
The League has already made a prediction that the COLA will be set at 2.1% for 2026. While the predictions can change month to month, this would be the lowest COLA since 2021's increase of 1.3%.
Benton's latest statement in response to the League's prediction urges Congress to take swift action to "fix years of sub-par COLAs and help give seniors the quality of life they deserve."
Another insight pointed out is that the Trump administration's plan to eliminate taxes on Social Security benefits could save seniors up to $3,000 per year.
We'll continue updating this article with the latest information as it unfolds for 2026.
For more, find out what to do if you never received your Social Security check and how to determine your Social Security benefits with this free tool.