The measurement
The COLA is not set by Congress and is not a policy choice in any given year. It is the percentage change in the CPI-W between the third quarter of one year and the third quarter of the next. SSA uses the average index value for July, August and September, compares it with the same three months a year earlier, and applies the result.
For 2027 the comparison covers the third quarter of 2025 through the third quarter of 2026 and produces 3.6%.
Because the calculation uses a completed quarter, the announcement comes in the fall and takes effect for the following year. There is no midyear adjustment.
When the increase arrives
The 3.6% applies to benefits for December 2026, which are paid in January 2027. Payment dates follow the normal schedule based on birth date, with the first of the month reserved for SSI.
| Item | 2026 | 2027 |
|---|---|---|
| COLA | 2.8% | 3.6% |
| Average retired-worker benefit | $2,095 | $2,170 |
| Maximum benefit at full retirement age | $4,152 | $4,188 |
| SSI individual | $994 | $1,029 |
| SSI couple | $1,491 | $1,544 |
| Earnings test, under FRA | $24,480 | $25,560 |
| Wage base | $184,500 | $192,300 |
Some 2027 figures do not move with the COLA at all. The $200,000 and $250,000 thresholds for the additional Medicare tax are not indexed, and neither are the $25,000, $34,000, $32,000 and $44,000 thresholds that determine how much of a benefit is taxable.
Why your net increase may differ
Three deductions and interactions can make the January deposit look different from a clean 3.6%.
Medicare premiums. Part B is deducted from the monthly benefit, and the premium is reset each year. A benefit that rises 3.6% can produce a smaller net gain, or a flat one, if the premium absorbs the increase.
Taxation thresholds. Because the thresholds are fixed in statute, a COLA increases provisional income without moving the line. A household near a threshold can find a larger share of benefits taxable, which reduces the after-tax gain.
Rounding. Individual benefits are rounded down to the next dime after the adjustment, and the family maximum interacts with individual amounts.
What the average does not tell you
The $2,170 average and the $4,188 maximum describe two different populations. Neither is a target and neither is adjusted by claiming age.
The maximum at full retirement age is the benefit for a worker with earnings at or above the wage base across a full career. A worker claiming at 70 would receive 124% of their own PIA, which is a different calculation entirely. The average, by contrast, includes everyone currently on the rolls, many of whom claimed early and carry a permanent reduction.
The only figure that matters for your own January deposit is your current benefit multiplied by 1.036.