Social Security Payments To Increase In January: What PA Residents Should Know

PENNSYLVANIA — Social Security recipients in Pennsylvania will see a boost in their January deposits as the 2026 cost-of-living adjustment takes effect.

The 2.8 percent COLA means higher payments for about 75 million Americans starting in January, or December for Supplemental Security Income recipients. The average Social Security recipient will see a monthly increase of about $56, increasing monthly benefits from roughly $2,015 to $2,071.

There were 326,614 Social Security recipients in Pennsylvania. In 2024, they were paid $244.04 million. Recipients include:

• 86,992 who are over the age of 65,
• 298,700 who are blind or disabled,
• 53,156 who are under age 18, and
• 94,054 who receive SSI benefits.

When Will Payments Be Made?

SSI payments were scheduled to go out on Wednesday, Dec. 31. Because New Year’s Day is a federal holiday, the Social Security Administration pays SSI on the last business day of the prior month. The maximum federal SSI payment for a single person increases to $994 in 2026.

The Jan. 2 scheduled date for payments for those receiving both Social Security and SSI was also adjusted because Jan. 3 falls on a Saturday. Long-term and older recipients who started receiving benefits before May 1997 and enrolled under earlier Social Security rules were also scheduled to be paid that day.

Other recipients will see payments based on their birthdays on the second, third and fourth Wednesdays of each month. Here’s when payments will arrive:

• Jan. 14: People with birthdays between the first and 10th of their birth months;
• Jan. 21: People with birthdays between the 11th and 20th of their birth months;
• Jan. 28: People with birthdays between the 21st and 31st of their birth months.

Medicare Costs Go Up

The government bases the annual Social Security increase on the Consumer Price Index from the third quarter of 2024 through the third quarter of 2025. The increase reflects inflation and affects both Social Security and SSI, although rising Medicare Part B costs offset some of the relief.

Nearly one-third of the average increase will be eaten up by the premium increases for Part B, which jumped by $17.90 to $202.90 a month, effectively reducing the average retiree’s $56 COLA to about $38 a month before other costs.

Older Workers Can Earn More

The COLA is not the only change in Social Security benefits in 2026.

People who want to collect benefits before reaching the full retirement age can only earn a limited amount of income before they risk having benefits withheld. The Social Security Administration raised the “earnings test,” meaning they can now make up to $24,480 annually before the Social Security Administration begins temporarily withholding some benefits.

This higher threshold — up from $23,400 in 2025 — means older Americans who are still working can earn more income while continuing to receive their monthly retirement or survivor payments.

On income beyond $24,480, $1 in Social Security will be withheld for every $2 earned.

• Read more: Social Security COLA Does Little To Improve Some Recipients’ Lives