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The 2027 Social Security cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) is 3.6%, beginning in January 2027, and the Social Security Administration says it raises retirement benefits by $75 a month on average. That follows a 2.8% COLA for 2026. A Social Security retirement benefit is calculated from your 35 highest-earning years and then adjusted by the age at which you start it. Claiming at 62, the earliest age available, takes roughly 30% off where full retirement age is 67; waiting until 70 adds about 24%. On SSA's 2027 maximum-earnings figures, the benefit runs from $3,094 a month at 62 to $5,358 at 70.
Updated
| Cost-of-living adjustment (COLA), 2027 | 3.6% | Announced October 14, 2026. Begins in January 2027 for Social Security beneficiaries and on December 31, 2026 for SSI recipients |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living adjustment (COLA), 2026 | 2.8% | Applied to benefits for 2026 |
| Average retirement benefit increase, 2027 | $75 a month | Estimated average for all retired workers goes from $2,095 to $2,170 in January 2027 |
| Full retirement age | 67 | Born 1960 or later. 66 and 10 months if born in 1959 |
| Earliest claiming age | 62 | Roughly a 30% reduction where full retirement age is 67 |
| Delayed retirement credits | +8% per year | From full retirement age until 70 — a maximum of about +24% |
| Maximum monthly benefit at 62, 2027 | $3,094 | Retiring in January 2027 with maximum-taxable earnings |
| Maximum monthly benefit at 62, 2026 | $2,969 | Requires maximum taxable earnings across 35 years |
| Maximum monthly benefit at full retirement age, 2027 | $4,188 | SSA's COLA fact sheet, for a worker retiring at full retirement age |
| Maximum monthly benefit at full retirement age, 2026 | $4,152 | SSA's COLA fact sheet, for a worker retiring at full retirement age |
| Maximum monthly benefit at 67, 2027 | $4,188 | Retiring in January 2027 with maximum-taxable earnings |
| Maximum monthly benefit at 67, 2026 | $4,207 | Retiring in January 2026. Includes two months of delayed credits, as explained below |
| Maximum monthly benefit at 70, 2027 | $5,358 | Retiring in January 2027 with maximum-taxable earnings |
| Maximum monthly benefit at 70, 2026 | $5,181 | |
| Taxable wage base, 2027 | $192,300 | Up from $184,500 in 2026 |
| Taxable wage base, 2026 | $184,500 | Up from $176,100 in 2025 |
| All retired workers | $2,170 | $2,095 before the COLA |
|---|---|---|
| Aged couple, both receiving benefits | $3,355 | $3,238 before the COLA |
| Aged widow(er) alone | $2,005 | $1,936 before the COLA |
| All disabled workers | $1,701 | $1,642 before the COLA |
| Earnings test exempt amount under full retirement age, 2027 | $25,560 a year | $2,130 a month. $1 in benefits is withheld for every $2 above it. 2026: $24,480 a year ($2,040 a month) |
|---|---|---|
| Exempt amount in the year you reach full retirement age, 2027 | $67,920 a year | $5,660 a month. $1 is withheld for every $3 above it, on earnings in the months before full retirement age. 2026: $65,160 a year ($5,430 a month) |
| Earnings limit from the month you reach full retirement age | None | |
| Earnings for one quarter of coverage, 2027 | $1,970 | 2026: $1,890 |
| Employee payroll tax rate | 7.65% | 2026 and 2027. 6.2% for Social Security on earnings up to the taxable maximum, plus 1.45% for Medicare on all earnings |
| Self-employed tax rate | 15.30% | 2026 and 2027 |
Full retirement age is the reference point, not the starting line. Claim there and you receive 100% of your calculated benefit. Claim at 62, the earliest age available, and someone whose full retirement age is 67 takes a reduction of roughly 30%. Wait past full retirement age and delayed retirement credits add about 8% for each year until 70, worth around 24% in total.
The spread is wide. For a worker with maximum taxable earnings across 35 years, the 2026 figures run from $2,969 a month at 62 to $5,181 at 70 — the later benefit is about 75% larger. For retirement in January 2027 the range is $3,094 at 62 to $5,358 at 70. Most people do not have maximum earnings, but the proportions apply regardless of the underlying amount.
SSA sets out the trade-off directly: if you start early you collect benefits for a longer period of time, but your benefit is reduced. The increase from delaying stops when you reach 70.
Benefits are adjusted each year by a cost-of-living adjustment tied by law to the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W). For 2027 that adjustment is 3.6%, based on the increase in the CPI-W from the third quarter of 2025 through the third quarter of 2026. For 2026 it was 2.8%. It compounds: because each year's COLA applies to the already-adjusted amount, a larger starting benefit also grows by a larger absolute amount every year thereafter.
The COLA is announced in the autumn for the following year. SSA announced the 2027 figure on October 14, 2026. The 3.6% increase begins with December 2026 benefits, which are payable in January 2027.
Social Security payroll tax applies only up to an annual earnings ceiling, which rises to $192,300 in 2027 from $184,500 in 2026 and $176,100 in 2025. Earnings above that ceiling are not taxed for Social Security, and SSA says the same annual limit also applies when earnings are used in a benefit computation.
This is the mechanism behind the maximum benefit figures above: reaching them requires earnings at or above the wage base for 35 years, not merely a high salary in recent ones.
SSA states the maximum in two ways, and they are not the same measure. Its COLA fact sheet gives the maximum for a worker retiring at full retirement age: $4,188 a month in 2027 and $4,152 in 2026. Its table of workers with maximum-taxable earnings gives the benefit by age for a retirement in January of the year: for 2027, $3,094 at 62, $4,188 at 67 and $5,358 at 70.
For 2026 the figures by age are $2,969 at 62, $4,207 at 67 and $5,181 at 70. The figure at 67 is lower in 2027 because the two workers have different full retirement ages. A worker retiring at 67 in January 2026 was born in 1959, past a full retirement age of 66 and 10 months, so the benefit includes two months of delayed retirement credits: two months at 8% a year on $4,152 comes to about $4,207 (Dalsna Finance calculation). A worker retiring at 67 in January 2027 has only just reached a full retirement age of 67, so there are no credits to add.
The figures on this page are the programme-wide parameters. Your own benefit depends on your specific earnings record. With a my Social Security account you can get your Social Security Statement, review your earnings history and estimate the benefits you could receive at different ages.
This page is general information about how the rules work, not financial advice, and nothing here accounts for your tax position, health, marital status or other income. Those factors change the answer, and the decision of when to claim is worth discussing with a qualified adviser.
The cost-of-living adjustment for 2027 is 3.6%, beginning in January 2027, after 2.8% for 2026. SSA announced it on October 14, 2026, and says it adds $75 a month to the average retirement benefit. It compounds, because each year's adjustment is applied to the already-adjusted benefit.
Full retirement age is 67 for anyone born in 1960 or later, and 66 and 10 months for those born in 1959. Claiming at full retirement age pays 100% of your calculated benefit.
Claiming at 62, the earliest age available, reduces the benefit by roughly 30% for someone whose full retirement age is 67. Waiting past full retirement age instead adds about 8% a year until 70, around 24% in total.
SSA puts the maximum at $4,188 a month at full retirement age in 2027, up from $4,152 in 2026. Its table shows $3,094 at 62 and $5,358 at 70 for a January 2027 retirement. Reaching it requires earnings at or above each year's taxable wage base ($192,300 for 2027) for 35 years.
Figures sourced from Social Security Administration, SSA — Retirement benefit amounts, SSA — Social Security Announces 3.6 Percent Benefit Increase for 2027 (press release, October 14, 2026), SSA — 2027 Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) Fact Sheet, SSA — Contribution and benefit base, SSA — Workers with Maximum-Taxable Earnings, SSA — Benefit reduction for early retirement, SSA — Delayed retirement credits, SSA — Cost-of-living adjustment history, SSA — How benefit amounts are computed, SSA — Latest Cost-of-Living Adjustment, SSA — my Social Security.
Figures on this page apply to the years stated beside them and were last checked against the source publications on . This page is general information, not financial, tax or legal advice.