Social Security’s COLA increase in 2027 could be its largest in 4 years

Social Security beneficiaries could see a 3.6% cost-of-living adjustment in 2027, according to a projection released last week by The Senior Citizens League, an increase over this year’s 2.8% adjustment. If the projection holds, average monthly Social Security benefits would increase by about $69.75, from $1,937.53 to $2,007.28, the organization said. The Social Security Administration is scheduled to announce the official 2027 COLA Oct. 14. That adjustment is based on the average change in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) during July, August and September. With the July CPI-W showing a 3.4% annual increase, the Senior Citizens League’s projection suggests inflation could rise modestly over the next two months. “One of the biggest challenges this year has been the sharp swings in inflation,” Shannon Benton, executive director of the Senior Citizens League, said in a statement. “It started at 2.2% in January, climbed to 4.4% in May, then fell to 3.5% in June. Fortunately, our model is designed not to overreact to these swings, keeping our COLA projections relatively steady.” If the 3.6% estimate becomes official, it would be the largest CO...