2026 Social Security COLA
2.8%
Benefit raise, fixed for all of 2026.
2026 Edition | Updated October 2026
Cost of Living Increase 2026 by State
Just announced, 2027: the Social Security COLA for 2027 is 3.6 percent, announced 14 October 2026 and effective with January 2027 benefits (about +$75 a month on the average retirement benefit). What the 2027 raise is worth in your state.
Direct answer: the 2026 Social Security cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) is 2.8 percent. But actual consumer prices rose 3.7 percent over the year to September 2026 (BLS CPI-U), and the increase was uneven across the country: fastest in the Northeast and Midwest (4.2 percent each), slowest in the South and West (3.4 percent each). There is no official 50-state inflation figure, so the four census regions below are the closest geographic breakdown.
Actual inflation (CPI-U)
3.7%
12 months to September 2026, all items.
Fastest-rising regions
4.2%
Northeast and Midwest, year to September 2026.
Looking ahead: the Social Security Administration announced a 3.6 percent COLA for 2027 on 14 October 2026, effective with January 2027 benefits. Our 2027 cost of living increase page covers the announcement and shows what the raise is worth in each state.
When prices rise faster than the COLA, cash in a big-bank savings account earning next to nothing loses ground fastest. Raisin lists high-yield savings and CD accounts from smaller US banks and credit unions in one place.
Partner link: we earn a commission if you open and fund an account through it. It has no effect on any figure or ranking on this site.
By census region
Cost of living increase by region, year to September 2026
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports CPI-U inflation for four census regions rather than for individual states. These are the 12-month all-items increases for the year ending September 2026 (released 14 October 2026). Each state inherits its region’s figure.
Northeast
+4.2%
Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont
Midwest
+4.2%
Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, Wisconsin
South
+3.4%
Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia, Washington, D.C.
West
+3.4%
Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, Wyoming
National CPI-U, all items, 12 months to September 2026: +3.7%.
State lookup
2026 cost of living increase by state
Because there is no official per-state inflation index, each state below carries its census region’s 12-month CPI-U increase for the year ending September 2026. Use this for the rate of change; for how expensive a state is in absolute terms, see the 2026 cost of living index.
| State | Census region | Increase (yr to Sep 2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | South | +3.4% |
| Alaska | West | +3.4% |
| Arizona | West | +3.4% |
| Arkansas | South | +3.4% |
| California | West | +3.4% |
| Colorado | West | +3.4% |
| Connecticut | Northeast | +4.2% |
| Delaware | South | +3.4% |
| Florida | South | +3.4% |
| Georgia | South | +3.4% |
| Hawaii | West | +3.4% |
| Idaho | West | +3.4% |
| Illinois | Midwest | +4.2% |
| Indiana | Midwest | +4.2% |
| Iowa | Midwest | +4.2% |
| Kansas | Midwest | +4.2% |
| Kentucky | South | +3.4% |
| Louisiana | South | +3.4% |
| Maine | Northeast | +4.2% |
| Maryland | South | +3.4% |
| Massachusetts | Northeast | +4.2% |
| Michigan | Midwest | +4.2% |
| Minnesota | Midwest | +4.2% |
| Mississippi | South | +3.4% |
| Missouri | Midwest | +4.2% |
| Montana | West | +3.4% |
| Nebraska | Midwest | +4.2% |
| Nevada | West | +3.4% |
| New Hampshire | Northeast | +4.2% |
| New Jersey | Northeast | +4.2% |
| New Mexico | West | +3.4% |
| New York | Northeast | +4.2% |
| North Carolina | South | +3.4% |
| North Dakota | Midwest | +4.2% |
| Ohio | Midwest | +4.2% |
| Oklahoma | South | +3.4% |
| Oregon | West | +3.4% |
| Pennsylvania | Northeast | +4.2% |
| Rhode Island | Northeast | +4.2% |
| South Carolina | South | +3.4% |
| South Dakota | Midwest | +4.2% |
| Tennessee | South | +3.4% |
| Texas | South | +3.4% |
| Utah | West | +3.4% |
| Vermont | Northeast | +4.2% |
| Virginia | South | +3.4% |
| Washington | West | +3.4% |
| West Virginia | South | +3.4% |
| Wisconsin | Midwest | +4.2% |
| Wyoming | West | +3.4% |
Sources: Social Security Administration 2026 COLA fact sheet (24 October 2025); BLS Consumer Price Index Summary and regional CPI news releases for September 2026 (released 14 October 2026). State-to-region mapping follows the US Census Bureau’s four statistical regions. See methodology.
Reading the numbers
COLA, CPI and the index are three different things
The 2.8 percent COLA is a benefit raise, not the current inflation rate. It is calculated from the CPI-W over a fixed window (third quarter 2024 to third quarter 2025) and locked in for all of 2026. Because it looks backward, it lags the current pace of prices in a year when inflation is re-accelerating.
The 3.7 percent CPI-U is what a household actually experiences now. It measures how much more the same basket of goods and services costs than a year ago, through September 2026. Energy was the biggest single contributor over the year, which is why the cold-climate Northeast and Midwest ran hotter than the South and West.
A price parity is a level, not a change. The BEA all-items parity used across this site (US average = 100) tells you how expensive a state is compared with others at one point in time. A state can be expensive in level terms yet have a below-average increase this year, or the reverse. For a relocation decision, use the index for how expensive a state is and this page for how fast that cost is rising.
Plan from the CPI, not the COLA headline. With current inflation near 3.7 percent and the benefit adjustment at 2.8 percent, fixed-income households lose a little purchasing power over the year. Budgeting from the current CPI rather than the COLA is the more conservative approach.
Has your money kept up since 2020?
Prices are up sharply since 2020. See what any amount from any year is worth today, from the same BLS price index the COLA is built on, for groceries, rent, gas or medical care.
Frequently Asked
Cost of living increase 2026, answered
What is the cost of living increase for 2027?
The Social Security Administration announced a 3.6 percent cost-of-living adjustment for 2027 on 14 October 2026. It applies to Social Security benefits from January 2027 and to SSI payments from 31 December 2026. SSA estimates the average retirement benefit rises by about $75 a month, from $2,095 to $2,170. It is the largest COLA since the 8.7 percent applied for 2023. Over the same period consumer prices rose 3.7 percent in the 12 months to September 2026 (BLS CPI-U). Our 2027 page shows what the raise is worth in each state.
How much is the cost of living increase for 2026?
There are two different numbers, and they answer different questions. The 2026 Social Security cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) is 2.8 percent, announced by the Social Security Administration on 24 October 2025 and applied to benefits from January 2026. That figure is a fixed, nationwide raise tied to the CPI-W from the third quarter of 2024 to the third quarter of 2025. Separately, actual consumer prices rose 3.7 percent over the 12 months ending September 2026 (BLS Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers, released 14 October 2026), which is what a household actually experiences at the till. The COLA looks backward at last year's inflation, so it still runs below the current rate of price growth.
Does the cost of living increase vary by state?
Officially it varies by region, not by individual state. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish a 50-state inflation index. The closest geographic breakdown is the four census regions. For the 12 months ending September 2026, the all-items CPI-U rose 4.2 percent in both the Northeast and the Midwest, and 3.4 percent in both the South and the West. The national figure was 3.7 percent. So a household in the Northeast or Midwest saw prices rise noticeably faster than one in the South or West this year.
Why did prices rise more in the Northeast and Midwest than the West?
The regional gap in 2026 is driven mainly by energy and shelter. Cold-climate regions carry a larger home-heating and electricity weight, and energy was the fastest-rising major category over the year (the national energy index was up 20.4 percent for the 12 months ending September 2026). The West and South, which had led inflation in earlier years on the back of housing, saw shelter cost growth cool relative to the rest of the country. Regional rankings shift year to year, so this ordering reflects the 12 months to September 2026 specifically, not a permanent pattern.
Is the 2.8 percent COLA the same as the inflation rate?
No, and conflating the two is the most common mistake. The COLA is a benefit adjustment, not a measure of current inflation. It is calculated from the CPI-W over a fixed window (Q3 2024 to Q3 2025) and locked in for the whole of 2026. Current inflation, measured by the CPI-U over the most recent 12 months, was running at 3.7 percent as of September 2026. When current inflation is higher than the COLA, fixed-income households effectively lose purchasing power during the year, because their raise was set from an earlier, lower inflation reading.
What is the difference between a cost of living increase and the cost of living index?
They measure different things, and this is the single most common confusion on the subject. A cost of living increase (inflation, or a COLA) is a change over time: how much more the same basket of goods costs this year versus last. The price index used elsewhere on this site, the BEA all-items regional price parity with the nation at 100.0, is a level: how expensive one state is compared with another at a single point in time. A state can be expensive in level terms while its year-over-year increase is below average, or cheap in level terms while its prices are rising quickly. For a relocation decision you want both: the index tells you how expensive a state is today, the increase tells you how fast that is changing.
How does the 2026 increase compare with recent years?
The 2026 COLA of 2.8 percent is slightly above the 2.5 percent applied for 2025, reflecting a recent uptick in inflation. On the price side, the 3.7 percent CPI-U reading for the year to September 2026 (up from 3.4 percent in the year to August) is well above the sub-3 percent pace of the second half of 2024, driven largely by energy. The takeaway for planning: cost of living increases in 2026 are still running ahead of the benefit adjustment, so budget from the current CPI (about 3.7 percent) rather than the 2.8 percent COLA headline.