Social Security benefits will rise 2.8% in 2026, translating to an average monthly increase of about $56 for the nearly 71 million beneficiaries receiving payments, the Social Security Administration announced in October 2025.
The increase, known as the Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA), is calculated annually based on the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W). The 2.8% adjustment for 2026 is slightly higher than the 2.5% COLA that took effect in January 2025, reflecting changes in inflation over the past year.
The COLA applies to all Social Security beneficiaries, including retired workers, disabled workers, and survivors. Supplemental Security Income (SSI) recipients also receive the same percentage increase. The new benefit amounts will begin with payments made in January 2026, covering benefits earned in December 2025.
Fairness Act Expands Benefits for Specific Groups
Alongside the standard COLA increase, the Social Security Fairness Act, signed into law by President Biden on January 5, 2025, is expanding payments for a different group of beneficiaries. The law repeals two longstanding provisions—the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO)—that had reduced benefits for public sector employees and their families.
The Fairness Act applies retroactively to January 2024, meaning eligible beneficiaries are receiving back payments along with higher ongoing monthly benefits. These changes particularly benefit state and local government employees, teachers, firefighters, and police officers who paid into Social Security through other employment but also receive a pension from government work not covered by Social Security.
According to the Social Security Administration, the agency began paying retroactive benefits in February 2025 and continues to process applications. Full implementation of the Fairness Act is expected to take over a year as the SSA works through the administrative requirements to recalculate benefits for affected beneficiaries.
Together, the 2.8% COLA and the Fairness Act represent two separate mechanisms expanding Social Security payments in 2026—one providing across-the-board relief tied to inflation, the other removing benefit reductions for specific groups of workers who faced dual-pension penalties under the prior law.
Sources
- Social Security Administration — confirmed the 2.8% COLA for 2026, the average $56 monthly increase, and the 71 million beneficiaries affected; also provided details on the Social Security Fairness Act implementation and retroactive benefit payments
- GovExec — reported on the Fairness Act’s repeal of WEP and GPO and its impact on public sector retirees
- IAFF (International Association of Fire Fighters) — detailed how the Fairness Act affects public employees and when retroactive payments began
- Chase Bank — noted that the 2.8% COLA for 2026 is up slightly from 2025’s 2.5% increase
- NAPA Net — explained that COLA is calculated using the average annual inflation measured by the CPI-W for July, August, and September
