By now, all seniors on Social Security should have gotten their first checks for 2025. With the latest 2.5% cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) in effect, the average benefit has climbed to $1,976 per month. That's about $49 higher than the average in December 2024.

Social Security benefits received a 2.5% cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) in 2025, but for many retirees, this is not enough to keep up with rising prices. Their monthly checks don't go as far as they used to,

The non-partisan advocacy group The Senior Citizens League predicts the 2026 COLA will be 2.1%, based on data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ CPI-W, the index used to calculate the annual increase. December’s CPI-W came in at 2.8%. Getty Images

Social Security’s cost-of-living adjustment is expected to shrink in 2026 and could be the lowest increase seen in a decade.

For retirees, healthcare expenses are unavoidable and increasingly unaffordable. Fidelity Research says a 65-year-old retiring in 2024 can expect to spend an average of $165,000 on healthcare and medical expenses throughout retirement — a 5% jump over the previous year and more than double 2002’s estimate.

The Senior Citizens League (TSCL), a nonpartisan senior group, recently released their monthly COLA estimate, predicting that it would moderate to 2.1% in 2026.

According to a recent Social Security COLA survey by The Motley Fool that asked 2,000 retirees about the COLA, 81% of retirees say that the 2025 COLA will not help them keep up with their essential living expenses. And it isn't hard to see why.

Social Security’s annual cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) helps keep retirees afloat as inflation erodes purchasing power. But this year, it’s sparking some anxiety. Millions of Americans are facing tough questions about how to stretch their money with a modest 2.

Social Security in 2025 is poised for significant updates, impacting the benefits retirees rely on. From adjustments to the full retirement age (FRA) to increases in the cost-of-living adjustment (COLA),