First Social Security Payments of 2025 With 2.5 Percent Increase Coming Soon

The payments will reflect a cost of living adjustment due to inflation.

Blank Social Security checks are run through a printer at the US Treasury printing facility in Philadelphia, Pa. William Thomas Cain/Getty Images

The first Social Security retirement payments for 2025 will be sent out next week, reflecting an increase of 2.5 percent owing to the most recent cost-of-living adjustment (COLA).

In October 2024, the Social Security Administration (SSA) announced the COLA, representing the smallest increase in about four years. The adjustment is made in light of inflation for the previous three months.