COLA Increase 2025 Calculator: Most recently, the cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) measure for people on Social Security, retired military members, and other groups has gone up a lot, faster than the rate of inflation over the past year.
This means that the increase for retirees might be bigger than the 3.2% they’ll get in 2024. There will be 2.6% growth in 2025, though, which is about the same as the average over the last ten years but less than the last three changes.
“We are closely monitoring the trend in the index to provide our members with insights into their future finances,” said a spokesperson from the Military Officers Association of America (MOAA). “Many of our members rely on COLA adjustments from various sources, so it’s important for them to stay informed about potential changes.”
For its members, many of whom get COLA from the Department of Defense (DoD), Veterans Affairs (VA), and Social Security, MOAA keeps track of these numbers. Interestingly, the COLA rise does not automatically apply to VA benefits.
Congress has already suggested cutting or doing away with COLA for payments received by military retirees. Although there are presently no such ideas in the works, legislators may look for additional funding sources due to concerns about mounting debt and tighter budgets.
“We’ve seen proposals in the past that aimed to change how the COLA is calculated or even eliminate it,” a spokeswoman said. “These changes could significantly impact those on fixed incomes, including military retirees and VA disability recipients.”
In 2025, retirees and seniors can enjoy a slight boost in COLA
A proposed modification that has been considered could be changing the Consumer Price Index that is used to calculate COLA. This could lead to significant savings, but the people who depend on the annual adjustment would lose out. “It’s a significant amount of money, but we must advocate for our members and work with other advocacy and veterans groups to ensure that any proposed changes are fair and considerate of those who have served our country,” stated the spokesman.
2025 COLA Benefits: Here’s How Much the Average Benefit Could Go Up at 62, 67, and 70
Many years ago, MOAA paid close attention to these ideas and formed partnerships with other veterans and rights groups to protect the rights of military retirees and other COLA recipients.
If the government used the CPI-E, benefits would go up a little more; the 2.6% COLA would turn into a 2.8% COLA. People have been asking the government to make this change for years, but they haven’t.
COLA over the last decade: 2025-2024
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