In 2026, retirees might even see a smaller cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for his or her Social Security advantages.

The Senior Residents League (TSCL), a nonpartisan senior group, projected 2026 COLA to be 2.1% of their lately launched their month-to-month estimates.

This might mark a decline from the COLA will increase in recent times and displays a slowdown in inflation. The COLA was 2.5% in 2025, 3.2% in 2024, and eight.7% in 2023.

The COLA is made yearly and is supposed to guard folks’s Social Safety advantages from being eroded by inflation. The Social Safety Administration sometimes pronounces the official COLA adjustment in October.

Inflation Has Cooled, But Stays Persistent

Though inflation has fallen from it is peak of greater than 9% in the summertime of 2022, it is confirmed stubborn.

The TSCL primarily based its estimate on the newest CPI report, which confirmed an uptick in inflation from the 12 months prior. COLA is tied to the CPI-W, or the Client Worth Index for City Wage Earners and Clerical Employees. For December, the CPI-W was 2.8%, up from 2.6% in November.

«Whereas slowing inflation is an efficient factor, it doesn’t imply costs will fall—simply that they’ll rise extra slowly. This leaves many seniors dealing with a finances shortfall,» states the TSCL launch.

And up to date information signifies {that a} excessive value of residing has burdened some retirees. Practically one-third of retirees reported that they had been spending greater than they could afford, a current survey confirmed.