One historical trend points to a higher Social Security COLA in 2026. However, the Trump administration's tariffs are a big wild card. Investor Alert: Our 10 best stocks to buy right now › ...

The chart below shows the annual Social Security COLAs by the year they were announced beginning in 2000. Data source: Social Security Administration. Chart by author.

History of COLAs. The Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) has been a part of the Social Security program since the 1970s, and it's designed to help retirees keep up with inflation.Over the years, the ...

The annual Social Security COLA is based on the third-quarter change in the CPI-W, or Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers. In July, the index rose 2.9%. In August, it ...

The 2.5% COLA would be less than the 3.2% adjustment that Social Security recipients got for 2024, but would be roughly in line with the historical norm – as it's averaged 2.6% over the last 20 ...

The Social Security annual cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for 2025 is 2.5%, ... it isn't far from the historical average. The COLA has averaged about 2.6% over the past 20 years.

Social Security is supposed to be inflation-proof. It's anything but. Today's the day tens of millions of retirees learn about their annual Social Security "bonus." I'm referring to the system's ...

The annual cost of living adjustment (COLA) by the Social Security Administration (SSA) to Social Security payments for 2025 is expected to be 2.5%, the smallest COLA increase in the past three years.

Some Social Security beneficiaries might be disappointed by the amount of their increase. The 2025 COLA of 2.5% is lower than the 3.4% received this year and well below the 8.7% received in 2023 ...

The present is more important than the past. I don't think history is all that great of a guide in helping predict what the 2026 Social Security COLA will be.