4 Things to Know About Highest Social Security Cost-of-Living Increase in Decades

Many people wait until 70 to draw their first Social Security check. Lane V. Erickson/Shutterstock

Social Security payments will increase by an average of more than $140 per month after the Social Security Administration (SSA) announced the largest cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) since the early 1980s.

The COLA will increase by 8.7 percent for 2023, the SSA confirmed on Oct. 13. But not all federal retirees will see that amount added to their checks. Those in the Federal Employee Retirement System will receive a 7.7 percent COLA starting in January.