The increase in the amount of the Social Security check in the United States is done on an annual basis. Throughout the year, the amount of Social Security checks cannot increase unless it is for very exceptional situations. For that reason, all retirees who have a pension check every month should be aware of how much more they may receive the following year.
This annual increase in the Social Security check is intended to prevent seniors from losing purchasing power. The increase in prices due to inflation has been very aggressive in recent years, so an increase in retirement benefits is more than necessary. Although it is still too early to talk about exact figures, speculation is available.
And experts are starting to sound off on what the COLA we will ultimately see in the 2024 Social Security check. This increase will begin to kick in on the first of the payments the Administration will send out in the coming year. The first of these checks will be the January Supplemental Security Income, which will go from $914 to slightly more based on the increase.
What COLA increase will we see in the Social Security check?
As told by experts at The Senior Citizens League, the money in the monthly check could increase by almost 3% due to the COLA. To be more precise, the figure offered by this group of Americans is 2.7%. This would imply a much smaller increase than the 2023 COLA, which came in at 8.7%. This drop in the increase would mean that retirees could lose purchasing power for the following year.
COLA for 2024 Could Be 2.7% for Social Securityhttps://t.co/cQhkL0v91S pic.twitter.com/QDzPWIl1kA
— Seniors League (@Seniors_League) June 13, 2023
Inflation has not stopped increasing at any point and the numbers appear to be on the rise. Therefore, retirees will have access to a COLA that could prove to be insufficient. Even so, it is still too early to determine if the figure will be that 2.7% or if it will increase a little. We won’t have an official number until October, so we’ll have to wait until then.
How is the COLA increase calculated?
In order to determine how much the Social Security check will increase next year, the United States Government reviews the CPI-W increase for the months of July, August and September. Depending on how much the CPI-W increases for those months, the figure will increase more or less.
The official figure is always announced in mid-October. Even then, you have to wait until the first Supplemental Security Income in January of the following year to start seeing this increase.
It is also good to remember that the check increase is proportional for all Americans. Since it is a percentage increase, all citizens see the same increase in proportion to the check they currently collect. The maximum payment of $4,555 in 2023 will move to a higher figure next year, although not many Americans are able to collect this high amount.