There are millions of Americans who are seeing a slight boost in their social security checks. This boosted amount is a 2.5% Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) that will kick in alongside a new payment schedule. There are several people who are getting pending retroactive payments every month.
There are many who are welcoming this boosted amount; however, experts have warned that this increase in social security could trigger a rise in healthcare prices and inflation. Therefore, beneficiaries should be careful while making their monthly budget.
Every year, the Social Security Administration adjusts payments based on inflation data. For 2025, the COLA was officially calculated to be 2.5% which went into effect in January 2025. This will impact over 68 million social security recipients. This also includes about 7.5 million supplemental security income recipients.
This increase is done with an intention to help older Americans, disabled individuals, and others who are on fixed incomes. This rise is expected to help them with inflation.
Social Security Recipients to Get 2.5 Percent Cost-of-Living Boost in 2025
Don’t spend it all in one place. Your government hates you.
— TheTexasOne (@TexasRepublic71) October 10, 2024
For retirees receiving the average benefit of $2,005.05 per month, this adjustment would roughly add another $50 per month. Those who delayed retirement until age 70 can now receive a maximum monthly benefit of $5,108.
Payments in July follow the standard staggered schedule based on the recipient’s birthdate:
- Birthdates on the 1st–10th: Payment issued on July 10
- Birthdates on the 11th–20th: Payment issued on July 17
- Birthdates on the 21st–31st: Payment issued on July 24
Those who began receiving Social Security before May 1997 or who also received SSI were paid earlier, on July 1. Social security beneficiaries must use their MySocialSecurity account on the SSA website to check the exact dates of payments.
In this economy, while any increase is helpful, the 2.5% COLA is smaller than 2024’s 3.2% bump. And it is still smaller compared to the 8.7% hike seen in 2023. Experts worry that inflation and rising premiums for Medicare would quickly cancel out the extra dollars.
There is a projection according to which the Medicare Part B premium is expected to rise again in 2026. Some experts are forecasting a jump of more than $20 per month. For many retirees who have auto debit on their premiums and it gets deducted from their social security checks, this adjustment would hardly leave any extra dollars.
In 2025, Social Security benefits will see a 2.5% increase, a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) aimed at helping recipients keep pace with rising costs. While this may seem like a small change, even a modest increase can make a difference in monthly budgeting & long-term planning. pic.twitter.com/H7KoB8AIm1
— Jeremy Frazie (@JFraziewealth) January 21, 2025
Those who are eligible under the Social Security Fairness Act have already begun receiving retroactive lump-sum social security payments. Public sector workers such as teachers and first responders are included in this list. On average, these retroactive payments total around $6,710.
For those who are still using paper checks, the SSA strongly recommends switching to direct deposit by September 2025. The main reason to do so is to avoid delays. Recipients will also get timely alerts, benefit statements, and several updates through this account.
Forecast: The Social Security cost-of-living adjustment for 2026 should be around 2.8%. My prediction is a little higher than consensus, but we could all be wrong. https://t.co/uSGxi1vKcO pic.twitter.com/rt2uqStDzw
— Tipswatch (@TipsWatch) July 18, 2025
Preliminary projections suggest the 2026 COLA may rise slightly to 2.7%. This will depend on how inflation trends over the remainder of the year. However, Medicare premiums are also set to increase. Therefore, it is difficult to say if these raises would make any difference.
As always, understanding how your social security benefits work and when to expect them is key to making the most of what Social Security has to offer.
