Social Security calculator: how to estimate my benefits with COLA increase in 2024?
With the SSA announcing an 3.2 percent COLA, many are wondering how to calculate their new benefit amount.
The Social Security Adminstration has announced that in 2024, beneficiaries of programs under their jurisdiction, most notably Social Security, will see the value of their benefits increase by 3.2 percent. Last year, the COLA broke recent records, increasing benefits by 8.7 percent as inflation rattled the US and global economy. The fact that a COLA is being offered this year means that while prices have slowed their growth, they are still rising, cutting into the purchasing power of seniors, many of whom live on a fixed income.
How to calculate your increase in benefits
In order to calculate your benefit amount, multiply 1.032 by your current benefit amount. For instance, if your monthly payment is $1,840, the current average payment for retired workers according to the SSA’s monthly snapshot in August 2023, we would multiply that figure by 1.032, which equals almost $1,899, an increase of nearly $59.
When will the 2024 COLA be applied to benefits?
Social Security recipients will not see their first payment with the 2024 COLA applied until January. For workers who retired before May 1997, their first COLA applied payment will arrive on 3 January. Other retirees receive their payments on Wednesdays each month, but the date depends on their date of birth.
When will the first Social Security benefits with the 2024 COLA applied arrive?
- Those born between the 1st and 11th will receive their first COLA applied payment on 10 January;
- those born between the 12th and the 20st will reeive their first COLA applied payment on 17 January; and
- those born between the 21st and 31st will recceive their first COLA applied payment on 24 January.
Supplemental Security Income recipients, typically paid on the first of each month, will see larger payments starting in December since the first of January is a national holiday.
How much will the average monthly payment increase?
The average Social Security benefit sent in August 2023 was $1,840.27. Given the 2023 COLA increase of 3.2 percent, the average benefit could reach $1,899 in January.
For those who receive Social Security Disability Insurance, the average monthly payment was $1,486.83, which will be bumped up to nearly $1,534.
Compared to these other programs, the average benefit for Supplemental Security Income, 674.36, was much lower and, based on the 2024 COLA, could rise to almost $696.