Social Security COLA 2027
Each year Social Security and SSI payments rise with inflation. The raise for 2027 comes from September's inflation data.
- 2026 raise
- 2.8%, starting with January 2026 payments
- 2027 raise
- Calculated from the September inflation report, due Wednesday, October 14, 2026 at 8:30 a.m. Eastern. SSA usually announces the raise the same morning.
- Takes effect
- January 2027 Social Security payments, and SSI payments for January 2027 (paid December 31, 2026)
The September inflation report is out in 7d 1h.
How the raise is worked out
The annual Social Security and SSI cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) is set by a formula in the Social Security Act: it equals the percentage increase in the average CPI-W (Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers, published monthly by the Bureau of Labor Statistics) for July-September of the current year over the July-September average of the last year a COLA took effect, rounded to the nearest 0.1%. If there is no increase, there is no COLA. Because the September CPI-W completes that quarter, SSA announces the COLA when BLS releases the September CPI in October; in each of the last three years SSA's announcement came the same day as that BLS release (Oct 12, 2023; Oct 10, 2024; Oct 24, 2025 - a later-than-usual release). The COLA takes effect with December benefits paid in January; SSI increases start with the January payment, which is paid at the end of December.
Sources
See also: Social Security payment schedule · SSI dates.