A $4,000/month Social Security check after the 2026 COLA
Gross monthly benefit from January 2026
$4,112
+$112 a month gross. After the Part B premium, $3,909 lands — +$94 against last year.
- Gross increase
- +$112+$1,344 a year
- Medicare Part B
- $202.90up +$18
- What actually lands
- $3,909+$94 a month
The ledger, line by line
| 2025 | 2026 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross monthly benefit | $4,000 | $4,112 | +$112 |
| Medicare Part B premium | $185.00 | $202.90 | +$18 |
| Net monthly payment | $3,815 | $3,909 | +$94 |
| Annual gross | $48,000 | $49,344 | +$1,344 |
| Annual net | $45,780 | $46,908 | +$1,128 |
The raise you were told about, and the raise you got
The announced adjustment was 2.8%. Measured against what actually reaches the bank account, this benefit rose 2.46%. The difference is the Part B premium, which rose +$18 at the same turn of the year and consumed 15.98% of the increase.
The same calculation run across the whole benefit ladder shows how sharply that share varies with the size of the check — it is not a fixed haircut.
Where $4,000 sits
SSA publishes the retired-worker population by monthly benefit amount in $100 bands. A $4,000 benefit falls in the 3,300.00 or more band, which holds 4,090,673 retired workers. About 91.9% of retired workers receive less than $3,300 a month. The published average retired-worker benefit in the same table is $1,975.34.
Why the ladder steps in $100
The step is the source data’s, not ours. SSA’s distribution table is published in $100 bands and no finer table exists, so the rungs follow the bands rather than being chosen to produce a page count. This is stated as a rule in the methodology.
Hold harmless does not bind here
The provision caps the Part B increase where the dollar adjustment is smaller than it. In 2026 that break-even sits at $639.29 a month of benefit, and this amount clears it, so the full standard premium of $202.90 applies. How the cap works, and where it binds.
Try your own amount
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General information, not financial, tax, legal or benefits advice. Figures show what published rates and formulas produce for the amounts you enter; your actual payment depends on your earnings record, claim age, withholding and Medicare status. COLA Ledger is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Social Security Administration, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, CMS or any U.S. government agency. Confirm your figures with SSA or your my Social Security account.
- Gross after the COLA
- $4,112+$112 a month
- Part B premium
- $202.90was $185.00
- What actually lands
- $3,909+$94 a month
- Effective net raise
- 2.46%headline COLA 2.8%
The Part B increase consumed 15.98% of the raise. Over a year the gross rises by $1,344 and the net by $1,128.
See the full ledger page for a $4,000 monthly benefit — the nearest rung on the published benefit ladder.
Looking at 2027
Projection — not an announced figure
Projection based on 0 of 3 third-quarter 2026 CPI-W months. September 2026 CPI-W — the month that determines the COLA — is released 08:30 ET Wednesday 14 October 2026.
Measured against the third-quarter 2025 CPI-W average of 317.265. Each row states the assumption that produces it.
| If | Adjustment | Gross would become |
|---|---|---|
| CPI-W holds at its 2026-06 level of 327.075 through September. | 3.1% | $4,239 |
| Each unpublished month grows at the geometric mean monthly change over the 12 months to 2026-06. | 3.7% | $4,264 |
| Each unpublished month grows at the geometric mean monthly change over the 3 months to 2026-06. | 3.9% | $4,272 |
These are not forecasts and no third party’s model is involved. They are the arithmetic of the published months plus one stated assumption about the months that are not published yet. The full projection, updated within hours of every CPI release.
The 2027 Medicare premium does not exist yet
CMS announces the following year’s Part B premium in mid-November, a month after the adjustment is announced. Until it does, no net 2027 figure can be honest, and this site will not publish an estimate of it. The 2026 net of $3,909 is the comparison to hold in mind. Why the two announcements are a month apart.
Common questions
Does a $4,000 benefit really only gain +$94 a month?
The gross benefit gains +$112 once the 2.8% adjustment is applied and floored to the whole dollar. The Part B standard premium rose from $185.00 to $202.90 over the same turn of the year, and that increase comes straight out of the payment. What lands is $3,909 against $3,815 — +$94 a month, or +$1,128 over the year.
Why is the raise 2.46% and not 2.8%?
The headline adjustment applies to the gross benefit. The premium is deducted after it, and the premium went up too. Measured on what actually reaches the bank account, the increase is 2.46% — the Part B increase consumed 15.98% of the raise.
Is the Part B premium the same for everyone?
No. $202.90 is the standard premium. Anyone whose 2024 modified adjusted gross income crossed the first income-related threshold pays more, on a six-tier ladder that runs to $689.90 a month. The figures on this page use the standard premium.
What happens to a $4,000 benefit in 2027?
The 2027 adjustment is not determined until the September 2026 CPI-W is published, and 0 of the three third-quarter months are in. Nothing on this site states a 2027 figure without the assumption that produces it printed alongside.
Nearby amounts and the rest of the ledger
- $3,900one rung down
- $4,100one rung up
- All amounts46 rungs
- The 2026 COLA2.8%
- Part B 2026$202.90
- 2027 projection0 of 3 months
Sources and freshness
- SSA Office of the Chief Actuary — Cost-of-Living Adjustments — verified 10 August 2026
- Federal Register — Medicare Program; Medicare Part B Monthly Actuarial Rates, Premium Rates, and Annual Deductible Beginning January 1, 2026 — verified 10 August 2026
- Federal Register — Medicare Program; Medicare Part B Monthly Actuarial Rates, Premium Rates, and Annual Deductible Beginning January 1, 2025 — verified 10 August 2026
- SSA Annual Statistical Supplement 2025, Table 5.B6 — retired-worker beneficiaries by monthly benefit — verified 10 August 2026
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — CPI-W (CWUR0000SA0), all items, U.S. city average, not seasonally adjusted — verified 10 August 2026
Computed with the same engine that produces every figure on colaledger.com: benefits floor to the whole dollar after the adjustment, premiums are exact to the cent, and nothing is rounded twice.
Figures effective January 2026. Page figures last verified against the sources above on 10 August 2026. BLS data retrieved 10 August 2026. BLS.gov cannot vouch for data or analyses derived from these data after retrieval. Corrections: the correction log · support@inventum.com.au