Latest News
2026 COLA: Good news and bad news - MarketWatch
The Senior Citizens League (SCL), an advocacy group for seniors, regularly monitors the U.S. cost of living, with an eye towards what next year’s Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) might be for those collecting Social Security. And even though actual COLA for Social Security isn’t determined until the 3rd quarter of each year, the SCL nevertheless, seeks to provide early predictions, and that is what this MarketWatch article is about.
The forecast for 2026 COLA is good or bad, depending on your perspective. The good news is that U.S. inflation is down, which translates into less money spent for the goods we buy. But the bad side of that news is that, if the forecast holds, the COLA increase to everyone’s Social Security payment will be a smaller amount than that which occurred in recent years.
Of course, actual 2026 COLA won’t be determined until mid-October of this year, but, according to this MarketWatch article by Jessica Hall, we can likely look forward to one of the lowest COLA increases since 2021. And President Trump’s recent Executive Order to lower prescription drug costs, a sizable expense for most senior citizens, may also further affect inflation (thus COLA) for next year. Find out all you need to know about possible 2026 Cost of Living Adjustments in this MarketWatch article.