Retirement Social Security

If Your Social Security Check Is $2,200, Here’s How Much More You’ll Get in 2026

How changing Social Security rules impacts your benefit.

By Katy Willis

Edited by Laura Hohenstein

Updated Dec. 10, 2025

You watch your $2,200 Social Security deposit hit every month and plan your bills around that number. With the 2.8% cost-of-living (COLA) increase, your new benefit will be a bit higher in 2026.

It's easy to assume you'll see that full 2.8% increase in your monthly deposit. But that's not necessarily the case. Medicare, taxes, and other rules can eat into that raise.

Avoid making an expensive retirement money mistake by knowing what changes 2026 brings and how it impacts your overall retirement budget.

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How the 2026 COLA works

Social Security gives an automatic cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA, most years. For 2026, federal law triggered a 2.8% increase in Social Security and Supplemental Security Income payments. It's based on inflation measured through the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W).

That 2.8% raise applies to the benefit you're entitled to for December 2025, which is the payment you receive in January 2026, or on December 31, 2025 for SSI.

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What a $2,200 check turns into in 2026

If your current gross Social Security benefit is $2,200 a month before deductions or withholding, a 2.8% COLA means your gross benefit becomes $2,261.60. That's roughly $61.60 per month. Over a full year of payments, that's about $740 more in gross benefits.

The average retired worker's base benefit is $2,015, rising to $2,071 after the COLA, giving them an increase of about $56 per month in gross benefits. These are just examples, though. Your amount could be more or less than the average or the $2,200 example.

Your own base benefit amount is based on your highest-earning 35-year work record. You can find out your actual amount by checking your COLA notice in your "my Social Security" account.

Why your deposit may not be as much as you're expecting

You might notice that your net deposit doesn't go up by the full amount you expected. One big reason is Medicare Part B. The standard Part B premium is increasing from $185 in 2025 to $202.90 for 2026. The annual Part B deductible is also rising from $257 to $283. The premium increase alone eats close to a third of your COLA raise.

If you had higher earnings in 2024, you may also have to pay income-related surcharges, or income-related monthly adjustment amount (IRMAA) surcharges. If you face IRMAA charges for both parts B and D, that is also taken directly from your gross benefit before it hits your bank account.

On top of that, many people have federal income tax voluntarily withheld from their benefits at 7%, 10%, 12%, or 22%. Each of these deductions from your gross benefit can significantly shrink the net deposit that you'll see in your account.

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How work and taxes can change what you see

If you're under full retirement age (FRA) and still working, the retirement earnings test can temporarily reduce your monthly payments. In 2026, you can earn up to $24,480 for the year if you're under full retirement age before any benefits are withheld. Above that, Social Security holds back $1 for every $2 you earn. But in the year you reach FRA, you have a higher earnings limit of $65,160, with $1 withheld for every $3 over that amount until the start of the month you reach FRA.

Those withheld amounts can make it look like your raise disappeared, even though your underlying benefit is still growing in the background. Once you hit your full retirement age, the earnings test goes away, and your benefit adjusts upward to give you credit for the months when you had earnings withheld.

Federal income tax can also cut into the raise if you owe on your benefits. You can choose to have no tax withheld, or to have a portion of your check sent straight to the IRS instead. This is another decision that can have a big impact on what actually lands in your bank each month.

What you should do before the new year

Be proactive, sign in to your "my Social Security" account, and look at your COLA notice. Make sure you understand the gross amount, how much you'll lose in deductions, and the net deposit you'll receive.

If your base benefit looks smaller than you thought, check your earnings record and make sure there's no missing or under-reported amounts in your top 35, as this can have a big impact. If you see IRMAA deductions but your income has dropped significantly since 2024 following a major life event, it's worth appealing with form SSA-44.

If Medicare premiums or tax withholding are eating most of your raise, look at your broader tax picture and health coverage. Check whether a Medicare Savings Program in your state might help with premiums. You may also want to consider adjusting your voluntary tax withholding if it no longer matches your tax obligations.

Bottom line

The 2.8% COLA won't significantly improve your finances as the cost of everyday services keeps rising, but it does go some way to protecting your purchasing power. Knowing exactly how much you'll receive in January, before and after deductions, lets you budget to maximize your senior benefits.

Think about where you can put that extra money to the best use. Maybe you need to start building or bolstering a small emergency fund. Or perhaps you need to pay down some debt. Give every one of those extra dollars a job.

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