As predicted, the Social Security COLA (Cost of Living Adjustment) will be 2.3% in 2026. This makes it less than the 2.5% increase that happened this year. Meanwhile, retired folks are waiting to learn about their social security benefits next year. The wait will be over in the next six months; however, you may learn about the cost of living adjustment(COLA) to plan your finances better. It should not drain your account too much despite the increase in the cost of living. You may do so by following the Senior Citizens League (TSCL) which is an organization for helping seniors. They come up with applicable forecasts each month. This time they have come up with a mixed bag of news for the retirees. Let’s first get into the good news. The good news is the increase of 2.3% in the benefits. Although it is below this year’s adjustment, it is still good news. The decrease from this year is good news as we calculate the annual cost of living using inflation matrices. The increase in the percentage of the Consumer Price Index is measured between the CPI-W for the third quarter of the current year and the average CPI-W for the third quarter of the previous year. This gives the right value to estimate the increase in prices. Social Security is YOUR money. You paid into it every paycheck. It’s an earned benefit. Over 66M Americans depend on Social Security & ½ of all seniors rely on it for most of their income. Republicans want to cut it! Call Congress: 202-224-3121 Say #HandsOffMySocialSecurity pic.twitter.com/fRYQjJVr1e — Malena-PRO-CHOICE🟦🟧Fighting Tyranny! (@tweetMalena) April 24, 2025 It may not be the most accurate method but it can reflect the right increase that may impact senior citizen’s budgets. However, one downside is that you may not receive any benefits till the next year and will have to initially pay higher prices of goods and services. In an ideal scenario, the COLA should be 0% but due to inflation it does rise, impacting the buying power. One thing to worry about is that the expected COLA will be way higher than the current 2.3%. The previous number calculated did not keep Trump’s tariffs in consideration when calculating. Therefore, the impact of tariffs will be seen across the cost of living as the grocery prices get high. Not just groceries, it’ll also increase the price of vehicles, appliances, clothes and furniture. The impact may be seen as early as April. The Treasury warns that cuts to Social Security would ‘decimate’ retirees’ standard of living. This is your ma or your granny or papa or you that we’re talking about. This is a Republican attack on working families!#HandsOffMySocialSecurity pic.twitter.com/Cp1EFgRhuE — Malena-PRO-CHOICE🟦🟧Fighting Tyranny! (@tweetMalena) April 24, 2025 As Shannon Benton, the TSCL Executive Director, said, the tariffs will bring higher inflation in the coming months. And all the economic statistics show that there will be new import tax rules for goods and services. She emphasizes that the introduction of taxes on various countries for goods from the agriculture sector, automobiles, and furniture will have a negative impact on everyone’s finances. Moreover, the cost of medical equipment and even medicines will rise as other countries will retaliate with the tariffs. Seniors will also have to pay more auto insurance and buy food at higher prices. They make it sound like there are millions of dead people getting Social Security checks. But it’s just not true. pic.twitter.com/oZKRnczI9F — Pete Buttigieg (@PeteButtigieg) April 25, 2025 In addition, this surge in inflation will also increase the predicted COLA than whatever is calculated. We’ll have to observe the changes in the system. The overall impact of higher COLA will be on the trust funds, which will dry up faster than expected. So, by 2035, you may not have much left as per the cost of living. It may even happen sooner if the numbers increase due to the tariffs. To resolve these issues, the government may take some measures.