Social Security Calculator: How to estimate your benefits with the COLA increase in 2024
The Social Security Administration has announced that the COLA increase for 2024 will be 3.2%. Here’s how you can calculate your benefits for next year.
After many predictions and months of waiting, the Bureau of Labor Statistics finally announced the increase to the Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA).
The Social Security Administration (SSA) makes an annual increase in monthly payments through the COLA. This increase is made based on changes around the Consumer Price Index for Salaried Workers in Urban Areas and Administrative Workers (CPI-W). Its main objective is to avoid the loss of purchasing power for beneficiaries when inflation is high.
The CPI-W is an indicator that reflects how much the prices of products and services have increased throughout the year. SSA compares the CPI-W for the third quarter of the current year with that of the third quarter of the previous year. In this way, it is determined how much prices have increased and the result of the comparison will be equivalent to the increase in the COLA.
The COLA increase for 2024 payments will be 3.2%. But what does this mean? How much will your payments increase? Below we explain how you can calculate your benefit.
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Social Security Calculator: How to estimate your benefits with the COLA increase in 2024
With the 3.2% increase, the average payment of a retired worker for 2024 will increase by approximately $57, which leaves the checks for next year at an average of $1,885.
This is only an approximate amount, which means that the exact number varies depending on the personal situation of each beneficiary. Here is a simple formula with which you can calculate the increase in your payments for 2024: multiply the figure of your current benefits by 1.032.
Regarding SSI payments, for this year, the maximum possible is $914 for an individual and $1,371 for a married couple in which both receive benefits from the program. With the COLA increase of 3.2%, the payments would be $943 and $1,414.80, respectively.
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According to the official statement, Social Security will begin notifying people of their new benefit amounts by mail starting in early December. The increase in payments applies to the more than 71 million Social Security beneficiaries and will be reflected automatically starting from the first checks of 2024.